I'm in Maine.

This will be the last post before I summit Katahdin, hopefully in about 2 weeks. I will write one final post after that to close this adventure and will probably upload the majority of photos and video as well. It's very strange thinking how close I am to the finish, how long ago I started, and how normal this way of life has become to me. But, let's fill you in from Mass to here. 

Massachusetts concluded with my first 3000' peak since VA. Mt. Greylock. I spent much of the afternoon there and watched as dozens of hang gliders and paragliders launched from the summit and flew around during a beautiful day. I was anxious to push for the border and left around 5 to hike the last few until Vermont. I made it and then had a shelter to myself that night. Finally, I was in Vermont. The trail had unfortunatly grown rather monotonous over the last several hundred miles. Low elevation, considerably more urban that I would have liked, and a lack of the awe-inspiring beauty that the southern section had held around what seemed like every turn. A large part of this, I think was I was just getting used to trail life, another part perhaps was that the hardships and challenges I had beaten earlier with the excitement and sheer will power, I now viewed as overwhelming annoyances. Constantly being a meal for a mosquito, heat and humidity, and other relatively minor things (they are minor as I look back on them) were just piling up. But now I only had 3 states left. Some of the hardest and most beautiful trail awaited me. 3000', 4000', and 5000' foot peaks would again be normal. There would again be breathtaking views. All of these things really helped my morale in Vermont. Even as I continued to battle pain in my knees, bugs, humidity, MUD (so much mud), I was excited once again. I was hiking with friends, I was driven, Katahdin was in my sights (silly me, I still had 600ish miles to go), and it was time to finish this thing out strong. 

Vermont was indeed beautiful and seemed like a breath of fresh air. The beautiful mountains and challenging terrain restored a lot of my motivation. However, I was still moving slow, taking more days off to try and heal my injuries. Setbacks like cutting my foot open in Manchester, VT, and my phone breaking in Rutland, VT, further slowed my pace.  All of this adding frustration and again lowering morale. I was dealt another blow shortly before the NH border, what is likely a stress fracture in the first metatarsal of my right foot. I took 2 zeroes in Hanover, NH resting it and trying to take care of my phone. It was a great town (also the home of Dartmouth) and I left feeling rested, but still injured. 

New Hampshire was even better than I could have hoped. Mountains were higher, weather was perfect, and towns were wonderful. I was rapidly approaching the White Mountains of New Hampshire; a section of trail notorious for it's difficulty as well as beauty. I was obviously worried about my foot and my knees as they would undoubtedly take a beating. I got my last new pair of shoes to help support my foot and bought better knee braces; I'm glad I did, I sure needed them. The Whites were incredible, rugged, beautiful, and immensely satisfying. The climbs were brutal, and the decents even more so. But the peaks and ridges were majestic and breathtaking. I couldn't believe where I was and what I was doing. Battling 50mph winds on the presidential ridge and hiking over some of the most rugged trail I've had, also some of the oldest in the country. After the whites I celebrated my birthday in Gorham, NH. I had hoped I would have been home by then but, well, knees. A day after I left Gorham, I hit Maine. I was told that NH would leave you with a kick to the shorts and Maine would greet you with a punch to the mouth. They were right. 

My first day in Maine after crossing the border was 4.4 miles that took 3 hours. I climbed mountains that consisted of wet, slick slabs of rock and crossed bogs with mud about 3+ feet deep. Luckily I was able to avoid falling in, others weren't as lucky. As we approached more difficult trail we decided to call it a day and let it dry out alittle more before pressing on, it was a good choice. After climbing through a jumbled boulder field and climbing and descending a large mountain, we ran into Miss Janet, the trail angel of all trail angels. We loaded up in her van, bought our resupply in town, and relaxed a her friend's (a past thru-hiker) cabin for some rest and wifi. After a night there it was back to hiking. The terrain was limiting my pace to 10-15 miles a day which was frustrating but I pushed through to arrive in Rangely, ME, a wonderful little town on a lake. I split a cottage on the lake with 3 other people and thoroughly enjoyed a day of rest. Now I sit in the Rangely Library, debating hiking a short day out, or staying another night and getting an early start tomorrow.  I'm about 2 weeks out from Katahdin. 

Lately my mind has been full of thoughts of home, friends, family, and Chipolte. I miss home, I am ready to finish and return. I have also been pondering what life will be like at home, it is undoubtedly different from life on the trail, but how will my experiences these last 6 months change life at home? I know I have changed and my perspectives have changed, but what will the effects be? It will surely take me some time to figure it out and to re-acclimate to society, but I look forward to it. I am ready to come home. I am ready to return to school. I am ready to begin my next adventure. 

I hope to see you all soon, 

Shades out. 

The northern presidential range

The top of Mt. Lafayette, looking toward the presidentials.

The top of Lafeyette, looking down Franconia ridge, the Kinsmans and Mt. Moosilauke In the distance

Maine. 

The last border.