August 12, 2013
Pierce Pond Lean-to to Bald Mountain Brook Lean-to.
Overnight the biting insects were pretty bad. I went to sleep wearing my mesh head net. I took it off during the night, after the temperature dropped a little the insects weren't as bad. A few times during the night I heard loons out on the pond. It's amazing how loud they are. B-Rocket and I started hiking at 7:30 this morning. It was a beautiful morning.
After 3.6 miles we came to the Kennebec River. A guy with a canoe will ferry hikers across the river. He's there for a few hours in the morning and a couple hours in the afternoon. When we got there, there were ten other people waiting to cross.. We waited for over one hour for our turn to go across. Before the late 80's people had to ford the river. It was a few feet deep at one point, but there's a dam close by that once a day releases water causing the river to rise by two feet or more. I was told that a hiker drowned here before they started using a canoe to ferry people across.
Our canoe guide
Yard Sale, The Triplets and Maineiac
A short distance further we came to US 201. Caratunk, ME. was a few tenths of a mile from the road crossing. We walked to the post office, to charge our phones. While there, Cricket and Pancake walked up. I had met them at The General Store in Andover a few days ago. They called for a free shuttle to the Sterling Inn. They were going to get something to eat and then get back on trail. The driver would take you to a couple places. We decided to go to the Northern Outdoors Lodge. It sounded like a good place to eat. We were going to get back on trail also.
When we walked into the restaurant area we saw ten other thru hikers sitting,at a table. Those there were Mud Mouth, Yard Sale, Gonzo, Rainbow Braid, Maineiac, Ocean Spray, Twilight, Umbel, and Puffy. They were the group we've seen at shelters for the last few nights. Their table was full, so we sat at a table next to them. After eating our sandwiches, a guy there brought a large desert to our table and said "this is on the house". It was huge and delicious! We could either hitch the two miles back to the trail or wait until 3:00 for a free shuttle. Everyone waited. The lodge had a large sitting/lounge area with several couches and chairs, large screen TV's, pool table, and a computer for guest to use. The lodge does rafting trips and fishing trips. There were a lot of families there. They also had a hot tub and pool. We all sat in the hot tub and some went in the pool. The hot tub felt great. I shot a game of pool with Twilight. I won, but she only had one ball left, so it was a close game. A little after 3:00 the guy gave us a ride back to the trail. It was an amazing few hours.
We stopped at the Pleasant Pond Lean-to after five miles. The whole group stopped there. Cricket and Pancake were already there. They told us that Warren Doyle had just left there. We passed him a few minutes earlier. We had stopped to talk to him. At the time not knowing who he was. He has hiked the AT seventeen times. He's famous among AT hikers. B-Rocket and I decided to do 5-6 more miles. Mud Mouth, Yard Sale, Gonzo, and Rainbow Braid went on also. The forecast for tomorrow calls for rain most of the day, so I wanted to get in more miles today while it was dry.
After six miles we got to where Mud Mouth, Yard Sale, Gonzo and Rainbow Braid were tenting. B-Rocket and I decided to hike another three miles to the Bald Mountain Brook Lean-to. We crossed an open area where power lines came up over the mountain. It was after 9:00 so it was dark. We took a snack break in the open area. While there we looked up at the sky, looking for shooting stars. We each saw three different shooting stars. It was pretty cool. It was 11:00 by the time we reached the shelter, which we both slept inside of.
It was a long day, but also a great day. There was a canoe ride across a river, the Northern Outdoors Lodge with great food, hot tub and pool table, night hiking and shooting stars.
When we walked into the restaurant area we saw ten other thru hikers sitting,at a table. Those there were Mud Mouth, Yard Sale, Gonzo, Rainbow Braid, Maineiac, Ocean Spray, Twilight, Umbel, and Puffy. They were the group we've seen at shelters for the last few nights. Their table was full, so we sat at a table next to them. After eating our sandwiches, a guy there brought a large desert to our table and said "this is on the house". It was huge and delicious! We could either hitch the two miles back to the trail or wait until 3:00 for a free shuttle. Everyone waited. The lodge had a large sitting/lounge area with several couches and chairs, large screen TV's, pool table, and a computer for guest to use. The lodge does rafting trips and fishing trips. There were a lot of families there. They also had a hot tub and pool. We all sat in the hot tub and some went in the pool. The hot tub felt great. I shot a game of pool with Twilight. I won, but she only had one ball left, so it was a close game. A little after 3:00 the guy gave us a ride back to the trail. It was an amazing few hours.
We stopped at the Pleasant Pond Lean-to after five miles. The whole group stopped there. Cricket and Pancake were already there. They told us that Warren Doyle had just left there. We passed him a few minutes earlier. We had stopped to talk to him. At the time not knowing who he was. He has hiked the AT seventeen times. He's famous among AT hikers. B-Rocket and I decided to do 5-6 more miles. Mud Mouth, Yard Sale, Gonzo, and Rainbow Braid went on also. The forecast for tomorrow calls for rain most of the day, so I wanted to get in more miles today while it was dry.
After six miles we got to where Mud Mouth, Yard Sale, Gonzo and Rainbow Braid were tenting. B-Rocket and I decided to hike another three miles to the Bald Mountain Brook Lean-to. We crossed an open area where power lines came up over the mountain. It was after 9:00 so it was dark. We took a snack break in the open area. While there we looked up at the sky, looking for shooting stars. We each saw three different shooting stars. It was pretty cool. It was 11:00 by the time we reached the shelter, which we both slept inside of.
It was a long day, but also a great day. There was a canoe ride across a river, the Northern Outdoors Lodge with great food, hot tub and pool table, night hiking and shooting stars.
Hello,
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your thru-hike. I work for the Appalachian Trail Conservancy in Maine and am creating a presentation about the Kennebec Canoe Ferry. Could I have your permission to use the photo of 3 people using the ferry?
Thank you,
Claire (cpolfus@appalachiantrail.org)