Bigelow to Monson

The mountains are dwindling in size, and it really feels like the end of our hike is getting near. With just 115 miles to go to the end of the trail on top of Mount Katahdin, everyone on trail is making plans for summiting and thinking about their return to their homes and families, and normal life. It’s a happy and a sad time – happy that soon we won’t have to get up early every day and crank out the miles for 10 or 12 hours in the heat, humidity and bugs, but sad that this adventure is about to come to an end.

We are about to enter the Hundred Mile Wilderness, which apparently isn’t particularly wild or remote, just awkward for resupply. Some hikers are relying on a food-drop service offered by the hostel here in Monson, so have to be at a particular dirt road crossing at a particular time to pick up their food; we don’t want to be tied down to a schedule, so will take 5 days of food out with us and put in some long days. I hope we make good progress, otherwise we’ll just have to stretch out our food supplies!

So even though the mountains are getting smaller, this last section hasn’t been without its challenges. Rain, fog and mud, biting bugs, river crossings by wobbly bridges, on foot and by boat; but also hot sunshine and beautiful lakes, mountaintops with granite slabs, pine trees and sweet blueberries, and some lovely (if hazy) views. And as I’m hiking the thought keeps going through my head – have I really captured the feel of these woods in my photos? Have I done justice to the subtle charms of this hike? Should I have taken more photos of the unexceptional bits of trail, the endless green tunnel, to remind myself of what it’s like for the majority of the time?

Anyway, here are some photos from the last section since Bigelow. Some tell a story, some are just photos that I like, that captured the feel of that moment on the trail.