Kevin's AT Thru Hike

Day 153, Tuesday, 8/16 – We all got an early start this morning, and were hiking by 6:30am. We hiked about 10 miles down to the Kennebec river. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy hired a canoe guide to shuttle hikers across the river all summer, so Matt gave us all a ride across the river.

Right after the river crossing, we got to the road that would take us into Caratunk. We tried to arrange a shuttle, but after waiting a long while, we decided to hitch. Once I made the decision to hitch, I put out my thumb, and I got my fastest hitch on trail. After just seconds, the first truck that passed by stopped for us, and we all piled into the bed of the truck.

We got dropped off at Sterling Inn which was an awesome spot. They had a great selection for food resupply, and frozen foods for lunch. I had half a pizza, a spicy chicken sandwich, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, and some hot coffee for lunch. Gandalf came into the Sterling Inn just as we were about to head out. I was glad to run back into him. He shared a scary story of getting a concussion in Mahoosuc Notch after slipping on a slick rock. I’m glad he was ok.

We took the shuttle back to trail just before 2:00pm. We all hiked another 6 miles to Pleasant Pond Lean-to (Mile 2048). We met back up with Abby and Vibe who were hanging out at the shelter. We all planned on hiking further, but I was concerned about finding a stealth spot, and rain was in the forecast. I decided to stay in the lean-to. Birthday joined me, but Genie and Splitzy decided to hike on.

Birthday and I setup our sleep gear in the lean-to, then headed over to Pleasant Pond. It was a beautiful pond, and the water was crystal clear.

We headed back to the lean-to and had dinner with Abby and Vibe. I laid down for bed at 7:50pm tonight.