Some nights are a bit longer than others. I woke up no less than ten times last night. My mind was on overload. At 5am, I just decided it was time to get ready for the day.

Blue and I needed water so down to the pond we went. There were many bullfrogs croaking and jumping from lily pad to lily pad. But still no moose. I sure hope by the time I finish this trail, that I will get a chance to see one of these elusive beasts. For now, I just keep looking.

Mary Poppins took the lead and she was out of sight fairly quickly. The weather was looking pretty grim and she’s not one to stick around when it rains. Blue and I continued on and witchin a mile or so, we found a good water source. Being our pond was lackluster, we emptied our pond water and replaced it with fresh stream water. We are getting a bit spoiled with good water and no need to drink tannin-colored water when you can get good clear stream water.

Once filled up, we started one of our 8-10 crazy climbs today. I’ll just cut to the chase. Today takes the cake for over the top insanity. No continuous boulder fields but why am I doing, this kind of stuff on a designated hiking trail? Our first was just a straight up rock climb in the rain! There was no sitting on a vista checking out the view. Today we had no views, just clouds, wind, and rain.

I honestly am so tired that I can’t really write about all the obstacles that we had. But I’ll tell you, it was like nothing I have ever done. I was throwing my hiking poles down to the ground below me more often than not. There were slippery, mossy covered rocks that I was not sure how I would get up or down. There were ladders, metal rings attached to rocks, wooden posts that would act as a foothold if you could reach them, and then there were rocks that I just prayed that somehow, someway, I would hang on for dear life. There was a lot of praying going on today.

Thank goodness for Blue. Honestly, you would be out of your mind if you didn’t have a partner through todays hike, if you can even call it that?! Having a partner allows you to talk out different routes, show you possibilities, or just have someone to laugh with when the next “oh my gosh” climb presents itself. I was thinking that there is no one else in this world that would consider doing this with me, outside maybe Sally Miller, because this is absolute insanity!

I can say, without a hesitation, that this is a “one and done” kind of hike. No way, no how would I ever come back and do this again! I took little pictures today because it was raining #1, and I was unable to do much of anything but focus on my three foot space. Life is full of challenges and this will go down as the biggest obstacle that I have attempted. Being that I have not made it to Mt. Katadrin, I cannot even consider the statement of accomplished. Honestly, it is one day at a time and today was one tough and trying day.

One thing that has changed is I have arrived in Maine. Hikers say this is their favorite state on the trail. I cannot imagine that being my case as I have seen little but rain, clouds, and hurricane force winds. As Blue and I reached one of the many summits today, I was actually blown over by a gust of wind that threw me onto a rock carin. This has never happened to me before. It was a huge force of nature that can pick up a 150 pound woman with a 30 pound pack and knock me down! Nothing but fun in the State of Maine.

Blue and I made it to camp 12 hours after we started this morning. We did less than one mile per hour, a heck of a lot of climbing and descents, but we arrived with a sense of humor and a smile on our face. It was not a fun day, but it was rewarding to say the least. We arrived without any permanent injuries or damage. Well maybe my poles took some abuse today and Norman, he’s ready to go back with the Blue Hairs in the Bingo Hall. He was pretty unnerved when I took off my pack and tossed it down a ledge. We will be going to counseling tomorrow and see what we can do about all this abuse. Poor guy is frazzled! But then, so am I.