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.