Pictures -- Appalachian Trail
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Back on the trail, sporting a clean-shaven face and a full tummy. I arrived at Baxter on Friday, the day after Hurricane Frances' remnants rolled through the region. It rained on and off for most of the day but cleared around dusk.
On my second day in the park I climbed Katahdin via the Northwest Basin Trail. The trail ran parallel to the river before beginning the climb up the mountain's northwest ridge -- the basin bottom was full of glaciated scree and dense conifers, which made for some tough hiking.
The view from Katahdin's northwest ridge. The mountain has three or four peaks, two of which are visible in this picture -- the Northwest Peak (left) and the more famous Baxter Peak (right), which serves as the southern terminus for the International Appalachian Trail and the northern terminus for the Appalachian Trail.
Katahdin's north face -- 4,000 feet of vertical.
Twenty ecstatic thru-hikers finishing their 2,200-mile journey from Georgia. In an age of cars and airplanes, it still amazes me that humans can and do cover such extraordinary distances literally one step at a time.
Katahdin from near Abol Bridge, 15 miles away from the summit on the AT.
Picturesque lakes and rivers -- not other mountains -- dominate the landscape around Katahdin, making it visible for many miles around. Here, at Pemadumcook Lake, 50 miles south of its summit on the AT.