It was chilly as I ate my horrible pop tarts and started my hike, and almost an hour of hiking before I took off my rain jacket. But other than the initial cold the weather was excellent.
I only had about 8 miles to hike before I reached the hostel, and it was not very hilly. The only real challenge was a river I needed to ford, and as someone on FarOut had commented that you could walk across the beaver dam, I tried that (after first taking off my socks and insoles). I got a bit of one foot wet but otherwise got across okay. That made me happy.
I arrived at the hostel around 11. It’s very nice, a bunch of different wooden buildings with tasteful landscaping. It’s designed to look like a 19th century western town. Puzzles gave me a tour of the bunk house I’m in, the kitchen, the lounge, and said he could take me into town any time. I showered, then spent some time figuring out how many days it might take me to reach Katahdin, and determined it was 6 of 7 days, and that their pickup bear box was located somewhere between my third night and fourth afternoon. So I needed to resupply for seven days.
Around noon Puzzles drive me the five minutes to town and dropped me off at the Munson General Store. I first ordered a vegetarian sandwich and bagel with cream cheese, then wandered the store and bought stuff. I was able to get everything I needed (although the staff had to show me the Knorr sides and ramen). Total cost $145, so say $125 without the lunch order. Expensive but not outrageous.
I ate at a table outside. Old School came out with some shopping bags of food, and we chatted about our plans. He thinks he can do it in 5 or 6, I am targeting 6 or 7, so it’s at least possible that I’ll sed him again. It’s funny how he’s faster than me and does longer days but I’ve been running unto him for probably two months.
After lunch I walked to the AT Conservancy office to get tips on the hundred mile wilderness and Katahdin. I got useful tips on a swimming hole, water supply, registering for the campsite at the foot of Katahdin and getting the park permit for the climb, the fact that I had to leave Baxter State Park the same day I summited, and the bus schedule from Millinocket to Bangor where I’ll fly home from.
I went to the ice cream shop and ordered a two scoop cone (ice cream isn’t cheap like it used to be in the US – I paid six bucks!).
I sat eating my ice cream, and another NOBO hiker, with a name something like Damage Under Control, sat opposite me. I’d seen him for the first tome this morning on the trail. We talked about weight loss on trail, the challenges of eating an ice cream cone when you have a bushy beard, and our itineraries to Katahdin.
I called Puzzles and left a message that I was ready to be picked up. He didn’t respond for a long time. I calmmled again and was about to text him when he texted that he was on his way.
It turns out that he had been sitting on the porch of the office when he heard a woman screaming in the woods. He ran off to see what was wrong, leaving his phone on the porch railing. He found a hiker who seemed to have torn a tendon or ligament in her ankle, and he wound up driving her to the nearest hospital. That’s why he didn’t respond.
Back at the hostel I met the only other guests, a mother and teenaged daughter from Quebec who were doing day hikes in the area. She talked about hiking rails to trails hikes, including Le Petit Train du Nord, which Sheila and I biked years ago. A while later she brought me a small cooking pot filled with Quebec cherries. Since I’d forgotten to buy any fruit at the general store, that was a pleasant surprise.
I organized my food into the stuff I’ll carry versus the stuff the hostel will put in their bear box. Puzzles saw me doing this on my cabin porch and asked if I had checked the hiker box before shopping. I had forgotten that he had mentioned when he gave me the tour, that the hiker box in the kitchen was full of food. Turns out I could have done almost half my resupply for free from food the neighbors had donated, but that’s okay, there are plenty of hikers on a tight budget who could use it. In any case I pigged out on TWO Knorr sides, a ramen, and three granola bars from the box, for my dinner.
Mile 2071.3 to mile 2079.9 = 7.6 miles. Under 120 miles left! (Not counting the fact that you have to hike DOWN Katahdin after you summit!)
