So they said it would happen sooner or later…..it happens to everyone. I hiked out of the hostel after breakfast. The weather was beautiful. I was feeling fresh after my zero day. At about mile 8 I got to Page Pond and decided to take a snack break. The lily pads were in bloom so I took a few photos too. Then I proceeded to hike south for a full mile…..ugh!
Luckily, Mango and Sunshine left the hostel after me so I ran into them which let me know I was going the wrong direction. Two extra miles….ouch.
This made me late getting to the NH-Maine border and to camp. Luckily, I wasn’t the only one hiking late. I met Mammoth from Norway about 1.5 miles from the border and we hiked together into camp. He hiked the PCT last year and then started walking across the USA. He plans to hike 13,000 and go across every state (except HI). Maine is his 4th State. He is also trying to complete the AT in 100 days. This was his day 85.
We got to the shelter/tent site after dark. I set my tent up on one of the tent platforms. It has been 4 nights since I slept in my tent. It felt good to be back in my little home away from home again.
I’m starting to see a lot of SOBO thru hikers. I met Terrapin from Tifton, GA. He was looking really strong. I also met a father/son pair from Atlanta: Vanilla Tornado and A-Town, respectively. The son wore a Braves hat.