poison ivy
Well-known member
It’s hard to believe I set out this weekend on my final New England AT hike. For those who don’t know the story, I started hiking four years ago when a friend suggested that we hike Katahdin. I bought the AT Guide for Maine, spent hours staring at the profile map wondering where I would turn around on this giant mountain. However, I was able to haul myself up all those Hunt Trail boulders and stood on the summit for about 10 minutes before the June bugs chased us back down -- it felt like an incredible accomplishment.. That day, my obsession with hiking started -- and I decided to section hike the AT and hike state highpoints. I will forever be grateful to my friend for opening up this wonderful world of hiking to me… I don’t know where I would be without it.
Without any hiking-obsessed friends, I started day hiking in Connecticut, where the AT was a bit easier and eventually started backpacking -- my second backpacking trip was a solo adventure where I cut my hand open with a Swiss Army knife and had to hike five miles out while bleeding. Things improved from there and 714 miles later, I was ready for my final trip on the New England AT over Moxie Bald Mountain.
On Saturday, I got a late start-- I wasn’t on the trail until 11:45, but the mileage was low and easy so it wasn’t a big deal. In fact, the first few miles were so smooth and easy, I might as well have been walking on a logging road.
The hike up Moxie Bald was not hard at all, although my knees have been bothering me since the 100-Mile Wilderness hike. (They did not bother me on the 100-Mile Wilderness hike at all, but started hurting two days after finishing… not sure if it’s related to the long hike or not.) Most of the trail has eroded away to bedrock so it was a little tough on the feet, but not steep so I found the trip to the summit really enjoyable.
Thankfully, the weather was great so I had amazing views -- I could see Katahdin peaking over the horizon and the Barren-Chairback and Whitecap ranges up a little closer. Tibetan prayer flags tied to the summit sign flapped in the wind, which was considerable, at the top of the mountain. After chatting with a couple of day hikers, I lounged on the summit for a good half hour reflecting on this four-year journey. I have such a collection of memories -- from hiking the 100-Mile Wilderness in a hurricane, laughing until my sides ached with a wonderful crew at Goddard Shelter in VT, watching a bald eagle fish on the Housatonic, dragging my wonderful and tolerant friend Poetree on a side trip over the Bonds on a day with 10 feet of visibility… the list goes on and on. I was very glad I saved this summit for the end and it will always be a special place for me.
After basking in the sun, it was time to head another two miles further to Moxie Bald Lean-to, which is situated on the edge of Bald Mountain Pond. I reached the gorgeous spot at 3:30 p.m., (after hiking just seven miles,) which left me plenty of time to scout for moose. Of course, I didn’t see any but spent an hour watching a great blue heron wade around in the shallows and watching the leeches wriggle alongside the rocks.
SUNDAY:
It was about 4:30 a.m. when the loons started cackling over the pond -- a terrific wake-up call. Even though I was awake early, it was chilly enough that I didn’t want to get out of my sleeping bag, so I snuggled in and fell back asleep. I didn’t get up until after 6 and wasn’t on the trail until 6:45 a.m. -- late for me!
Although I had 11.5 miles to hike, the terrain was mostly easy and I was a little disappointed that more of the trail wasn’t alongside the rivers. Although the rivers were often close by, they were usually hidden by the trees so it wasn’t the classic AT river walk I had been expecting for my final day.
Nonetheless, the trail was pretty and made for an easy going end. Challenges today weren’t in the form of mountains but in stream crossings -- there were three good ones, beginning with Bald Mountain Stream. There was a half-submerged log in the water and I decided not to chance it so I took off my boots and waded through. While putting my boots back on a rivet popped off the side of my right boot. A small irritation because the boots are only six months old… they don’t seem to last long for me!
The trail then took me through a pretty little spruce and fir forest because reaching the confluence of the west branch of the Piscataquis River and Bald Mountain Stream. The water was about thigh deep and there was no chance of rock-hopping this one, so once again I waded across in my Waldies. The convergence of the streams was a pretty spot, surrounded by lots of tall grasses, so I stopped for an early lunch after my crossing in the very cold water.
My final ford was the West branch of the Piscataquis River -- which was only about knee deep and pretty easy. From there it was uphill, but less than a half-mile to Shirley-Blanchard Road, which I reached at 1 p.m. I crossed the street and walked into the woods a bit to a big boulder I remember sitting on the last time I hiked here. It’s official: I’ve hiked all of the AT in New England! (No one is happier about this than my hubby who often went way, way beyond the call of duty to provide me with car spots.)
I also wanted to add a special thanks to everyone in the VFTT community who has come along with me on part of this journey -- either by reading my reports, sending me encouragement and stories of their own hikes along the way or walking a few miles with me. Without VFTT, I would be condemned to a life as a solo hiker… and it is wonderful to know I don’t have to hike alone all the time. Thanks to Pudgy Groundhog, ATTroll, Frosty, MEB, Little Sister, bpschroder, BobandGeri and Tramper Al for sharing a part of this adventure with me. A huge thank you goes to MichaelJ, who allowed me to talk him into hiking many of his 4K hikes “the hard way” so I could pick up AT miles.
It's definitely been an adventure I'll remember always.
Pictures from this weekend's hike can be found here.
- Ivy
Without any hiking-obsessed friends, I started day hiking in Connecticut, where the AT was a bit easier and eventually started backpacking -- my second backpacking trip was a solo adventure where I cut my hand open with a Swiss Army knife and had to hike five miles out while bleeding. Things improved from there and 714 miles later, I was ready for my final trip on the New England AT over Moxie Bald Mountain.
On Saturday, I got a late start-- I wasn’t on the trail until 11:45, but the mileage was low and easy so it wasn’t a big deal. In fact, the first few miles were so smooth and easy, I might as well have been walking on a logging road.
The hike up Moxie Bald was not hard at all, although my knees have been bothering me since the 100-Mile Wilderness hike. (They did not bother me on the 100-Mile Wilderness hike at all, but started hurting two days after finishing… not sure if it’s related to the long hike or not.) Most of the trail has eroded away to bedrock so it was a little tough on the feet, but not steep so I found the trip to the summit really enjoyable.
Thankfully, the weather was great so I had amazing views -- I could see Katahdin peaking over the horizon and the Barren-Chairback and Whitecap ranges up a little closer. Tibetan prayer flags tied to the summit sign flapped in the wind, which was considerable, at the top of the mountain. After chatting with a couple of day hikers, I lounged on the summit for a good half hour reflecting on this four-year journey. I have such a collection of memories -- from hiking the 100-Mile Wilderness in a hurricane, laughing until my sides ached with a wonderful crew at Goddard Shelter in VT, watching a bald eagle fish on the Housatonic, dragging my wonderful and tolerant friend Poetree on a side trip over the Bonds on a day with 10 feet of visibility… the list goes on and on. I was very glad I saved this summit for the end and it will always be a special place for me.
After basking in the sun, it was time to head another two miles further to Moxie Bald Lean-to, which is situated on the edge of Bald Mountain Pond. I reached the gorgeous spot at 3:30 p.m., (after hiking just seven miles,) which left me plenty of time to scout for moose. Of course, I didn’t see any but spent an hour watching a great blue heron wade around in the shallows and watching the leeches wriggle alongside the rocks.
SUNDAY:
It was about 4:30 a.m. when the loons started cackling over the pond -- a terrific wake-up call. Even though I was awake early, it was chilly enough that I didn’t want to get out of my sleeping bag, so I snuggled in and fell back asleep. I didn’t get up until after 6 and wasn’t on the trail until 6:45 a.m. -- late for me!
Although I had 11.5 miles to hike, the terrain was mostly easy and I was a little disappointed that more of the trail wasn’t alongside the rivers. Although the rivers were often close by, they were usually hidden by the trees so it wasn’t the classic AT river walk I had been expecting for my final day.
Nonetheless, the trail was pretty and made for an easy going end. Challenges today weren’t in the form of mountains but in stream crossings -- there were three good ones, beginning with Bald Mountain Stream. There was a half-submerged log in the water and I decided not to chance it so I took off my boots and waded through. While putting my boots back on a rivet popped off the side of my right boot. A small irritation because the boots are only six months old… they don’t seem to last long for me!
The trail then took me through a pretty little spruce and fir forest because reaching the confluence of the west branch of the Piscataquis River and Bald Mountain Stream. The water was about thigh deep and there was no chance of rock-hopping this one, so once again I waded across in my Waldies. The convergence of the streams was a pretty spot, surrounded by lots of tall grasses, so I stopped for an early lunch after my crossing in the very cold water.
My final ford was the West branch of the Piscataquis River -- which was only about knee deep and pretty easy. From there it was uphill, but less than a half-mile to Shirley-Blanchard Road, which I reached at 1 p.m. I crossed the street and walked into the woods a bit to a big boulder I remember sitting on the last time I hiked here. It’s official: I’ve hiked all of the AT in New England! (No one is happier about this than my hubby who often went way, way beyond the call of duty to provide me with car spots.)
I also wanted to add a special thanks to everyone in the VFTT community who has come along with me on part of this journey -- either by reading my reports, sending me encouragement and stories of their own hikes along the way or walking a few miles with me. Without VFTT, I would be condemned to a life as a solo hiker… and it is wonderful to know I don’t have to hike alone all the time. Thanks to Pudgy Groundhog, ATTroll, Frosty, MEB, Little Sister, bpschroder, BobandGeri and Tramper Al for sharing a part of this adventure with me. A huge thank you goes to MichaelJ, who allowed me to talk him into hiking many of his 4K hikes “the hard way” so I could pick up AT miles.
It's definitely been an adventure I'll remember always.
Pictures from this weekend's hike can be found here.
- Ivy
