And Then There Was One

Madeline will be on her way home shortly. They will be taking a shuttle from Millinocket to Medway Sunday morning. From Medway, they can catch a bus to Bangor. In Bangor, on Monday, Madeline will catch a greyhound home (32 hours). She will be back in her nest Tuesday afternoon. Jonathan will see her to the bus in Bangor, then plans to return to Monson and head south to recover the section of Maine trail that they leapfrogged over in order to reach Katahdin before it was closed for the season. Though we tried to book a flight from Bangor, we ran into a hitch because of her lost ID (though found, not in her possession). One must be ID'd to fly. Though 32 hours is a long trip home, compared to three months on the trail, it'll be a breeze.

Their descent from Katahdin was much easier than the ascent. Had the rocks been wet, it would have been more difficult (and perilous) going down. They were fortunate to have a dry day. Once down, they had to wait for a shuttle from the hostel in Millinocket. Though it is but a 20 mile trip, it is slow going over gravel road and therefore took a good hour to reach their destination. For $25 a piece, they got not only the shuttle service, but also a bunk in the AT Lodge, by far the cleanest hostel they've seen.

The Lodge also runs a cafe with a very hiker friendly menu - breakfast served all day, many vegetarian offerings, and quite a selection of the over-the-top foods that seem to appeal to the hiker appetite, like stuffed french toast (filled with peanut butter, marshmallow fluff and jam) or how about hash browns, covered in cheese and topped with eggs. Jonathan said they had enough food to get by that final day at Katadin, but not enough food to be happy. They are eating hardily in Millinocket, as they have everywhere else. The cafe serves something called a Summit Sundae for 14.99. If you can finish it, you get a T-shirt, a bumper sticker and your picture on their Summit Sundae wall. Madeline actually wanted that for her dinner last night but they got to the cafe so late, they wouldn't serve it to her because it takes so long to eat. Guess what she had for breakfast? It is 14 scoops (over 1/2 gallon of ice cream) with all the typical fixings as well as pastries, m&m's and a king size Snicker bar. It makes me sick to even imagine it. Jonathan says she did pretty well, but she couldn't finish it. He took pictures. He also finished it for her, and that was after a breakfast of french toast, blueberry muffin and the hash brown-cheese-egg dish. She didn't feel so well for a couple of hours and thought she'd probably be good till dinner. She says she's lost her interest in ice cream, probably for awhile.

Jonathan was sorting through the packs today, making decisions about what to keep and what to send home with Madeline. He is sending home the larger of their two cook pots, the water filter (he is switching to water treatment tablets) and a good part of their first aid supplies he does not foresee needing. He will keep the ibuprofen which I learned he relies on to get through painful knees almost every day. Without a partner to share the weight of supplies, he needs to lighten the load where he can.

Though there are not laundry facilities, for an additional $4, the guy who owns the hostel will do your laundry at his house. Hostels usually have what is called a town clothes box. Here you can scrounge something to wear while your clothes are washing. Jonathan said he was wearing a pair of jeans that fit perfectly, a long underwear top and a ladies cardigan - sounds cute.

This next part of the journey will be profoundly different for Jonathan. Not only will he not have his companion, there are always far more north bound hikers than south bounders. According to the guy who runs the AT Lodge, there were only 300 south bounders to begin with and most dropped out before they left Maine. If that is the case, their presence will be extremely sparse. There was one crazy south bounder just setting out whom they met as they were headed north in the 100 mile wilderness stretch. He is planning to skip the White Mountains, but otherwise, hike the distance.

Jonathan anticipates loneliness on the trail to come. When he first knew Madeline was considering leaving the trail, he was sad and upset. Those emotions morphed into anger and frustration, and he has now come to full acceptance. On the bright side, he says that without so many hikers around, it will be much easier to be in touch with the forest, and also give him the opportunity to write more without the distraction of others. He doesn't have a particular goal or plan; I think he will walk till he doesn't want to walk anymore. Maybe that will be the end of the trail, maybe not.

Madeline is anticipating her animals, family, fresh vegetables and fruit. She can be part of my ground crew now, preparing the hiker boxes for mailing, baking goodies, writing newsletters from home, and sharing the blog writing. I suspect there will be some Madeline reflections in the future. Though I will love having her back, I am sad to see her leave this journey behind. I have, however, come to terms with it. It was her journey, not mine, and she says she can leave the trail feeling a sense of accomplishment and without regret. I suspect she has also grown in ways she doesn't even realize yet. They have walked through parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine. And so it goes that Hansel and Gretel are parting ways. They have shared something extraordinary. ~ Amy

Take nothing for granted. Not one blessed cool mountain day, or one hellish desert day, or one sweaty, stinky hiking companion. It is all a gift. ~ Cindy Ross, author, hiker