Date: 2014-06-25
From: Monson, ME

To: Stratton, ME
Miles today: 73.7

So upon hearing a group of SOBOs opining about the tough landscape we just worked our way through in the 100 mile wilderness Roadkill, one of the caretakers at Lake Shore House who completed her NOBO thru-hike last year, started chuckling. "Compared to the rest of Maine that was flat!" We all looked at her dumbfounded. That was not at all what we wanted to hear.Over the next few days though we soon discovered what she meant. I thrive on the uphills, and the flat bits too but they are few and far between. It is the downhills that are my kryptonite. The descents are typically steep (haven't they ever heard of a switchback?) and because of the topography here are really rocky which just about kills my knees. Without my awesome trekking poles to support me I don't know if I would be able to make it down sometimes. Don't get me wrong. Without the rocks I would just end of sliding down the mountains into a pile of mud at the bottom. Still though, I think the creators and maintainers of the AT purposely designed the trail to go over ever single bump and ridge possible.Leaving Monson the skies had parted and we were all looking forward to a day of great hiking, until Amanda (another hiker) jinxed us. It then became walking through long stretches of basically rivers where the water from the previous day's rain had all run to, three rivers fords, and then a surprise rain storm just to top it all off. I call that "let's see how wet Alexis can get" day. For that (and a couple of other times her words have come back to haunt her) I dubbed Amanda "Jinx."The following day I hiked a whopping two miles before coming to Bald Mountain Pond. It was absolutely breathtakingly gorgeous. As Jen (another hiker) said, "I am uninspired to leave." And so we didn't. We spent all day long there just relaxing. I went for a swim (albeit a brief one as the water was still pretty chilly) and then laid on a rock being warmed by the sun. No one talked much. Most of the day was spent just taking it all in. Then we made a big campfire and sat around telling stories and laughing. By far, that has been my favorite day so far on the trail. And that is the great thing about the trail. You have the total control to decide what your day is going to be like. You can wake up when your body is rested, go to bed when you are tired, eat when you are hungry, take a break wherever your heart desires, go as fast (or slow) as your feet will carry you. It is part of the allure of the trail, and I think what will make it hard to transition back to the "real world" after the journey ends. Most people stopped in Caratunk (a trail town in Maine 0.3 miles off the AT) but I chose to tent it stealth style in the woods instead to save money. Going to town is expensive and I'm on a budget! Stealth camping means that you are just setting up your tent in whatever small part of the woods you can fit into that is fairly flat with as few roots, rocks, etc. as possible. This is opposed to tenting in a designated tent or campsite (or shelter). I have had really good luck with finding stealth sites to crash (knock on wood) whenever I have been too tired to make it to the next shelter or when just trying to get as close to civilization as possible without having to pay to stay. Some of my stealth sites have been so good that hikers have walked right by me and not even noticed my little camp set up. Awesome sauce! Directly after this is the Kennebeck River. There are about 1300 postings up warning people not to attempt to ford this river but to use the free ferry service instead. Now I'm not sure what I was thinking about before, but the "ferry" is just a nice, snaggled toothed local who spends his days carting people back and forth across the river in a 16 foot canoe. And what's more you get to help row!I now have a trail name! Super exciting. Getting your trail name is like a right of passage on the trail, and I'm stoked about mine. MOXIE! That was my first trail magic (a can of Moxie soda-a Maine specialty) plus Jinx says I have a lot of it! I have been trying to live up to that and not be scared of all the crazy river fords, rock scrambles, ridge lines, etc. It is fun having a trail name. The first time I actually introduced myself as "Moxie" it felt a little weird. But now I have embraced it and love it. Having trail names actually makes it way easier to remember other hikers too. Regular old boring names will just fade since you meet so many people each day. The trail names stick out, especially when accompanied by an awesome "So how did you get your trail name?" story. Stopped in Stratton for the day to do laundry, shower (feels good to be clean if only for a few hours), post this, and resupply on food. I walked into town with just one bag of oat bran cereal left! I eat more than I do at home but don't feel that my "hiker's appetite" has quite kicked in yet. I made sure to have lunch before hitting the grocery store so I don't overbuy. There is always the balance between wanting lots of yummy food and knowing that you will have to carry all that on your back up and over lots of mountains. I'm hiking slow but steady. About another week in Maine and then I will embark on the Whites in NH! Keep you posted on my progress. Please keep me in your prayers! Thanks everyone for all the love and support. It means sooo much and helps keep me motivated. Happy trails!