Date: 2019-09-19
From: Birches Campground

To: Baxter Park Inn
Miles today: 5.3

5.3 miles 4193 ft up6 ft downSpecter of real lifeLast day of hiking today. Feels weird but fitting somehow. I think I'm ready for it to end.Woke up decently early and was sure to make a nice decent breakfast. Didn't want to skimp or be lazy on this day in particular; I know how much a good breakfasts affects the rest of the day's hike.Turns out that only three of us slept at the Birches overnight: Jellybean, Flip, and me. All folks I'd met pretty recently. Flip is the same guy who I stayed with at Hurd.Got of a bit later start than I would've liked - it was already pretty bright outside. There was a bridge out ahead, and a blue blazed trail to get around it. I decided against fording the river and took just the third blue blaze on this entire trip. I resigned myself to just hiking half the AT for the year, so I guess the idea of being a purist and hiking 100% white blazes went out the door. The only other blue blazes I took: 1) a detour around a deep beaver bog and 2) a blue blaze around the Bear Mountain zoo, since it was closed!While hiking along I already had thoughts of what life would be like after the trail. I hastily took this vaguely poetic note: "The shadows of the rising sun are slowly getting shorter, but the specter of real life is creeping back in, casting its own long shadows"The ascent started pretty gradually, not too bad at all really. I soon came across areas of the trail which were flooded, where the stream was the trail, in classic AT fashion. I had to laugh - the trail had truly become a character in this whole struggle, and had its characteristic qualities, one of them being "surprise! the trail is now a stream!"The Hunt trail got harder and more technical. Soon the rock hopping and scrambling turned into more technical bouldering, almost rock climbing. There was a particularly difficult section with small iron rungs for foot and handholds. Most of these turned out fine, except for one in particular which was difficult: an immediate squeeze after ascending an iron rung section, with bare rock and a steep drop to the left. I didn't see any better way to get up - I resigned myself to this fate and spread out onto the rock above to leave more of my surface area on the rock, creating more friction and less chance of falling. No holdholds...I somehow slithered my way forward under the rock, with the top of the rock scratching my pack. Maybe I should have slackpacked after all... Somehow I made it through though, and when it was safe I slowly and steadily stood up.This was the scariest part of the whole hike up and down, and I was shaking, just like in the Wildcats. Up ahead was plenty more scrambling uphill seemingly endlessly, but with beautiful clear vistas on either side of me, with lakes and mountains and greenery, way more spectacular than the Whites.After finally getting through the very rocky section and onto the flatter plateau, I could make out what turned out to be the final cairn up above. This was it - the final stretch! This area was as pleasant as could be except for the small rocks I was crushing below me.Up ahead were the two older gentlemen I'd seen at Shaw's and had run into a few times over the past few days, in the 100 miles wilderness, and at the Abol Bridge breakfast place. I never got their names, but one of them was with a leg brace and was graciously offering rides to a lot of through hikers passing by, including Jellybean, who was just coming down.I pushed on up ahead and gradually was able to make out small sticks moving around the cairn above. A group of people! That was the end for sure.Make it up and there was a giant group up top, a mix of day hikers and thru hikers. Soon more thru hikers came through - some 20 something party trail family that were having fun and an emotional end. I had seen some of their comments on Guthook and kind of wanted to steer clear of them. I guess I have never been into that... humbug! (All through this hike I have struggled with how to deal with other people in a positive and tolerant way... I suspect I have learned nothing)Snacked a bit and then headed back. Gathered some gross algae water from Thoreau Spring and then headed down Abol trail, which was more tedious than difficult. Turns out Abol is the name of a rockslide which the trail coincides with a large part of the way. As such it is the shortest way down... It also turns out that half of the rock slide trail became too hard to manage after constant subsequent rockfalls (who would've thought?!), so trail maintainers built an alternative path. As soon as that alternate path started, the trail became a bit easier. Then I really started cruising and my morale got boosted. Then treeline, and things smoothed out even more, as I'd hoped.Further and further down, then the trail became a stream again (one last time!), then it became a walk in the part when I had just a mile remaining.My parents, who had decided to fly up to meet me, decided the last minute to drive in to pick me up after all! When I was up at the top of Katahdin I got a text message from them saying they would drive into Abol campground to meet me! So I wouldn't have to hitchhike out after all.As usual I was slower than everyone else and not making good time... I got to my parents' car around 4:45pm or so and was very happy to see them! We drove into Millinocket, where they were staying, and had pizza for dinner.Truly the greatest challenge is ahead - reintegrating back and figuring out my place and my own goals in this crazy world. I hope to finish the other half (the easier half!) of the AT another time.