The End

So this is it. The end of the trail. Of course, it's a 3-4 hour climb down, so on the big day, it's not exactly the end. It wasn't exactly a short trip, and to reach the end was quite a mixed bag of emotions, but we felt a tremendous sense of accomplisment.

Stay tuned for shots from the trip home...

Katahdin

Are you ready? If you've been following along this whole time, then this is the picture you've been waiting to see. It's definitely the picture we've been waiting to take. This is Mt. Katahdin as seen from the vicinity of Abol Bridge along the Abol Stream trail.

Dinnertime.

We decided to take a little detour and follow some old logging roads for a while, and happened upon these two moose in the middle of their dinner of leaves and twigs. We followed them down the road a while until they disappeared into the woods.

Friday Night Jamoree!

Every friday night in Monson, the general store closes early and half the town piles in to pick and grin. If you ever happen to be in Maine, make a point to be in Monson on a Friday. It's a good time not to be missed.

Crossing the Kennebec

The Kennebec river, swift and dangerous, has killed many who have tried to cross. So the ATC has a ferry service (this canoe) to deliver hikers safely to the other shore.

Saddleback

Spectacular views are of course great when hiking above treeline, but obviously this day visibility was about 75 yds. The whole mountain had a mystical quality, as the terrain in front of us appeared out of the clouds.

Lakes and Maine

Nearly every night in Maine we got to camp next to lakes just as clear and beautiful as this. Tough luck, I know, but we suffered through it.

Sunrise in Maine

I can tell you that it feels great to be in Maine and to see the sun rise and to feel the end of this great journey coming. To think back on all that's happened and all that will happen.

Entertaining

The Appalachian Mountain Club (AMC) operates several full service lodges through the White Mountains. Many are located right along the Appalachian Trail. They have a work for stay option for thru-hikers, which is very nice. The usual chores are doing dishes, sweeping the floors, or chipping ice off the freezer. Anitra and I put together a 45 minute set of songs and stories from the trail and performed for Madison and Zealand Falls huts. A nice time was had by all.

Makin' Tracks

The Mt. Washington scenic cog railway chugs its way 6,288 feet up the mountain on these tracks.

Outstanding Views

The Presidential range as seen from the summit of Washington.

Out of this World

As we approached the summit of Mt. Washington, the weather observatory loomed against the clouds and looked kind of like the surface of another planet...

Looking Back

A nice view of Lakes of the Clouds hut.

Mt. Washington

This was taken on the way to Lakes of the Clouds hut. The temperatures were in the 30's and 40's with incredible winds all through the Presidential range. Most of the peaks, like Monroe on the right, were clear. But Washington just seems to be a cloud magnet. Luckily, we summited the following day under almost completely clear skies and almost no wind.

The Same Day

See, I told you we were happy.

Franconia Ridge

This was definately one of our top ten days out here. We took a zero the day before because the weather on the ridges looked nasty and this was our reward. Once we climbed above treeline, the whole rest of the day gave us infinite views.

Approaching the Whites

We were getting closer and closer to the biggest, baddest mountains on the trail. You can see the dark clouds in the top corners of the picture and the fair clouds throughout. The weather changes about every hour or two except on the best and worst days. Very unpredictable.

A Visit With Friends

Our friends Rob and Lisa Rankin joined us in Hanover for a couple of days. We had a BLAST! This was taken outside of Peg's, home of maybe the greatest breakfast on the trail - the Hungryman.

Pine Grove

The landscape out here is constantly changing, and once in a while we walk through a really unique grove, like this stand of young tall pines with a forest floor covered with ferns.

Sunlight in Vermont

Great views of the sunrays after a rain.

What Do they Mean?

All along the trail, there are little piles of rocks made by different people because...well, who knows? There were probably 200 different piles in this little grove - each one different.

Green Mountains

Fog rolling up a valley in Southern Vermont.

Massachusetts Magic

If you recognize this face, then you know exactly what trail magic is. This man has been feeding, housing, and encouraging hikers for 20 years.

Welcome to Massachusetts!

Crossing a state line is always a happy moment in the journey.

While on the road to Cornwall...

...we encountered this quixotic piece of art in the middle of nowhere, just poking out of the weeds.

Conneticut Sunrise

We rarely get to see the sun rise over the horizon because we're often camped in a valley. But the low angle of the sun creates rich colors and interesting shadows on the forest floor.

Dover Oak

The largest tree on the Appalachian Trail, the Dover oak is over 300 years old.

Hudson Valley

Taken while crossing the Bear Mountain Bridge. The most beautiful river crossing so far.

Bear Mountain Bridge

An exquisite piece of architecture spanning the Hudson River near Harriman state park.

Epitome

This is the m

ost shining example of a bog bridge. It extends for a mile or more continuously through this valley. This shot was taken from a suspension bridge spanning a small river running through the swamp.

Bog Bridges

From New Jersey north for a long way there are many swampy and muddy stretches of trail. So we walk on bog bridges, some of which are well constructed, like this one, and some of which are falling apart and do almost more harm than good. Always an adventure, though...

The full group at a diner on

our last night together.

Pennsylvania Slackpackers

After getting rather sick from an unknown virus in Duncannon, we were able to convalesce while making some miles by slackpacking with this fine crew all the way to Delaware Water Gap. Many fine memories.

Summertime...

...and the hikin's easy. At least through the cornfields of central Pennsylvania. This was before we encountered the infamous Pennsylvania rocks.

Almost done...not!

We couldn't believe it...finally halfway!

Half - Gallon Challenge

This is our friend Hungus, in

the process of [successfully] completing the half-gallon challenge - a hiker tradition at the halfway point on the trail.

A Most Unusual Day

At Pen-Mar county park we reached the Maryland/Pennsylvania border and the Mason Dixon line. There was a huge crowd of people and we were looking for the snack bar we'd heard of. The man in the center of the picture (John Kelley - and family) saw we were hikers and offered us two extra tickets to the Patriot Federal Credit Union annual cookout. Wow! A great meal. Then he lent us his van to go resupply, then he put us in touch with another former hiker who takes in hikers, and 20 minutes later we were on the road to the house of Bernard and Rhoda Custer - who's internet I'm now using. Such wonderful people. We're clean, dry, full, and happy. We are truly blessed.

A Great Section for History

The middle section of the AT doesn't offer that much in the way of mountains - we won't go over 3,000 ft in a while - but it's rich with history. We often pass great old architecture like this pre-civil war church on a Maryland hillside.

Faded Glory

Harper's Ferry, WV, is a beautiful town. Full of history and cool old architecture. It is considered the "psychological halfway point" of the trail and is home to the Appalachian Trail Conference. We stayed at the historic Hilltop House Hotel, which was grand in its day - it even was mentioned in a Carl Sandburg poem from one of his visits. Alas, the plaster is cracking, the paint is peeling, and the whole building is kind of shifting under its own weight, but still it remains a presence - a picture from the past as it sits on its bluff overlooking the confluence of the Patomac and Shennandoah rivers.

Almost Halfway

Harper's Ferry will be the approximate halfway point of our journey. We're almost there...

Bear's Den

Owned and operated by the ATC and smoothly managed by Queen Diva, this is one of the best hostels we've seen so far. Reminiscent of an old castle and situated on a hill, it is peaceful, breezy and comfortable. A very nice place to rest.

Short Dog in Tall Weeds

Some parts of the trail are better maintained than others. This is not one of the well maintained sections. The title of this post is dedicated to Danny Weber.

Big Beard

I had no idea whether or not I'd like the beard, but the bigger it gets, the more I like it.

She Loves the Flowers

Some of Anitra's best friends are plants. She's very happy when she gets to visit with them.

Matt's Birthday

June 6th was also Little Red's birthday, so a big group of us had lunch in the restaurant at Big Meadows lodge in SNP. We then hiked on and Matt found a great rock to climb, as you can see. We continued to the Skyland lodge and had a very nice birthday dinner. Beautiful weather, an easy hike, and two restaurant meals. A perfect birthday.

The Red Robe Bandit

This is Nads, from Atlanta. His pack broke, so Jansport sent him this loaner, a 7500 cubic inch monster. Nads claimed that his pack could eat Low Branch's pack, so he stuffed it inside his already fully loaded pack...AND closed it...and then hoisted it. Low Branch was hoping Nads would actually carry his pack, but no dice. Only a photo op, and Low Branch was back on his own steam.

A Good Crew

Here we are in Shenandoah National Park. Views like this abound here where the rocks are few, the trail is easy, and the the springs flow with blackberry milkshakes. From left to right you see Wolf, Little Red, Evil Eye, Ziplock, and Nitro. Those last two, that's Matt and Anitra, in case you've just tuned in.

The Doyles

It was in Pearisburg that we by chance met Arnie and Kathy. They treated us to brunch on Mother's day and invited us to stay with them in Waynesboro. So after our slackpacking adventure with Jill and the crew, they picked us up and we spent two awesome and restful days with them. Kathy took us to an Amish Market and made a SPECTACULAR macaroni (not pasta) salad. Arnie introduced us to Lonesome Dove and made some KILLER chicken wings. We had a very relaxing weekend thanks to these wonderful new friends.

On our last night together, we all went out for a pizza party at Scotto's. We have had a great time. Many thanks to Jill, Tim, and Logan (not pictured) for a fantastic week.

Boomerang

At the end of our hike on Tuesday, we walked into Rockfish Gap and hitched a ride with Robert Painter down into Waynesboro. We went to the outfitter at the bottom of the hill, got a few things we needed, and waited for Jill to pick us up. When she arrived, we grabbed our packs and Matt noticed his walking stick was gone. He had left it in the truck!

As he had been carving this stick for about two years, he was very sad. But at the end of the hike Wednesday, we were hitching a ride and along came Robert again! The stick was still in the bed. We were almost speechless at this turn of events.

Because it went away and came back again, he has named the stick "Boomerang".