NH/ME AT section hike, day 7

Start: Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to
End: Piazza Rock Lean-to
Mileage: 11.2

Today, we started around 7am from the Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to. We had a lot of fairly flat miles today as we went around Little Swift River Pond and South Pond.

We arrived at Maine 4 at 11am; within 10 minutes, a shuttle driven by Stacy, one of the owners of the Farmhouse Inn, stopped and asked us if we'd like a ride into town. She kindly brought us into town, giving us the lay of the land. We had Thai food for lunch, followed by ice cream. We resupplied at the IGA and then the hostel provided us with a free shuttle back to the hostel.

There, we did laundry and some of us showered. The hostel had a lovely set-up, with beds for ~30 guests, with two kitchens and many living room areas. There were multiple TVs with DVD players and a large movie collection. There were plenty of power strips and charging stations. They also had a nice little store with hiking supplies and food stuffs.

We spent the afternoon there, getting a ride back to the trail head at 7pm. We arrived at Piazza Rock Lean-to at 7:45pm and found only Shadow at the lean-to. She was at Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to yesterday evening as well. We have plenty of room in the shelter tonight!

Tomorrow, it's on to Saddleback Mountain and the Horn. ~30 miles to Stratton from here. I expect to be into town by Wednesday night or Thursday morning.

NH/ME AT section hike, day 6

Start: Beyond Old Blue Mountain Summit
End: Sabbath Day Pond Lean-to
Mileage: ~12.6 (+1.2 walking to sandy beach)

I woke up this morning around 6:15am and took my time getting packed up. Backtrack and Stretch came by around 7:45am, expecting Towanda to be with me. It turns out she'd followed me off the mountain the night before but hadn't seen my campsite. We met up with her at Bemis Mountain Lean-to amd continued on together.

Today, we climbed Bemis Range (3,580'), down to Bemis Stream (1,495'), and then around Moxie Pond (2,400'), and Long Pond  (2,330'). At Maine 17, Stretch had friends meet up with her and bring sandwiches for all of us! After we settled in at the shelter, we went swimming down at the pond's beautiful sandy beach

Overall, it was an easier day than the ones we've had so far. Tomorrow, we're hiking to Rangeley to get a resupply and then on to Piazza Rock Lean-to for the night. From Rangeley, it's 32.2 miles to Stratton! I expect to be in Stratton by Thursday at the latest.