Sunday, August 14th

Cooper Brook Falls Shelter (2134.6 mi) to Rainbow Stream Lean-To (2164.2 mi)

Hiking Miles: 29.6

Total Ascent: 3,082.7 ft

Total Descent: 3,005.9 ft

Total Grade: 205.7 ft/mi

Steps: 61,160

AL STEWART – Year Of The Cat

Gator/Sunrise: Today was one of those “epic” days where every step felt like it was a present moment, and the terrain was comparatively and pleasantly flat (200 ft/mi overall grade – easy peasy). Something I needed! And after thinking today would be a challenge due to the way I physically felt last evening, I was surprised that we completed almost 30 miles!

The paths and sights along the water were beautiful, and it was also comforting to know that if all went well with terrain, fords and weather, that we would be completing our incredible through hike in just two more days. At 1 pm, I needed to stop and eat lunch. I sat beside a large tree and rested while I slowly ate a tuna wrap, thinking that Croc would be catching up with me shortly. I figured that we would push as much as we could today, hopefully 30 miles to cut down on miles tomorrow, but more importantly reach Abol Bridge to sign up for a campsite. Currently, the plan was to finish on the 17th or 18th, worst case. The 16th was a stretch goal, especially whereas it would hinge on how I felt physically.

On one stretch through a wooded area, I came upon a lady headed towards me hiking southbound. She asked if I was a thru-hiker for which I replied “yes”. Then she immediately pointed out that Mount Katahdin was really hard, and that it was going to be tough for me. Really lady, I just hiked over 2100 miles to this point in less than four months, and most recently the Whites and Southern Maine. I sensed her frustration, manifested by her own thoughts regarding her hike, then replied “Not really, I’ve hiked it before”. Her face dropped realizing I was not going to feed into her negativity.

At 4:15 pm, I stopped to rest atop a steep hill on Nesuntabunt Mountain. It was a brutal rock climb, and I needed to rest and eat a snack to keep my energy and momentum up. Whereas I had great cell service, it was an ideal time to call Teresa. Croc had not yet caught up with me and I was getting slightly (not too much) concerned. Thankfully while I was chatting with Teresa, Croc surfaced to the top of the hill and headed my way. Needless to say we were both relieved since this was the latest time during any given day that Croc caught up with me. It was just a smooth moving day, and we decided to press another 6 miles and stay at the Rainbow Stream Lean-To.. There was only one other elderly gentleman staying in the shelter once again (different guy), and it was one of the more peaceful settings we stayed at.

Croc: Today was probably one of our physically best days on the trail and definitely Gator’s strongest days on the trail. And I thought he was sick! I didn’t catch him until 4:30 PM and that wasn’t because I was slow… he was just flying. He must have really wanted to get to Katahdin. I wonder if he could have made all 30 miles before me if he didn’t stop for breakfast and call Mom at night. To be honest, I was a bit worried I passed him when I wasn’t paying attention and maybe he went to a shelter to eat or go to the bathroom. That wasn’t the case. Gator was just crushing it today. I kind of wish we did 0.4 more miles to officially clock another 30 miler, but we can round up.

Otherwise, it was a really nice hike today. There were still maybe 5-6 rivers to ford, but it was sunny enough that my shoes dried quickly and flat enough that I didn’t get blisters from the ups and downs. I think I hit 15 miles by 11:00 AM, so I took a lunch break on a beautiful sandy beach. This would have been a fun spot to camp for the night as it would surely be cozy, but also secluded enough that it wouldn’t feel like a popular oceanside beach. All day I passed more and more lakes that had views of Katahdin, and it grew bigger and bigger the closer I got.

I also took a blue-blaze to a shelter to grab another lunch at 2:00PM. I thought maybe Gator stopped here for lunch since there was no other shelter in the vicinity and I still hadn’t found him. There were two other hikers in the shelter, but they were definitely day hikers. They were wearing cotton tank tops and cargo pants, which is a hiker outfit, but not if you’re planning multi-day hikes and expecting to get wet. I could only imagine the chafing.

I headed back on my way and received a text from Gator that he was a few miles ahead. When I did eventually catch him, I was blown away. He wanted to go 6 more miles! I was on board though because that just made us closer to Abol Bridge to sign up for the Birch Campsite early, and it allowed us to stay in a shelter tonight.

When we got to camp, we saw Snacks and Drinks again along with many other hikers opting to set up their tents in the nearby woods. Once again, we shared the shelter with one other person. I remember thinking, “What’s the chances we keep staying in a shelter with one other person or couple? We could have had the shelters to ourselves.” I mainly thought this because both Gator and I still slept with our food, but the day hikers and SOBOs were still new enough on trail that they would to hang up food in a tree (as we ethically should). So there was a little part of me feeling nervous they’d ask us to hung up our food, but fortunately it never happened.

We did end up staying by a river again, but it was getting late, so we decided not to take a swim since it was dark. I was getting kind of used to sleeping next to a river or lake every night. As mentioned in a previous blog, I felt bad for the SOBOs who start with all these incredible views, shelters, and lakes, only to then have to get blindsided by the southern shelters that had mice, bears, water sources sometimes 0.25 miles away (if at all), and a view of more trees.