Date: 2016-08-23
From: Katahdin Stream Campground - Mile 2,183.9

To: Mt. Katahdin Summit - Mile 2,189.1
Miles today: 5.3
Weather: broken clouds

It's 4:30 a.m. as I begin writing about yesterday's Mt. Katahdin summit hike. I am already dismissing the agony experienced during the hike so I want to write about it now. The summit hike was a beast. It was so much more difficult than I ever imagined it would be. I was humbled by it and said out loud more than once that I didn't belong on such a hike. This summit "hike" contained a challenging rock climbing section that was way beyond my comfort zone. I dreaded the thought of having to get down this same way after enduring this climb. I was very lucky to have Beth with me because she was a positive force all day long. I feel badly that she had to complete such a difficult hike in order to be with me at Mt. Katahdin's summit. My difficulty today probably wasn't shared by most who made the climb on this picture-perfect day. We saw many who nimbly climbed the section that troubled and exhausted me. My fear of falling got me good. I marveled at the children who passed me with sheer enjoyment. I feel very lucky that Beth and I are just tired and that we didn't get hurt. It took us a little more than 10 hours to complete the hike. Beth drove Subman, Suds, Spirit of 76, and me to Katahdin Stream Campground, where we'd begin the summit hike. Cars were already ahead of us when we got there at 5:45. It took 45 minutes to get through the gate and drive the dirt road to park. It was wonderful to be in the car with these trail family who began to know each other back in Georgia on February 16th. The hike began innocently enough with a flat, dirt-based section of trail. The gurgling sounds and sights of Katahdin Stream Falls were enthusiastic on the way up and comforting on the way down. The rocks on the trail became boulders as the trail became steeper. Stretching to climb became somewhat of the norm while we were below tree line. Beth and I laughed as a couple behind us came through a side route instead of climbing the boulders that required our struggle and contemplation of just how we were getting up and over them.Today's wind was significant and we were grateful that it seemed to always blow us into the mountain. Once above tree line, the trail required a bit of everything from us. There were stretches that initially exceeded the lengths we could stretch. We strained to find crevices or indentions in the boulders that would adequately accept a foothold or our fingers that quickly became scraped. There were places during the ascent that we could carefully stand and walk or shimmy to move up and forward. During the descent, these same sections found us butt-sliding and straining to find five points of contact instead of three. We were more than willing to shred our clothes on these boulders if that's what it took to safely descend. We gladly let faster hikers pass us and many more passed us on the way down than those who passed us on the way up. That one guy who hiked with us Mom amazingly remained upright both ways and attributed his ability to his strong sense of balance, while we realized that the strength of his core and entire body also contributed to his agility. We watched and followed hikers in order to find the best way to maneuver and advance. This hike was without a doubt my most mentally challenging hike of the AT. Squirrel yelled to us as we finished the climbing section and began the final hike on the tableland section. The tableland section took longer to complete than we imagined it would and there was a bit of elevation at its end to reach the summit and that famous Katahdin sign. Cruise Director, first, and then Bald Whistler, a bit later, congratulated us and told us we were almost there as they passed us on their way down. The first cheer as we summited was from Spirit of 76 and then I heard Suds too. I saw them wave and cheer us on and Subman extended his hand of congratulations. There were so many more people at the summit than I ever expected to be, but my turn came to be photographed at the summit's sign. I will always cherish those moments and the sign photos with Spirit of 76, Subman, and Suds. I got a picture there with Beth too. I was glad that we noticed the huge cairn that Subman said was the location to place small stones carried from Springer Mountain. I gladly removed one of mine from my bear bag, where I stored them throughout this hike, and added it to the cairn. Doing this triggered my plan and I had Beth take a picture of me enjoying an Atomic Red Hot piece of candy that was purchased to specifically acknowledge Fresh Ground in this summit moment. I was glad that we were there to enjoy Arachne's summit celebration and congrstulate Forrest as he summited.The sun was out all day but the temperature and wind was such that we were never overwhelmed by heat. Jackets were required at the summit when our our bodies no longer were working and generating heat. It was too cold to eat lunch at the summit so we ate at the end of the tablelands, before beginning the challenging descent. We were glad to escape the wind when we finally hiked below tree line. The jackets were no longer required there and the coolness of the day was refreshing as today's hike wound down. The benefit of hiking slower than friends is that they are there to cheer you. And we received those cheers as this hike ended. We all spoke of how tired we were and showed this hike's battle scars in the forms of scraped or bloodied legs. I will never hike to Mt. Katahdin's summit again and am grateful that Beth's support, the support of my trail family, and my desire to complete an AT thru-hike enabled reaching Mt. Katahdin's summit today.