Finished!
Day 173 Abol Bridge To Birches Campsite — AT Daily Miles 9.8; AT Total Miles 2192.1
It really stormed last night. It wasn’t supposed to. Beginning about 3 AM it stormed until 7 AM so hard that it was lighting up the tent. About 5 AM I noticed that water was starting to pool all around the tent and even started to get inside. I kept things as dry as I could until the rain finally stopped. No major harm done, just some damp things. That’s life on the trail. I had set the tent up in a low lying area, which I shouldn’t of done.
Airhead and I ended up staying at the Abol Campground just outside of Baxter State Park. It’s more for RV campers but worked for us. The part we probably liked best would either be the showers or the camp store where we got some real food, not the dehydrated stuff. The campground was about half a mile from the hiker entrance to the park and where we needed to register for The Birches Campground. We walked down, registered, and then returned to the campground to eat some breakfast and pack up our wet tents. We finally got started hiking around 10 AM.
Today was about getting set up for tomorrow, summit day. It was going to be a short day to get into the The Birches Campground, which is closest to the Hunt trailhead for Katahdin. Kind of like a half day to rest a little bit and be ready for the hard climb up the 5000 footer. Very excited to get in those last five miles. We will need to hike down those 5 miles too then figure out how we’re going to get out of the park. Next up will be to find my wife who should be waiting for us around Millinocket. I am told hitching is very easy here and that would be the first for me doing it on the trail.
There were two highlights of the day I need to mention:
For the first, we got to see our first moose of the trek. A cow was in the marsh just inside the hiker entrance to Baxter State Park. That kind of made the trip complete for me. I really wanted to see one and had given up. You just never know! Thank you so much trail gods!
For the second, two 2023 through hikers named Happy Knees and Mouse Trap came to the shelter with a dozen Dunkin’ Donuts! What are the odds that you are sitting in a shelter in the
woods in Baxter State Park and someone shows up with a dozen donuts? That is trail magic! Airhead and I each ate four. We called it our dinner. Thank you trail angels!
We also ended up watching one of Airhead’s favorite movies, The World’s Fastest Indian. It’s a really good motorcycle movie. Another hiker joined us as well and we all three crowded around my cell phone to watch it. It was the first time on trail that I watched a movie at night, but we had plenty of time. Such a strange evening being delivered donuts, and watching a movie. Somehow I think it fits though being our last night and all.
We will get up tomorrow around 5 AM as usual and try to be on the trail by 7 AM. Airhead and I should be on top of Katahdin by 11 AM and back down by 2 PM or so. I can’t believe the trip is
almost over.
Day 174 Birches Campsite To Katahdin — AT Daily Miles 5.1; AT Total Miles 2197.2
Neither Airhead or I could sleep last night. I’m not sure if it was all the sugar from the donuts or the excitement of upcoming summit day. I had my coffee going before 5 AM and was completely ready to go by 6:15 AM. Off to the trailhead I went. And in typical fashion of the trail providing, there was a shuttle driver there dropping off another hiker. I wasn’t sure yet how I was going to get back to Millinocket to meet my wife and the trail delivered me the perfect opportunity. I made the arrangements right there and then.
The Hunt Trail was what the Appalachian Trail followed to summit Katahdin. The 1st mile or so wasn’t bad at all. The next 3 miles though were a lot of bouldering and climbing, but I still found it fun and exciting. Maybe it was the adrenaline and knowing this was our last day, but it really didn’t seem difficult. It seemed fitting. There were a lot of hikers along the way and we supported one another and had a great time chatting. In no time we were within a mile of the summit where the trail got a little bit easier.
That last mile of trail was so incredible. We were above the tree line so we could see forever. We could also see the endpoint of the nearly 2200 miles we had hiked. There was already a small crowd there, but not too many people. Just the right amount to cheer us on, but also to let us have our turn on the marker for Katahdin. We were blessed with the perfect day to finish. It was in the mid 60s with a light breeze and sunny. I couldn’t ask for more. We stayed at the summit for about 30 minutes, taking photos and chatting with our fellow hikers.
I think the hike back down the mountain was harder than the hike up. I’m not sure if it was not having that adrenaline or just the steepness of the downhill but it was difficult. Plus, I was a little bit emotional thinking about the last 5+ months of hiking and everything I had been through. I was thinking about the future, getting to see my wife in a few hours, and so many other things. There was also a little feeling of being lost without that goal that drove me since March.
Airhead and I decided to return via the Abol Trail. It was super steep in the beginning, but leveled out after that. In about 2 1/2 hours we were at the campground where we would be picked up by our shuttle. It had taken 3 1/2 hours to hike up Katahdin so with the 30 minutes on top, the round-trip took us about 6 1/2 hours. Not bad at all. The bonus was a kind man waiting for his family at a picnic table. He gave me a celebratory beer. It may be the best tasting beer I’ve ever had in my life.
The rest of the day went as planned. We shuttled into Millinocket where my wife met us and we all drove to Bangor where we would spend the night. Of course we got pizza and beer, showers, and did laundry. The usual stuff. It was so hard to go to sleep that night. I’m not sure how long it’s going to take me to get used to a bed again lol.
Well, that’s it. My through hike is complete! I plan to do some additional posts on thoughts and what worked and what didn’t in the near future. Right now everything is still kind of weird. I’ll be home the day after tomorrow in Ohio. The following morning I already have a nanny assignment for my eight month old granddaughter. I have no idea if and where I’m going to work and so many other things. But that was actually kind of the point of hiking the Appalachian Trail. I wanted to reset. Damn, did I get it.
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Comments 21
Well done you! Have been following along and really enjoying the journey..all the best for the next life adventure!!
Take care
Congratulations on finishing your AT hike. Enjoyed your blog. David Odell AT71 PCT72 CDT77
Congratulations!! What a great accomplishment 👏 I hope your readjusting to life not on the trail goes well! The universe is telling me 2025 is my turn to follow in so many of your footsteps. Until then, I train and dream about my life outdoors! God bless 👍
Congratulations!! Awesome hiking!! Now I want to see the “Welcome Home” picture with all the dogs jumping for joy when you walk through the door! 🙂
What a journey-congratulations! Have enjoyed following you through your posts. Enjoy your time at home now with your new granddaughter!!
Doublepack
Appreciated Doublepack!
Congratulations Jeff, I’ve enjoyed all your posts. What a memorable summer walk you took. Best wishes for your next steps in life.
Thank you for following!
Such a great accomplishment Jeff! I enjoyed reading about your journey and all of the pictures.
Appreciated Marcie!
Jeff – Followed the blog since before you hit the trail, each day I’d look for the updated link, sip my coffee in my office and was envious, even of the hardships. Well done McCorkle, well done. I’m retiring in 15 months and formulating my plan, my hike, my adventure, my pilgrimage. I need to make it a reality – need to make it a part of who I am. Go enjoy that Nanny job !
If I can be of any assistance, please reach out! I wish you much success. It was more mental than physical for me though still sore in several places!
Jeff – please send over an email for future private intel/beta and correspondence!- [email protected]
Congrats Jeff, what an accomplishment. I’ve been following your post throughout your journey and have enjoyed every moment.
Thanks for following!
Congratulations Jeff! It has been great following your adventure through the blog. You have a great story for LIFE, and I’m sure your granddaughter will be a captive audience (among others). Well done!
Much appreciated!
Congratulations Boss! This is an amazing accomplishment. If you are wondering about work it is almost time for California Merit Charges!
Thanks old friend. Forgot all about CA! Thought of you this past weekend as I was biking the trail on the west side. Maybe see you out there?
Congratulations Jeff! I met you at Riga Shelter just before bear mt in CT.
Congratulations, Jeff!! Since I had the early update that you finished, I was a little delayed reading the final blogs. This was pretty awesome to follow and I can’t wait to hear about it in person. Let me know when you’re up for a happy hour!