After a night in a Super Walmart parking lot (full of campers and RVs!) in Showhegan, we woke up early (0600) this morning, ready to make an attempt to solve an AT logistical challenge that has stymied me for three years: hiking from Sugarloaf Mountain to Saddleback Mountain. The 16 mile section was the very last ones built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (1939) that completed the continuous AT and is almost inaccessible to vehicular traffic. Actually, there was one exit in the middle but that route takes hikers into the prohibited Navy SERE school property - needless to say, I wasn't inclined to try that route except in extremis... One other note about the toughness of the section: on July 22, 2013, almost 10 years to the day of my own hike, a Thru Hiker got disoriented on one of the higher peaks and was not found (deceased) for over two years. During my first full season hiking the AT (2014), I saw her "Missing" sign throughout Maine so was well aware of the unforgiving nature of this tough area... After spending some time reading and packing, we drove across the street from the Walmart and I bought breakfast for Dad and me (0730). We next drove to Sugarloaf via US-201, ME-148 and ME-27, arriving in the Resort parking lot at around 0900. My plan was to ride the chairlift up the side of Sugarloaf and then hike (around two more miles) to access the AT at a trail junction where I'd last hiked nearby in 2022. My foot had sufficiently recovered from the previous day and it seemed like it was "put up or shut up" time. My dad parked and started to entertain the "Lookie-Loos" (who always seem to want to buy his RV) while I went off to locate the lift ticket counter. After asking a few folks for help, I found it at 0930 and got a one-way pass. After that, I went back to the RV so I could make my final packing effort. Saying goodbye to my father, I walked over to the chairlift queue area and waited for them to start allowing ascents at 1000. I was a bit nervous about the plan but also wanted to get started as soon as possible! The weather conditions were excellent and the morning air was brisk enough that I thought I wouldn't be affected by the forecasted heat (high 70s). Because of the wait for the lift, much of the cooler morning was lost - oh well... When I boarded, though, I felt energized, excited and a little daunted to be starting the hike. At the top of the chairlift, I met one of the employees of the mountain (Mike) who was actually an AT Maintainer. He had lots of ideas about places to camp and bail out strategies - overall, his attitude was quite infectious. From there, I walked to the top of the 4231 foot peak, took a photo of the huge expanse of terrain to the west and then hiked downhill to the AT junction. I'd hoped to be there no later than about 1100 but found it was already past noon. Any thoughts I had of making up time by walking quickly, however, were dashed by finding the typical Maine trail conditions: mud, roots, rocks... I plodded slowly SOBO, conserving energy and only making vague plans of where I might stay for the night. Meanwhile, I passed a series of other hikers - mostly "Peak Baggers" - who told me about conditions farther up the trail. As I've usually done when backpacking, I don't bring as much water as when I'm day hiking because of the weight impact. As a result, I spent much of my hike trying to keep ahead of a nutrition/hydration deficit, stopping often to filter water and eat snacks. There were a few Thru hikers (all NOBO) during this time - I must have seen 10 during the day - but I didn't really talk to many. During this time, I encountered a Ridgerunner who walked with me for a while and asked me lots of questions about my section hiking experiences. During this conversation, we started up the side of 4000 foot Spaulding Mountain (although the peak is not actually on the AT). Also around this time, I tripped and fell, covering myself with Maine Mud (ugh)! It was only my pride that was injured, however... The Ridgerunner left me at the Spaulding Mountain Lean-to at the bottom of the descent after that and I continued - alone - through the woods. During this time, I started wondering if I might be able to make it to the Poplar Ridge Lean-to, only a few miles away as the crow flies, but knew that might be challenging due to the descent I had yet to make into the Orbeton Gorge and back out again - not an easy feat! So, instead of trying to plan that far ahead, I struggled through mud, across rocks and balanced precariously on roots to make sure my body might actually make it to Saddleback Mountain. The descent was much steeper than I imagined and I had to gingerly scramble down an extreme, steep section to reach the Orbeton Stream itself. There, I found evidence of the awesome power of the water - a fishing boat was trashed on a little island in the middle of the river and the rapids nearby did not look welcoming. I spent a bit more time there than I normally do because I could see that the embankment across the river was just as steep - at least the east side had a small beach. After gearing myself up for the river crossing, I donned my water-shoes and carefully made my way across - the water was just below my knees but I didn't get too wet, fortunately. After getting back into my hiking boots, I began the arduous climb out of the gorge. By this point, it was nearly 1800 and I'd been walking for nearly eight hours - this caused me to think that it was quite unlikely that I'd have enough energy (or daylight) to reach the shelter. Instead, I started looking for a "stealth" campsite along the way. This was NOT easy! Most of the AT in Maine passes through dense forest with very little in the way of clearings on either side. I started to get depressed at one point, wondering if I'd have to walk all the way to the Shelter because there weren't alternatives, but got lucky when I found a viewpoint clearing. This spot, not intended for camping, had a huge flat slab of rock that looked good enough for a tent - without really thinking about the situation too much, I just set up camp there (1900) and committed to a night alone in the woods. As a result of stopping short of the shelter, I knew the next day was going to require a lot of work (7+ AT miles, plus the Saddleback descent by road). I resolved to get up very early the following day. Other than a few Thru hikers who passed by after I was inside my tent, resting, I didn't see or hear any people for the rest of the night. By 2000, I was fast asleep - I actually don't even remember anything after I was safely in bed. I hadn't bothered to hang my food like I normally do - some of my last thoughts were probably "what if a bear comes by?" or "that moose scat was kind of close to where I am..." After a day with roughly 11 miles of hiking, I was tired enough that neither of these questions really mattered... AT Today = 9.0 miles / Grand Total AT = 2146.1 miles
