Lincoln, N.H. Mile 389

Hello from Lincoln!
Just a quick update from the local library. We had been planning on just picking up some groceries and continuing on down the trail, but we got rained out of the woods this morning. By the time we got to the road everything was soaked and all we wanted was a place to dry out. We have been on the trail over 4 weeks now and have come almost 400 miles.

Climbing Madison

We survived the Whites!
The views are supposed to be amazing, and I'm sure they are, but it was so foggy we couldn't tell. We climbed for a looooong time, spent three days hiking among the mountains up there in the fog, and finally dropped down into the sun in the valley yesterday. We had great weather considering. No wind, which is remarkable, and warm temps. The average temperature on Mt. Washington is 29 something, and winds reach hurricane force about 104 days a year. So, we were lucky!

hiking in the fog...

Huts
The Appalachian Mountain Club provides a number of fantastic "huts". And to accomodate us thru-hikers they offer a work-for-stay option. We tried this at three different huts and it was amazing. We stacked firewood, cleaned the kitchen, and scrubbed walls in return for all we could eat of absolutely delicious dinners and breakfasts. The hut caretakers are fantastic cooks, especially considering that everything has to be packed in at least 3 miles, sometimes 6.

waterfall in the trail

 Moving on...
Now that we have made it through the tough Southern third of Maine, and most of the big climbing in New Hampshire, we are hoping for some smoother trail and higher mile days. We have been hearing that it levels off after the Whites so we are looking forward to some cruising!  

Franconia Ridge



Swam in the lake, felt so good!

one of the AMC "huts"

A typical AT shelter

 We are holding up well. Our gear is showing some expected wear and tear, but still going. We will enjoy some town food tonight, and tomorrow... keep walking.

P.S. If you would like to contact us my email is tseavey08@hotmail, and if you send me your address we will send you a postcard from somewhere on the trail. Happy last day of September!

Gorham, NH - Mile 297.9



Heading over the hills



Caio Maine! One state down, 13 to go...

We walked into Gorham yesterday and took our first real zero mile day today. Well, we still ended up walking all over town doing errands and what not, but without packs on it felt great! And the all-you-can-eat Chinese was delicious. Our appetites are rapidly increasing, and it is amazing how much we can eat throughout the day. As we read in one book, walking the AT is a great weight loss reduction program... only, we are trying to minimize any further weight loss.

Scrambling through boulders in the infamous Mahoosuc Notch. Just follow the arrows.

Rock Ledges

Trail up the mountain



Life on the trail is becoming more of a routine. We are usually up early, the alarm goes off around 5:30(depending on how many miles we want to get done for the day) and we start walking shortly after daylight. Breakfast consists of a big pot of hot oatmeal with raisins and maple syrup- so good! We eat a lot of snacks throughout the day- nuts, dried fruit, homemade snackbars, etc. And soon after getting into camp for the night we cook up a big dinner.



Hard to tell, but this is really steep.



Recently, we have been building more fires for cooking, or camping with other people who build great fires, and have met some neat hikers along the way. The best fire so far was with a family of five(homeschooled kids) out on a tough four day trip through the mountains.  Part of the AT culture includes trailnames. Everybody out here is introduced by a trailname instead of a given name. Some are comical, some slightly innapropriate, some really good. Tyrell is Jumper!(after his boat) and I am Itchyfeet. We have seen Ace, Door Mouse, Cheeseburger, Tabasco, Suicidal, Redstick, Calculator, Doc, Golden Ray(deaf; was happy to be able to talk to Tyrell), Strider, Squash, Dead Man Walking, Cheese, Dread, Mofo, Papa Smurf, Stumbler, and many more!


On Baldpate Mtn. My favorite peak so far, and on a beautiful day.

Leaving Gorham we will be entering the Whites for a week of big mountain climbing, including Mt. Washington. The mountains have notoriously bad weather and record high winds, but the area is a big tourist destination, so there are restaurants, huts, and shops along the way. Anyhow, the Whites are probably the most talked about section on the AT and we are excited to see them!



Beginning fall colors!



Rangeley, ME - Mile 220

Day 17,

We are back in town! Enjoyed fresh salads and pizza, sleeping in, homemade bagels, and a little shopping at the small town outfitters.

During the last week we climbed six mountains with peaks over 4,000 feet, and many slightly shorter ones. I have to admit that we under-estimated the mountains around here. It was some intense climbing.

After leaving Monson we had some great trail; fairly level, easy going, and we even made 20.7 miles one day. The weather has been cooler, a lot of fog and light rain showers. Have had to ford a few rivers, but no problems- the water levels have been low. Crossing the Kennebec was fun. The MATC provides a daily canoe ferry because the river often rises over three feet in half an hour from dam releases. So, we got to meet Hillbilly Dave, our canoe guide. He was a character, as his name suggests.

After the Kennebec, we hiked through the pine forest alongside a creek with many deep pools and falls carved in the rocks. A very pretty section. We camped that night beside a lake, but too cold to go swimming : (

And then we got into the mountains. First were the Bigelows, two consecutive peaks which are supposed to have amazing views. On the day we were up there though it was so foggy and rainy we couldn't see a thing. It was steep up and steep down, but we still made over 15 miles that day. We crossed the highway 5 miles from Stratton and decided to hitch into town for dinner. Very hungry and worn out! Got filled up and bought more snacks for the next few days. We ended up getting a ride back to the trailhead after dark and just camped in the parking lot.

The next two days were tough. The trail does not go in a straight line, more like a circle over all the highests peaks in the area. We went up and over, way down into the valleys, up over some more- all day. Meeting lots of Northbounders along the trail, and in the mountains everybody wants to stop and chat. We have certaintly met all sorts! And I finally saw a moose, after 200 miles!

The Saddlebacks were awesome. We hiked above treeline for 3 miles and it was blowing like crazy, at least 50mph. It very nearly blew us off the ridge; it was difficult just to walk straight down the trail. We even got hailed on up there. It was clear enough for us to see where we had been and where we were going though. I'm still amazed that you can walk that far in a day...

We are still holding up pretty well. Lots of sore feet at the end of the day, sore shoulders, large appetites, lots of sleep. Still wake up feeling great. Food takes on a different value. Trail snacks become prized possesions, anything homemade is premium. Liking the terriyaki almonds, dried pineapple, cashews, Clifbars, and chocolate. Still walking.

Monson, ME - Mile 114.5

Day 10, a rest day.
We survived the "hundred mile wilderness" and arrived in Monson early yesterday afternoon, on Tyrell's birthday! Was fun to check into the hostel, shower, and go out for a good meal.
Our AT trip started on August 31st with a climb to the summit of Katahdin- Baxter Peak at 5,226ft. We were up early, wanting to get started before sunrise to avoid as much of the 90 degree heat as possible. And it was a heck of a climb. We spent about 8 hours on the mountain, Tyrell and I just carrying waterbottles while our sherpa for the day packed along 30lbs of tasty lunch and water(thank you Jim!). We scrambled and clawed our way up the mountain, over rocks and boulders and cliffs, following those little white blazes. Fortunately, there was a strong breeze above tree-line that kept us from cooking. Once on top we got our pictures, saw a group of just finishing Northbounders(they started way back in March!), and headed back down.

We said farewell to our last familiar face for a while, and camped at the base of the mountain in our first lean-to. We have been walking ever since. The heat was unexpected, temperatures stayed in the 80's and 90's for the first few days, until the hurricane blew through and we got soaked(which felt wonderful!). We are still in shorts and t-shirts though.
The trail has been rough; rocks, roots, deadfalls, bogs, hand-over-hand climbing, and way more ups and downs than we ever thought possible. Overall though we are getting along pretty well. Moving a lot slower than we thought, but covering more ground in a day than we expected-between 10 and 17 miles. A few minor blisters, a few sore shoulders, sore knees. Tyrell carved me a pair of walking sticks after my knee cramped up and they have made a huge difference in getting down the hills.
Maine is beautiful. It is amazing to me the different landscapes we pass through in a single day. We climb mountains, swim in lakes, pass by waterfalls, follow rushing rivers, jump streams, climb more mountains, pass through pine forests, rain forests, leafy forests, more pine forests, more mountains...
Tyrell likes to say, " If you can see somewhere higher than where we are right now, thats where we are going".
So, here we are in Monson. Feeling good, happy with how everything is going so far. We picked up our first mailout box at the post office, full of tasty trail snacks and food, not too heavy. Jim and Claire left us a cheerful note and a bag of honey roasted peanuts hanging at the trailhead after the 100 mile wilderness, awesome! Our shoes are still in one piece, our gear is working well. We will keep walking.