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Summiting Mount Katahdin (Day 163)
I woke once overnight to pitch-blackness and the sound of pouring rain. This was expected, and I vowed not to worry about how this might impact the hiking conditions until morning arrived. When my alarm started blaring at 5:30 AM, the air was still, and the sun was rising. We were definitely going to climb a wet mountain, but thankfully, it wouldn’t rain while we did.
Packing up my things for the last time felt almost dreamlike. Mostly because I couldn’t believe this moment had finally arrived. I filtered water and ate some of my remaining protein bars for breakfast. By 6 AM, I felt ready to go, but remembered that Jukebox bought me a “summit Coke” the day before at Abol Bridge Store. I wanted to grab it before leaving so she wouldn’t have to lug it up the mountain.
Stowing Gear
Baxter strictly prohibits alcohol in the park, so hikers often bring special snacks or non-alcoholic beverages to celebrate at the summit. I walked over to The Birches to snag mine from her, then we headed to the lean-to across from the ranger station. Thru-hikers often use this spot to store extra gear they don’t want to carry up Mount Katahdin.
I planned to take most of my supplies to the summit, but I did leave my sleeping pad, tent, and some extra clothing behind. Some thru-hikers also left their backpacks and borrowed small day packs from the ranger station to carry the little gear they needed. But it felt important that my pack accompany me to the top. I didn’t slackpack once on this journey, and I wanted to see it through to the end.
Climbing Mount Katahdin
By 6:30 AM, I was beginning my ascent of the Hunt Trail. Multiple routes lead to the summit of Mount Katahdin, but this is the one the AT follows. It was 5 miles and roughly 4,000 feet of elevation gain to the top, so I wanted to give myself plenty of time. It quickly became apparent that while the sky looked clear from the base, we would be socked in for the entire climb. While not ideal, I mostly just felt thankful that it wasn’t actively raining.
I would describe the Hunt Trail as being comprised of three distinct sections. The first three miles are below treeline and are mostly a dirt footpath with gradual elevation gain. It gets harder as you near treeline, where the trail turns into a steep, technical rock scramble for the next mile. It then crosses “The Gateway,” where the terrain smooths out once more. After that, you walk along the Tableland for the final mile or so before reaching Baxter Peak.
The first portion of the climb went by quickly, probably because of adrenaline and a lighter backpack. Right as I reached treeline, Jukebox hiked up behind me, and we stowed our trekking poles to start the technical climb together. This was definitely the scariest part of the day, if not of my entire AT hike.
We climbed steep boulders, which required hand-over-hand scrambling and often meant wedging your feet between rocks and hoisting yourself over rebar. I became grateful the heavy fog kept me from seeing the trail ahead or behind me. It was much easier to focus on the task at hand without views of the steep drop-offs below.
This portion of the climb was definitely the slowest, and the wind had picked up by the time we reached the Tableland. Being completely exposed above treeline, the gusts were extremely strong at times, often threatening to push me off the trail. I kept my head ducked down as we moved quickly over the final section. With visibility so low, we couldn’t see far enough ahead to know when we were approaching the peak. Every minute that ticked by felt like an eternity, and I had no sense of how close or far we were from the end.
Reaching the Summit
But then, through the fog, I spotted it. The wooden sign that I had seen in countless pictures and videos. The one I had envisioned reaching before setting foot on the Appalachian Trail at all. Like something out of a dream, here it was right in front of me. When I placed my hand on the wood and felt its roughness underneath my fingers, it didn’t feel real. I walked 2,197.9 miles through 14 states to touch this sign. It took me 5 months and 9 days. I had finally reached the summit of Mount Katahdin and completed the Appalachian Trail.
I climbed up the sign, pack and all, and Jukebox took my summit photo. We were completely socked in; it was cold and windy, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. Horsepower and OnIt were already at the top, and Hi-Vis joined us soon after. I hadn’t met any of these people until New Hampshire or Maine, and I felt incredibly lucky to have summited with them. One of my favorite parts of hiking this trail solo was meeting and spending time with different individuals and groups along the way. Finishing the trail with hikers I barely knew but felt such camaraderie with felt like the perfect encapsulation of the spirit of this trail.
We hung out at the summit for a while, shielded from the wind by a large boulder. After finishing our celebratory sodas, we were about to head down when the wind picked up, and the sky began to clear. Each gust exposed more of the previously hidden landscape, and everyone at the summit began clapping and cheering. As someone who had never climbed Mount Katahdin, I had no idea what the surrounding scenery looked like. To have it revealed to me in this way was incredible.
Heading Down the Abol Trail
Around noon, we began our descent on the Abol Trail. This was recommended as the shortest and “easiest” route, though it had its fair share of steep, technical rock scrambling. I was relieved to finally make it below treeline, if only to be shielded from the high winds. At this point, the trail began to even out, so Jukebox and I talked for the remainder of the hike down to Abol Campground. Here we met back up with Horsepower and OnIt, and hung out for a while before saying goodbye. Jukebox and her mom then kindly offered to drive me back to Katahdin Stream to retrieve my gear and wait for my shuttle.
Closing Thoughts
I spent that night at the Appalachian Trail Hostel in Millinocket, ME, and I am now back home in Nashville. TN. It took me a while to start writing this blog post, and I’m not sure why. I guess part of me didn’t want to say goodbye. Writing daily about my experiences on the trail sometimes felt tedious and tiring. At times, I considered quitting entirely. I think what kept me going was the fear of forgetting. Not just forgetting the sights, the sounds, and the scenery. But forgetting how I transformed in the midst of it all.
Thank You
I sincerely thank everyone who read these blog posts and followed my journey. It was wonderful meeting some of you on the trail and receiving your kind comments. I often felt bad that I couldn’t respond to each of you individually, but I read every single one, and your support meant so much to me. Funnily enough, I didn’t cry on the summit of Mount Katahdin, but I cried while writing this. Thank you for reading, and happy trails!
P.S. I will be posting again soon with some fun/random stats from my hike (how much money I spent, animals I saw, etc.). Feel free to stay tuned if you’re interested!
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Comments 43
Congratulations!! Happy trails!
Congrats!
You did it!!! So impressive. Hope you are really proud of yourself!
Congratulations on completing your big adventure. You’ve started my day for so long, I sit here in my pj’s with a cup of tea and see how your knee is holding up. I’ll miss you but also, I’m glad you are home. Thank you for the time you’ve taken to share your days with strangers.
Congratulations!!!!!
For the past few months I’ve been reading your posts & silently rooting for you. So glad you made it.
Congratulations! I’ve enjoyed following your journey! All the best
Yay, welcome home.
I read once that just because you love the mountain doesnt mean the mountain loves you back. But your tenderness and reverence towards Her could only help towards a successful outcome.
We have this noreaster creeping in here on the coast of maine, and i imagine the weather is pretty bad up there today. Real bad.
Anyway, all the best reintrgrating to this crazy world, away from mushrooms and pines, but the world needs your kindness.
Far out! I really enjoyed reading your blog, it always felt true and honest and I appreciated that. I followed a Youtuber, Swift, you finished around the 9th and you must have gotten done right after that. I can imagine returning to your ‘real’ life must feel a little surreal. I hope you don’t suffer any post trail blues!
Well done!
I will miss having your posts as a part of my early morning routine. I wish you all the best in the future . Now that you’ve done this you know you can do anything!
Sarah, Congratulations on your successful they-hike. It was a pleasure meeting you on trail. The weather on my summit day, September 14th. Was cold foggy and windy. You did a great job of describing the hike. My day was bittersweet since we lost fellow hiker Froggee that day. Take care
Congratulations. I followed your hike, comments and specifically Suthe photoagraphy. reliving my 1978 thru hike. Happy Trails. Suggest in afew weeks or so, go on a short backpack somewhere as a kind of wind down from the AT experirnce before winter sets in. I found it was helpful in the transition. happy trails.
Congrats!! I loved following your journey from day 1. This is something I’ve always wanted to do as well but just have to find the time to do it. Congrats again and cant wait to hear more about your journey.
Congratulations! I have enjoyed following your hike. Wishing you all the best as you transition into life off trail.
Goose bumps reading about your summit. Congratulations. Loved following your posts. So full of awareness and grace.
WooHoo! Well done! 👍👍
Let us know how you are integrating back into daily life. You write well, would like to hear your thoughts.
Best wishes in your future adventures!
Congratulations!!! Very happy for you! Always looked forward to reading your posts and wish you the best.
What an amazing journey, well written and well done!
Congratulations! That was quite a feat to accomplished. Thank you for sharing your journey with us.
gonna miss you and your blog, thanks for sticking with it…you are a treasure
Quite an accomplishment! What stories you will have for your children and grandchildren! Enjoy time with your family while planning your next outing. Why not? You’re already equipped. Maybe talk your husband into accompanying you. Congrats to him on his support!
Good show it was a fun summer watching your progress and many others on the trail. I’m still following some other blogs. Best wishes, blessings upon you and your family
What an inspiration you are, Sarah! Thank you and congrats 🙏🏼
Congratulations Sarah! I found your blog when I started looking for comments about the Virginia Creeper Trail detour south of Grayson Highlands. What a courageous woman — and naturally gifted writer! I’ve followed you since. Thank you so much for taking the time to journal about your hike and your transformation for all of us! I wish you the best as your hike manifests in your life.
Congrats!!! I have been reading your blog and you have provided inspiration to me! Thank you! This post in particular now has this hike to the s h mmit on my short bucket list. I wish I had the time to do the entire trail but will settle for this. Your journey will be something you will remember well decades from now. Keep your blog notes locally so they never get lost and read them every 20 years. Congrats again. Quite the accomplishment. I hope writing the blog paid for the trip. Looking forward to reading the follow up post you are planning. You must go to Norway and hike there. Stunning.
Congratulations! You were definitely one of my favorite Trek bloggers and looked forward to your posts.
Congratulations! Thanks for taking the time to post everyday. Thanks for sharing all the pictures. It was fun tagging along. Take care.
❤️
Great job. Good luck
You should write a blog post about things you wished you knew about the trail before you began. Things you would do differently, things you would do the same. Best and worst things about the trail. One about gear would be helpful too.
Congratulations! I’ve been following and rooting for you the whole way. You gave great insight into the day to day life on the trail for those of us that still have it on our bucket list but haven’t quite got there yet. I hope you keep posting for a bit, I’m really curious about the now what do you do part of integrating back into life after spending 6 months making the dream into an accomplishment.
Fantastic job, Sarah! Congratulations and thank you so much for taking us on your journey with you!
Congratulations on finishing your AT hike. I enjoyed your writing. David Odell AT71 PCT72 CDT77
Every spring I pick a few AT thru hikers to follow. I have been following you since day 1. CONGRATULATINGS. I have enjoyed following your journey. I’m an amateur hiker section hiking the Buckeye Trail. The AT and BT have a few commonalities my favorite being Grandma Gatewood. You should check us out. If you do I live in a trail town. I don’t often get the opportunity to play Trail Angel, but love it when I do. Safe travels, Dawn
Congratulations, Sarah!! I see I’m just one of many, many fans of your blog. Thanks for all your hard work. It’s been a joy to follow you on this journey!
Sarah!
Thanks for sharing your hike, example/inspiration to us all, and congratulations on completing the AT! I wish both you and your husband all the best as you thru-hike through life together – enjoy all the views!
Congratulations!
Congratulations! Thank you for sharing your journey.
CONGRATS! How wonderful that the fog lifted and Katahdin revealed her beauty to help you celebrate your successful thru-hike!
I gifted you a small Trek Tip to go towards a ‘boozy’ celebratory drink, if that’s your jam. Enjoy!
Re: future posts: if you don’t mind doing a pre-hike/post-hike gear breakdown, that would be awesome. I always love seeing how folks adjust their gear situation as they go.
Huge CONGRATS, Sarah! Thank you for letting us share your journey on The Trek and for taking us along with you.
Enjoy some well-earned rest! You rock.
👏👏👏
Congratulations! I have certainly enjoyed every post of your trek!
Just happy for you. Lots of stories to tell back home. I niminate Transformed” for the start of your next big adventure. Well done!
Congratulations! I’m so happy you had an amazing summit experience.
I know I mentioned this before, but I feel it needs to be said one more time. Thanks for keeping up with the posts. For those of us, not on the trail, with dreams to one day to try to attempt the AT, your posts keep us motivated. They’re inspiring and something we look forward to each day. I don’t mean to throw shade at bloggers who drop off, they all have their reasons and who am I to judge? So,.. thank you! Congratulations again and yeah,. I’m looking forward to those stats!
Congratulations. I’ve enjoyed all your posts. Looking forward to the follow ups.