The Saddlebacks and a Big AT Milestone: July 19-22

Top of the Saddlebacks

    This stretch of Trail covered ~30 miles, and it was quite a haul for us.  This 30 miles involved climbing and descending five 4,000 foot peaks in the Saddleback and Crocker Mountains.  But the hard work required to reach these summits was rewarded with some of the most spectacular views we've had since the White Mountains in New Hampshire.  

     The Saddlebacks were incredibly gorgeous, if a bit windy in the 4 miles of Trail above treeline.  We had 360-degree views of the Rangely Lakes and because there were several open summits to climb one after another, we were able to look back across the entire ridgeline we had climbed before we made the big descent off the Saddlebacks.  Views well worth the sore feet and burning hamstrings.   

   

Clouds Clearing over the Saddlebacks

Windy Lunch at the Summit 

...very windy...

Hiking above Treeline

     We had originally planned to complete this stretch of Trail in 3 days/2 nights.  But after hiking 11 miles over 3 of the Saddleback peaks on the first day of this outing, I had to concede that I had overestimated my abilities.  We only hiked 8 miles the second day, camping a bit early to give our legs a bit of time to rest. This meant we had to re-evaluate our logistics a bit, since we would now either have to spend a 3rd night out camping or find a different way for Trail Angel to pick us up.  Luckily, Trail Angel is the Queen of Logistics and Secret AT Backroads, so with our last granola bar and thunderstorms in the forecast, we hikes ~5 miles to an old logging road and got picked up just in time to get out of the rain.  We hiked the last 8 miles over the Crocker Mountains the next day, well-fed, dry and with just our slackpacks on.  This last 8 miles included a very special milestone:  the 2,000 mile mark for Northbound AT hikers.  It's hard to believe that Amicus and I have *walked* 2,000 miles on a continuous Trail (albeit in pieces) - on purpose, for fun.  Now with less than 200 miles to go, the end is closer than ever.     

2000 miles of AT hiked!

    This was a pretty difficult stretch of Trail for us, with multiple 4,000 foot peaks to tackle.  After this stretch, we happily indulged ourselves in our favorite Trail pastime - finding the best local eateries and sampling as much as we can.  Since we're in Maine, it won't be hard for anyone to guess what Team Nano (those of us without a shellfish allergy) was craving.  2,000 miles and counting, Friends of Nano.  More mountains, lakes and lobsters ahead.    

   

Rewards for Hungry Hikers in Maine.

Trail Angel Joins the Hike - June 15/16

Not a bad spot to spend a night.

Team Nano on the Trail

    For our next section of hiking, Trail Angel was able to actually hike with us.  Any Friends of Nano who have followed us before know that Trail Angel is the glue that holds the whole team together.  She picks us up, drops us off, makes sure we stay supplied with clean clothes and good food, and overall ensures our survival.  Without her this would be a completely different and entirely less pleasant experience.  I am reminded every time I come to the Trail how blessed we are to have our own personal Trail Angel - a privilege very few long distance Trail trekkers have.  But sometimes when the logistics and geography line up just right, we get to have Trail Angel with us while we hike and those times are truly special.  

    This section of Trail didn't have any particularly formidable named peaks to conquer, but it did have something that the Maine AT is also well known for - water features.  There are lots of streams, lakes and ponds on the AT in Maine, many of them very beautiful and well-loved by locals.  We will encounter more of them the further north in Maine we hike, but we got a wonderful taste of some Maine mountain lakes on this hike.    

The AT in Maine even has beaches!

    We made camp for the night by one of these ponds.  This pond is reportedly a very good place to see moose, and since seeing a moose on the Trail is one of the last creatures on my "AT Wildlife Bingo" List, I was really hoping to check that box.  Alas, although we got sung to sleep by a symphony of bullfrogs, that was the only wildlife we saw at camp.  Moose are notoriously elusive and even at this prime spot none made an appearance.  

Suppertime at Camp Nano

Not a moose...

    Overall it was a lovely stretch of Trail.  We even finished our hiking early enough on the second day to get cleaned up and explore the small Trail Towns around this part of the AT.  As always, stay tuned Friends of Nano.  More to come.    

Team Nano with 13 more miles behind us

Nano's Long-Awaited Return

Friends of Nano - after 8 very long years I am delighted to dust off this blog and welcome you back to this Grand Adventure.  So much has happened since we were last here, and in many ways I am a very different Nano than I was in 2014, so allow me to catch you up on nearly a decades worth of life.  

PERSONAL UPDATES

Most importantly, Team Nano has a new member - Uno.  It feels strange to "introduce" Uno as my husband now that we've been married for 7 years, but this will be his debut on the Grand Adventures Blog.  Long distance backpacking wasn't a hobby of his before I got my hands on him, but now he Adventures with the best of them.  He's been on a few short trips to the AT with me since we've been married but this will be his first extended trip.  I have no doubt he will do amazing in the Wild, like he does everywhere.  He is the last missing piece this Grand Adventure needed.  

Nano and Uno, Adventuring Together since 2015

PROFESSIONAL UPDATES

When I first started this Grand Adventure, I had just graduated college.  When I last blogged, I was almost finished with medical school.  Now, I am not only finished with medical school but residency and fellowship.  11 years of medical training between two states is now complete.  Emotions too numerous to list come with this achievement - excitement, relief, extreme happiness, some fear of what's to come.  But I can think of no better way to celebrate this milestone than a nice long walk in the woods to bridge the "training" and "real world" chapters of my life. 

Nano, MD

TRAIL UPDATES

Since 2014, Team Nano has made three short trips to the AT.  It was difficult to make much progress when I could only take one week off at a time during residency and fellowship, but we did manage to hike ~60 miles of Trail between those trips.  Our most recent trip was in May 2019, when we managed to make it to what is widely known as the "Hardest Single Mile" of the AT - Mahoosuc Notch.  This mile of Trail is infamous among locals and thru-hikers alike.  While theres only ~350 feet of elevation change, the entire mile is a field of giant boulders that requires more climbing/crawling/jumping/falling than hiking to traverse.  Being naive Southerners instead of mountain-folk, we did not anticipate that even in late May, the Mahoosuc Range in Maine would still be completely full of snow and ice.  We arrived at the southern end of the Notch after hiking several miles over snow in crampons, took one look at the icy boulders, and promptly headed straight out a side trail to Trail Angel so that Team Nano could live to hike another day.  

Team Nano - very cold on the AT in 2019

Iced-in Notch in 2019

PRESENT DAY

Which brings us to today.  Now that all my medical training is finished and I am able to take some time off, naturally, the first thing I wanted to do was continue (and possibly complete) this Grand Adventure.  After packing up our fellowship life we headed straight to Maine promptly hit the Trail. 

DAYS 1-2

We spent the first two days hiking just 10 miles of Trail.  We had to start where we last left - at the previously iced-over Mahoosuc Notch.  No ice this time, just a solid mile of giant boulders. Overall between the terrain and my woefully out-of-Trail-shape legs it took us a little over 3 hours to navigate the Notch.  We made it out exhausted but with only one fall (me), but nothing serious.  Because the AT is a cruel mistress, we had a brutal climb to tackle right after, but we went slow and managed.  We slept well at camp that night and made it up and over one more climb the next day to rejoin our Trail Angel, as well as Hooter and Mrs Hooter who came all the way from the Deep South to join us for the first part of this leg of our journey - a truly special treat. 

Entering the Notch - no ice this time.

It was 3+ hours of this...

DAY 3

Hooter and Mrs Hooter joined us for our third day out for a bit of "slackpacking."  We were able to hike 10 miles over the Baldplate Mountains, and although it was a tough hike with lots of elevation change, we were rewarded with a beautiful day and some spectacular views.  Even after spending just two days carrying my big pack, it felt wonderful to be able to travel light.  We treated ourselves to some giant sandwiches from an amazing local grocery store after and went home very happy campers. 

Team Nano at the Baldplate Summit

DAY 4 

Another day of "slackpacking" and 10 more miles in the books for us on our fourth day of hiking.  We had to break out our rain gear for about an hour today, but luckily the downpour didn't last long.  The near-constant elevation changes the AT in New Hampshire and Southern Maine are famous for continue.  The terrain is rarely ever flat and therefore we're almost always on a (seemingly usually steep) incline or decline.  The Maine Trail Crews have worked hard to make this terrain traversable and we saw (and were thankful for) evidence of their efforts while we were climbing today.  Despite getting wet, all was well when we got to go back to Trail Angel, the Hooters and a home cooked meal. 

Wet on the AT

Typical Maine AT Climb

DAYS 5-6

We said farewell to our dear friends the Hooters the morning of our 5th day of hiking and set out for an overnight section.  Some more "Classic Maine" steep climbs and descents, but with some special treats.  We found "the best bench in Maine", caught a gorgeous sunrise over Bemis Mountain, met a family of grouse, and made it off the Trail on the second day before the thunderstorms rolled in.  As Hooter would say - "it's all about timing."

Nano, Uno and the Best Bench in Maine

Sunrise on Bemis

The Calm Before the Storm

Overall, we hiked nearly 50 miles this week, and in this terrain with as out of practice as I am, I'll take it.  It feels so good to have my hiking boots on again.  Stay tuned, friends of Nano, we're just getting started (again...)