18-08-01 Hiking up katahdin

I started my AT hike at Katahdin this is the northern end of the AT. It ranks among the hardest climbs on the trail. It is a five mile hike with a four thousand foot climb. The first two miles are a steep climb maybe at fifteen to twenty degree climb. My heart was pounding in my chest and and I was breathing hard.

The next two miles is real steep ok really really steep some of it is four point climb nearly vertical kind of a cliff. This slowed me down and my heart slowed down. In the places that were almost vertical and my heart rate picked up and as my fear of heights kicked in. There was a place where I thought I could see the top but it was a lie, it was my first experience with a false summit, Getting to the flat spot and seeing another steep climb almost defeated my already exhausted legs. But I climbed on to the table lands.

The table lands are about a mile line and is were the Indian gods were said to meet. It is a collection of flat rocks the size of a coffee table and up to several meters long you find yourself stepping up and down from one of these rocks to an other. The first of twenty falls happened here I stepped down and a rock rocked under my foot. It twisted and I couldn't step up onto the next rock. In the middle of the table lands is Thoreau spring your could get water there but the ranger said that you might not want to since people are not good with there wast. Finally there is a small rise of maybe 70 feet up to the sine after the table lands.

So I got to the top and unlike many people I got a view.

Now all I needed to to was to go back down before dark. Going down was nearly as hard as the climb up and I twisted a knee trying to slide of a rock. It took me about ten hours for the entire ten mile trip.