Day 165 - Abol Bridge to Katahdin Stream Campground

Really took our time in the morning. The day had dawned clear and cool. Got a cup of coffee at the camp store, ate egg sandwiches made by Smittee, let the gear dry out some. We all wandered back to the store around 11 for final supplies.

 

A few locals were standing, staring up at an old TV on top of the fridge. There were images of a plane crashing into a building, then an explosion. I thought I heard one of the men sniffling. The words 'terrorist attack' flashed at the bottom of the screen, then I heard the newscaster say that a second tower had been hit. All of a sudden I realized that this had not been an accident -- that someone on a suicide mission had flown the plane directly into a building -- killing everyone aboard, not to mention in the building and on the ground below. I was fighting back the tears and doing OK til I stepped outside.

We all stood around, kind of in shock. I just lost it and buried my head in Dave’s chest. It was all so awful to think about. All those people who had just gotten on a plane to go on vacation or a business trip; everyone who had just gone to work in the morning thinking it was an ordinary day… Very sad.

All of us were eager to get away from the evil and destruction and get back into the woods. Turned out to be a fantastic walk -- flat and wooded and green. Stopped for lunch by a river. Then we took a break by Little Niagara Falls. Pretty impressive.
 

 
Only a few more miles to Daicey Pond campground, where we’d find out if there were any openings at Katahdin Stream campground. We were in luck! There were just enough spots for all of us. So off we went.

Fiddlehead, Jeremiah Johnson, Mary Poppins, Blur, Longshanks, Leslie, and Smittee

Once we arrived, we found all the thru-hikers who had finished that day in the parking lot -- Rabbit and crew, plus Greenlight and Redneck. They were whooping it up with beer and champagne. You could see Katahdin from the parking lot, glowing orangy-pink in the light from the setting sun. It didn’t look small or far away anymore.

 
 

Smittee, Longshanks, Blur, and Greenlight

Smiles and Blur

Eventually we went off to find our sites. We were sharing with Smiles and Fiddlehead and Happy, who hadn’t arrived yet. Decided to do a night hike up Katahdin, leaving around 1:30 a.m., so we didn’t set up the tent. Didn’t cook dinner either, since we had done so much snacking.

I was really cold and climbed into my sleeping bag as soon as it got dark, wishfully thinking I’d catch a few ZZ’s. Didn’t happen. But at least I got some rest. Popped out of bed as soon as Fiddlehead’s alarm went off. Put on long underwear under my shorts, even though it didn't seem too cold. I knew we had thousands of feet yet to hike -- our biggest climb ever, saved for last.