There were a lot of tears on Katahdin on October 12th. Let me tell you the whole story.
Around the time we found out we were moving to Maine (July 2012) I watched a documentary on the Appalachian trail. The documentary featured the Hunt Trail and Katahdin, as it is the northern terminus of the Appalachian trail. I figured that since we were going to be moving to Maine, it was a great thing to put on my Maine bucket list.
I enjoy hiking but never hiked anything super legit. We did some strenuous and long hikes in Utah this summer as well as some smaller hikes around the area, such as Mt. Battie, Mt. Major and Cadillac Mountain, so, I honestly thought I'd be fine. I did a lot of research about hiking Katahdin and one article said "anyone in reasonable shape can do it". I considered myself to be in reasonable shape. I don't think that anymore. I knew it would be hard and I knew it would be long. But I honestly have never felt so physically or mentally fatigued in my entire life.
Because we waited until Fall, we had to start on the trail very early because it is suppose to take 8-10 hours to hike (it took us 12) and the sun sets earlier. We drove up after work, spent Friday night in a cute cabin in Millinocket, ME and set our alarm for 4:30am. We were at the park entrance by 6am and signed in at the ranger station at the trail head at 6:50am. It was cloudy and foggy, which I expected from weather reports, but it was suppose to clear up and be sunny the rest of the afternoon.
It wasn't. At all.
An extremely thick fog rolled in and stuck around the entire day.
The reason why I love hiking is because I love seeing the views. I love being high enough to see beautiful landscapes for as far as the eye can see. It exhilarates me and makes me keep going, even if I'm tired. An amazing view can make any hike worth it.
The Hunt trail is the last part of the Appalachian trail (we talked to a couple Thru hikers--mad respect for those people!). The trailhead is about 1,000 feet up and Katahdin is 5,267 feet. You hike 4,188 feet of elevation in 5 miles. That is steep. The first mile of the trail is pretty easy. We passed pretty streams and waterfalls. It was definitely cloudy but the fog wasn't quite as thick on the bottom of the mountain. After that we climbed steep stone staircases for about one and a half miles. We would come to clearings that I knew had spectacular views...but we couldn't see anything but thick fog. The tree line ends around the 3 mile mark and the boulder scramble begins. I had read that the views from this point were absolutely breathtaking. But again, we couldn't see anything. Climbing over boulders for over a mile was extremely tiring and unlike anything I've ever done before. And the whole time I was looking out but seeing nothing but fog. As disheartening and upsetting as the fog was, there were some points when I was climbing over the boulders that I knew that on either side of me were huge cliffs and I thought, "hmm maybe it is better that I am not seeing where I could fall'.
But even so, I just kept thinking that I am going through this extremely difficult hike for no reward. I am missing the best part of hiking. Sure, it would have been scary...but it would have been worth it. I think that any type of strenuous activity requires just as much mental endurance as physical endurance. And I felt mentally defeated. I had been looking forward to this for a long time. I was adamant with Jonathan that I could do it. We drove four hours north and got up at 4:30am to do it. And it almost felt worthless because I could have seen the exact same views from the parking lot.
So I started praying. Sometimes I wonder how much God cares about the little things. With so much pain and hurt and lost people in the world-- I wonder what he thinks about prayers about weather. But I started praying as I was scrambling over those boulders. I said, "God, I know your creation is awesome and marvelous, even if I can't see it. But, if you could just wipe these clouds away for just a little while when we get to the top, that would be amazing." I just kept repeating it and repeating it. But we were getting closer to the top and the fog was getting thicker. At some points, I'm not sure we could see more than 20 feet ahead of us. After we got through the boulders we were about 1 mile from the top in an area called the Tableland. It is an easier ascent but it is still difficult because it is rocky and uneven.
I was physically and mentally exhausted. My disappointment had completely broken my spirit. With probably only a quarter mile to go I sat down on a rock and started to cry. I knew I was close to the top, but my legs were shaking and I felt like getting to the top didn't matter if I wasn't going to see anything anyway. I was sooo disappointed. But I wanted to make it. I just climbed over a mile of boulders--- I was getting a picture with that sign.
We got to the summit (Baxter Peak)... and out of no where the fog lifted and there was blue sky! We couldn't see all the way to the bottom because there were still clouds in between the mountains, but at least we had some view. I could actually see the mountain I was standing on.
Then, I just started to cry again. Because at least now I could say it was worth it. It gave me joy and renewed my spirit and energy to know that God had heard my prayer about the weather and gave me the mental boost I needed. We could only stay on the summit for about half and hour because we wanted to try to make it down before dark. The ranger at the top suggested that everyone start heading back by 1:00pm.
As we started back down, we probably only hiked 500 feet when thick fog rolled in again and completely covered any blue sky. The only time all day that there was blue sky was the 30 minutes that Jonathan and I were at the summit. Did God wipe the fog away just for me? Maybe or maybe not. But it completely encouraged me. And I think He did.
The hike down was hard. I honestly thought it was harder than going up. We went very slow (and by "we" I mean that I went slow and my husband was obligated to stay with me!) and had to get out our flash light for the last mile. We took 2 hours longer than I was suppose to and we didn't make it back before dark. But we made it, and that is what counts. We signed out at the ranger station exactly 12 hours after we signed in.
I started crying again when I saw the car. I was so physically and mentally wore out that I was just so excited to be able to sit down and go home. I was also proud of myself. I had accomplished something that I set out to do.
I'll admit, coming home and doing a google image search of the Hunt Trail made me disappointed at all the views we missed. But that half hour of blue sky really blessed me. Some people asked if I'd ever do it again. I definitely want to go back to Baxter State Park because I've heard that its beauty compares to Acadia. I think I could be convinced to hike Katahdin again...but I don't think I would do the Hunt Trail again. There are a few shorter trails that I probably should have considered instead, but I really wanted to do the Appalachian trial.
I don't have a lot of spectacular photos or memories of stunning views. But what I do have is the satisfaction of knowing I completed something hard, sore knees, and a half an hour of a blessing that I believe was God saying, "Lauren, life isn't always going to be how you planned, but I am here."
Katahdin is not even close to the tallest mountain in the world, or in the United States, or the east coast, or even New England. But, it is the tallest in Maine. And I climbed it.
