I started the day by climbing up to Rainbow Ledges (an 800 foot
elevation increase), where I got to experience a beautiful view of
Katahdin. I felt so great in the morning- my joints were cooperating, I
had slept well, and had a big breakfast of oatmeal. I sat on top of
Rainbow Ledges and soaked up the scenery. A couple that I had met the
night before (Sticks and French Fry) had camped up there and I could
hear them fixing breakfast from where I was sitting.
The day grew to become extremely frustrating for me from that moment on.
It has been raining a lot in the area and has turned the trail
into a muddy pit that requires lots of rock hopping. At the end of the
day it was taking me one hour per mile that I was covering, which made
for a very long day. I managed to slip into the mud multiple times and
finally just gave up on rock hopping and trudged right through the mud.
My knees got a beating from having to bear the weight of balancing me
while I was rock hopping and slipping through mud. I ended the day's
hike with a severe stabbing pain going up the outside of my knee where
my IT band attaches. It was worrying me a lot to begin with, but many people have told me that my young body will heal itself. Once the muscles around my knee get stronger, I'm
sure that it won't be much of a problem. When I arrived at the lean-to I sat
in the water to ice my knees and I started to feel better. Bill found a
knee brace and gave it to me to try out. Sticks and French Fry also
lent me their knee brace to see if it helped. The sense of community out
here is really beautiful everyone is trying to achieve the same
goal in a sense. We all are sleeping under the same great sky and
experiencing mother nature at her finest, so helping your fellow man is
the most natural thing to do. It is so beautiful :) Also, Will gave me a
dinner so that I could slow down if I needed to and not have to worry
too much about food.
Haha when I looked at the register tonight lots of people had commented
on the crapiness of all the mud. It made me feel better knowing I wasn't
the only one!
Sticks built a cozy fire and we all sat around it enjoying the warmth
coming off of it after the wet, muddy day. I pitched my tent on a comfy
bed of pine needles and slept with noooo mosquitos! Despite the
difficulties, I have been loving being outside 24/7. It's such a
liberation from the world outside of the trail.
Song for the day: Stronger by Kelly Clarkson
No comments:
Post a Comment