Chapter Sixteen: Flip-Flop to Maine and the 100-Mile Wilderness

Day 87 September 15, 2020 Tuesday

East Branch Lean-to, ME to W. Branch Pleasant River (ford), ME

Awoke at 4:30 AM. After breakfast I broke camp in darkness with headlamp lit, and was on the trail by 6 AM. It was very cold this morning, low 40’s and windy, but with early sun peaking through the trees. After I was on the trail for several minutes, Crazy Quilt came up from behind to say good morning. She kept pace with me as we exchanged idle chatter for a while, but she soon sped past through the boggy boardwalks and brushy trail. I was unable to keep up with her pace and I didn’t see her again until noon. Crazy Quilt was an engineer from Buffalo who, like me, had done a flip-flop earlier in the year and converted from being a NOBO to a SOBO.

The 100-mile wilderness can be split into two main parts. The northern half is mainly flat and rolling, weaving its way around many lakes and streams. The southern half is more mountainous and a bit more strenuous. My first big climb in part two of this wilderness wonderland was just now coming up as I approached White Cap Mountain. The rocks underlying White Cap were of the Devonian Carrabassett Formation, a series of lightly metamorphosed sandstones and mudstones. Although unbeknownst to me at the time, these rocks were age equivalent to my trail namesake, (Old) Oriskany! While on my way to the summit, I came across what appeared to be large, elliptically shaped, calcitic concretions, likely in the Hobbs or Carrabassett formation.

The trail up to the summit was fairly steep, as I had expected, with plenty of rock steps leading ultimately to several false summits preceding the final peak—all with stunning views. There were many jaw-dropping views of Mt. Katahdin and all peaks and lakes to the north, east, and south. I ran into lots of NOBO thru-hikers. The path also led me up to West Peak, where there were several more viewpoints, but none like I had on White Cap. Later, I had lunch with Crazy Quilt and met more through hikers on their way to Katahdin. It was a long afternoon, mostly downhill, but very difficult because of all the tangled roots and rocks along the trail. At one point I ran into a hiker coming from the other direction, and when I asked him about tomorrows hike over the Chairbacks, he described them as “A pain in the butt.” This was not encouraging to me at all. Later, on the way down the gravel path leading to the river, I passed by the Hermitage, which is an old-growth white-pine forest covering about 35 acres next to the West Branch Pleasant River. Numerous signs announced, “No Camping Here!”

Arriving at West Branch, it was immediately clear that we had to ford the river. I sat down on a log next to the river, took off my Merrell hiking shoes and put on my trusty Altras. I secured everything else to my pack, and using my trekking poles for balance, took a few steps into the icy water. The river here was wide and shallow with lots of smooth, slippery rocks, causing me to slow my pace a bit more than I had expected. The water was really cold but felt great on my feet after a long day of hiking. Once across, Crazy Quilt and I set up our tents on nice flat areas near a small tributary to the West Branch. Later, we sat by the fire pit where we prepared our dinners and exchanged stories about the day…