Knowing that Brett was in the Hundred Mile Wilderness, I really didn't expect to hear from him again. Brett surprisingly had some cell service and was able to call home. He just doesn't have a way of recharging his phone. He is staying in a hostel in the middle of nowhere which has no electricity. They cook and run everything (including lights and refrigeration) on propane gas. The hostel is right on a lake. You blow an air horn when you get to their dock, and they come by boat to pick you up.
Brett said there are lakes everywhere. Katahdin may be only about 15 miles as the crow flies, but the trails twists and turns around the water. You see planes flying everywhere.
Brett hiked 3 miles to the hostel, leaving him only 46 more miles to go. The weather is terrible. Brett said that it has rained five of the last seven days. "Even my bones are wet." Brett, and quite a few other hikers (the hostel is full with 12 people), welcomed a chance to get out of the rain and stay in a hostel. Brett plans to hike the summit of Katahdin on Sunday, weather permitting. Sunday had the best forecast, and Brett may have to skip up to 10 miles in order to be at the top in decent weather--a sacrifice that Brett will gladly make.
The plan for Brett's return is that Coconut and her dad (whose name I finally discovered is Tailwind), as well as fellow hiker, BP, will drive down I-95 and drop off Brett in Kittery. Brett said he is ready to go home and sleep.
I asked Brett about Buzzkill, who started hiking the A.T. when Brett did, and whom Brett has kept up with almost the entire time. Brett saw Buzzkill a few days ago. They talked about summitting together, but Buzzkill got ahead of Brett and was ready to be done and get home.
Brett came into the hostel with an almost empty food bag. The hostel has a pantry for hikers to resupply. After this there may be one more "supply pantry". But Brett is starting to throw away some of his food containers now as he finishes them. He has only about one more meal on the trail. Then one last guilt-free meal in Millinocket (the town closest to Katahdin where Brett will probably stay after he summits).
Brett has only one more page of "The A.T. Guide" left. This is the book that has given him all the details of the trail along the way. He would rip out one page at a time, keeping it in his pocket for easy reference as he hiked. Then, when he finished that section he would throw it away and tear out the next page to carry. Now all that is left is one page.
Brett said that he is ready to be done. He is ready to be home. But, he is still enjoying this last section of trail. I hoped that Brett wouldn't be so focused on getting it over with, that he missed enjoying the finish. It sounds like he will enjoy the finish as well as being finished.
No comments:
Post a Comment