Date: 2008-08-05
From: Carl A. Newhall Shelter

To: Cooper Brook Falls Shelter
Miles today: 18.9

holy guacamole! trail! i got to hike on trail!! wheeeeeeee!let me start at the beginning, or about 7:30 pm last night, once i was in bed....so it was raining, again, as we went to bed, and two hikers showed up - rabbit and tumbleweed. they were soaked and were so happy to find space available in the shelter. they told us the next two shelters(the next two northbound) were full. so it was good we didn't go on!! yay for us!they had fun stories to share of their attempt of the CDT this year, which had to be aborted due to the fact it was a big snow year, and they couldn't get across half the streams/rivers they needed to ford. so they came out here to hike...we got up about 5 and got ready to go... it was cold and damp, and everything was wet. it had stopped raining, but water was still dripping off trees. i had the pleasure of putting back on all my wet clothes from yesterday.... mmmmmm.... what a yummy feeling _that_ is. nothing quite gets you ready for the day like putting on wet underwear and shorts that are about 60 degrees. mmmmmmm...i got out first, about 6:30, and within 5 minutes, i slipped on a rock (maine rocks are slippery little buggers) and fell off the trail into the ferns, thank goodness it was soft, fluffy ferns, and not a pile of rocks. so i started being a little more careful about where i put my feet. the first thing on our hiking agenda was whitecap, which is comprised of 4 peaks. after each peak, you go down, and then climb the amount you just went down, plus some. what else? after all, this is maine.the guys caught up to me on the 2nd peak, and then we just stayed together after that. the climbs were steep, but not too bad, except for the wetness factor. oh yeah, and the tops of these mtns. are wet and muddy too. lots of puddles and mud holes. i thought water would drain off a mountain. whatever.. this is maine. i wouldn't be suprised to find a waterfall that ran uphill around here. we got to the top of whitecap, but it was all fogged in, so we just kept going down the other side. yay! that was our last big mountain until katahdin! the way down was cool too, the trail work crews were putting in tons of stone steps in the trail. thanks work crews! so as we came down the mountain, we found lots of mud (play-doh consistancy) but also trail... and... we had actual trail the rest of the way here. 11 miles of trail! it was so awesome.we made great time. we got in just around 3. we even had a river ford. not bad this time... just up to my knees. the trail from the ford to here was sweet... reminded us of maryland, but with extra roots.this shelter is nice. it's sitting right on cooper brook, with a large swimming hole right in front of the shelter (complete with large brown leeches) and just upstream, is a really pretty cascade. it makes for a nice sound. there are 3 of us in the shelter, thud is hammocking by the water, and there is a girls backpacking expedition tenting nearby... 14-16 year olds i would guess. summer camp.i broke another bootlace today. this time on my right boot. i had to tie it back together... it was at the river ford. i had my boots off, and tied to my pack, and as i swung my pack onto my back, my boots went flying off into the woods. the lace snapped at the front of the boot, which is wierd, but maybe not, since they have been wet for 3 weeks now. thank goodness it didn't snap when i was crossing the river. that would have suuuuucked.   so i am hoping that they can hold together for another 60 miles. please please please.not much else happened during the walk... no moose today, and not a lot of good scenery due to the fog and overcast skies. oh yeah! the sun came out this afternoon. it was amazing to see sun. and blue skies.yay!tomorrow we are shooting for a 30 mile day, since it is mostly flat terrain. it's not quite a full 30, but it will be my highest miles day so far. looking forward to it.ps - gobbles says hi