Day 116 - Friday, July 30, 2021

It did rain last night so it was good that we were in a shelter rather than a tent- packing up in the rain is never fun. 

Day 2 -  Today’s segment goes to from Gentian Pond Shelter/Campsite (1906.6 NoBo) to Full Goose  Shelter/Campsite (1916.2 NoBo) equaling 9.6 miles. We will also complete hiking in New Hampshire and enter Maine. 

We began hiking at 7:30 am under cloudy skies.






As always climbing first thing; this time up Mt. Success.





One more state done; goodbye New Hampshire. Hello Maine, we’re coming Katahdin. 


I hear it always rains in Maine 🙄. Not much of a view on Mt. Carlo. 





Welcome to Maine….. 😈. According to all the blogs we are now hiking on the most difficult section of the AT. Funny thing that that the AT Thru Hikers Guide doesn’t mention that 🤔. We turned off the drink/meal counter as hiking just went into “survival” mode as we were both having our share of slips snd slides… and I broke my other trekking pole so I’m down to one for the remainder of this hike. 





Thankfully the sun did appear in mid afternoon as we were approaching the shelter.  This just made the day 😉.





Ladder rungs drilled &grouted into the rock face. 

We finally made it to the Full Goose Shelter around 4:30 pm as it was a long, strenuous day 🤗. With all the NoBo Thru Hikers approaching Katahdin and the SoBo Thru Hikers* recently starting from Katahdin the shelters fill up quickly as this section of the trail becomes very busy and populated.

 (* SoBo Thru Hikers typically begin their hike south mid June - early July. They start at this time to try and avoid the back fly season which can be unbearable at time even with head nets on.) 



The shelter filled to capacity. 



One of the hikers turned 27 so they had a birthday party for him… they even packed in party decorations and a cake.  I vaguely remember being 27 🤔. I think Turtle Power shorts that he is wearing are that old 😂. 

It was a long day, so bedtime came early. I hear there’s more fun in store for us tomorrow 😵‍💫.


Till next time... Happy Hiking  🥾 

😋


“Acts of generosity in this wild and primitive setting…where basic amenities…are intentionally absent–are often received in a heightened sense of wonder and gratitude by hikers. These acts of generosity are referred to as “trail magic.”

                  (Appalachian Trail Conservancy)




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