I’m with the Mainah!

Since our last update, we have hit some major milestones, one of which is hitting 1900 miles! It’s hard to believe anyone is so crazy as to take on a 2,000+ mile journey and even wilder to believe that we are a mere 267 miles from the end. We’ve been going at this for so long that it’s hard to believe the finish line is not far out of sight. If we stay on track, we’re roughly 25 days out from summiting!

With our packs bursting at the seams from all of the treats that Karen (aka Peeps) left us with, we celebrated 1900 together before her return to PA. It was a melancholic moment seeing Peeps recede into the woods after our goodbyes, but we are ever grateful for all of her help!!

Rounding out our final days in New Hampshire, it is evident that our bodies are due for a break. Even if you went in to New Hampshire without knee problems, you’re sure to come out of the state with them, regardless of your age or abilities. We creaked and groaned down the trail, even fresh off a zero day. After plodding along for a mere 9 miles, we called it quits for the day at a beautiful lake. It beckoned to us not only for its pristine scenery and the hopes of seeing wildlife, but it was aptly named Dream Lake which suited these tired hikers.

While we had narry a loon or moose sighting, the following day promised to be a good one, because we were climbing Mt. Success! There’s a saying that success doesn’t come easy, and that has never felt more true after heaving ourselves to the top.

The greatest feeling of the week though was undoubtedly crossing into our final state, MAINE! I think our whole group was bewildered and left without words, as we spent an entire hour at the borderline while Stripes and Brighty (Katniss’s childhood adventure stuffies) got a little too crazy celebrating…

Crossing into Maine meant some new, one of a kind challenges; rocks, roots, bogs, ladders, endless wooden stairs and so much more! We’ve got to hand it to the trail maintenance crews of Maine, because while they have put us through the wringer, we’ve had such a blast with the new terrain! Additionally, we had three gorgeous days of sunshine that lent themselves to some of the best views to date. It also made the rebar ladders a little less slippery, thank goodness!

Regardless of how many milestones we seem to cross, we can never seem to get any credit from south bound hikers or locals. Instead, we have been met with, “Oh, you may have hiked 1900 miles but you ain’t seen NOTHIN yet!” Or “The Whites are absolutely nothing compared to southern Maine, buckle up…” However, given our last few days of hiking the notorious Mahoosic Notch and Mahoosic Arm, I think we can safely say the craziest is officially behind us!

To give a brief idea of what the Mahoosic Notch is, it is notorious for being either the most fun or the most hellacious mile on trail, depending on your attitude. It is essentially a mile long boulder field, which required us to move as though we were in a yoga class, and use our upper bodies which are now weak and flabby from zero use. How rude! The single mile took us two hours to complete, and while it was an absolute blast, it also left us incredibly drained for the remaining 7 miles ahead. We still had a lot of fun, but you know what happens when it’s all fun and games…someone gets hurt. JK! No Peetas were harmed in the making of this video…though there may be a lesson here about not singing and climbing!

After ensuring that all parties were free from injury, we continued our way up the Mahoosic Arm, one of the steepest miles on trail. Having been so drained from the Notch, we were slow going, but the views from the summit were beyond compare! We even took the .3 side trail to get to the summit of Old Speck mountain, which provided a 360 view of the surrounding area.

No day is truly perfect unless there’s a little trail magic though! We caught wind from some south bound hikers that there was trail magic in the parking lot, so Katniss was tasked to race down the mountain in the hopes of stalling them. The mission was a great success, and we were met in the parking lot by none other than our good friend, Flash.

Flash, being a Maine resident, has now entered her bubble of friends, family and general support. She graciously offered to put the three of us up for the night at her dads house and cook some burgers for the crew.

The following day we were surprised with even more “Flash Magic” which is a term we’ve had to coin simply because her kindness is so next level. She brought us to brunch at a friends house, where we got to meet all sorts of hilarious characters and dine on waffles, eggs, and mimosas!

The Flash Magic doesn’t end there, as the forecast called for rain all day, so Flash had preemptively booked and paid for a room for us at a hotel in town to wait out the storm. If that’s not friendship, I don’t know what is! We were ever grateful for the room, as it poured all day, and we got to enjoy an impromptu zero day, which it seemed our bodies really needed after the strenuous couple of days. That, and we got some incredible food as well!

I wish I could say that given two zeros in a week we are ready to head back on trail, but the charming towns of Maine make you never want to leave! Alas, with more to discover, both about the wilderness and ourselves, we march forth into the woods with Katahdin on our minds. Until next time!