So here we are in Monson, Maine. A little late, due to some rainy weather and our conflicting desire to hike in dry clothes - we ended up taking a four-mile day and a zero (no miles hiked) to warm ourselves by a fire and attempt to get some dry socks at the very least!

For all those wondering, we are safe and sound after braving the 100-mile wilderness. Brett and I are currently sitting in the Monson library checking our email and reading up on this website (we were astounded and ecstatic to see the number of posts, as well as our some of our friends from the trail checking in). We are both in good health and in great spirits - it was an awesome first stretch, with a long, long way to go. We will be checking in more frequently from here on out - the "100-mile" is the most remote section of the entire Appalachian Trail, and it's one of the hardest sections to boot. We do face the worst of the AT in the next few weeks: the southern Maine sections which include Saddleback and Sugarloaf Mtns, right before we hit the Whites, which are badass. Needless to say, we can't wait :P!

We've met some great people out on the trail - for those Firefly fans out there, we met two of them and I gave them trail names: Book and Inara! We've been hiking on and off with them (mostly on) for the Katahdin to Monson stretch and it has been a real blast. We also hiked and stayed with "The Two Johns" for a few nights - they were the greatest. They're both 60 and despite the age difference, we really enjoyed our evenings with them - some of the best moments of the trail. I wish Grizzly John were still out here, he's a guy I wouldn't hesitate for a second to do the whole trail with! A very rare soul and his grin was infectious. We caught Sleeping John on a bad stretch - he was supposed to go to Maryland but his knees gave out - they both have amazing stories to tell, though! There's a host of other people, including a guy named Tin Man and his dog Toto, that we've stayed with a couple nights. There are a lot more, of course, and even more to come... I can't say enough about the "hiker spirit" that infects the AT - everyone you meet always has a ready smile and a story to tell, and I think there is something special about sharing a fire with someone that makes all that is good in life (other than showers and the Internet) readily apparent. Friendships are easily made and partings (which are very frequent on the trail) are never sad, only wistful, and always sent off with wishes for a good hike and good weather, the two things I think every hiker craves the most!

What else - me and Brett are learning quite quickly that we haven't yet plumbed the depths of smelliness or dirtiness - at one point I was constantly offended by my own smell, but by now i'm pretty used to it. We are taking a shuttle to Greenville, ME tonight to get some supplies. I need a sleeping bag liner or something - the nights have been a little cold and if it wasn't for Book lending me his fleece pants every night (he's awesome) I think that last stretch might have been a little tough. We also figured out some stuff that we didn't pack, food-wise, that we should be bringing: garlic (mmmm), bacon bits (GOD YES), and maybe a little olive oil or margarine to cook the two in before it gets dumped into our noodles every night (so good). Also, we're switching off of pita bread - it dissolved into a bag of crumbs on the 7th day or so, which made for difficult handling - might go to bagels, which are carb-a-licious but a little bulky. Slowly getting stronger and faster - Brett is a much better hiker than me, but I plod along and methodically make my way into camp. Some of the views we've had are just absolutely AMAZING! Notable mountains which had just gorgeous views: Whitecap and Barren. The view from Katahdin is also gorgeous, but it was so foggy up there that it only cleared up twice for about 10 seconds each time - enough to give us a glimpse into the wordless unknown, but always fleeting. We also hiked up Katahdin with our full packs which might have blunted the enjoyment a little, since it was such a grueling climb. I'm proud we did it, but man did it hurt going up and down that mountain with a 50lb pack on our first day!

One of our zero days was when we stopped at the "White House Landing", a refuge for hikers where you can rent a bunk and eat a hot, cooked meal in the 100-mile. The thing is you have to hike 1.2 miles off the trail and blow an air-horn at a ferry so they can come pick you up - the place is on the other side of the lake that meets the trail. So we decided to go there - pushed ourselves and had a 17-mile day to get there. Arrived at the dock with wet shoes - while crossing a stream, Brett extended a stick to me to balance myself across the log. Turns out the stick was rotten, it snapped as I was halfway across the log. I hear a "Oh F_ck" and as I turned to see what the problem was I realized I was toppling into the stream! Jumped out but not before my shoes had gotten soaked. So our clothes were wet, sloshing around in our hiking boots, but we had the visions of sleeping on a bed and eating a big ol' burger and pizza driving us on. So we get there and blow the air-horn, around dusk, patiently waiting for the ferry to arrive. There's a sign there that says, "blow the air horn once, and please be patient as we may be in the middle of something". So we waited, and waited, and waited... nothing! Blew the air horn again. By this point we were getting a little nervous. Still nothing after an hour of waiting. Now it was REALLY getting dark! We threw caution to the wind and blew the air horn several times in a row - the light across the lake blinked, as if to acknowledge, "yeah, we heard you" - and still nothing came. As we gazed in despair across the lake at the now-seemingly infinitely far-away light, it began to rain. We sighed, and looked for a spot near the dock to pitch our tents, which we did over some roots and rocks, and of course, soaking wet. They picked us up the next morning, saying, "oh, we don't pick anyone up after 7pm". That was frustrating, but soon the meal and the prospects of a hot shower, sleeping in a bed and drying all of our clothes by a wood-stove soon banished any ill thoughts. Just one little story from the trail for you guys!

Other notables - I celebrated my 25th birthday on the trail - Brett, Book and Inara, and the Tin Man serenaded me with a lovely rendition of "Happy Birthday" in the lean-to we were staying at, and Tin Man gave me some of his sauteed bacon bits and garlic (where do you think I got the idea?!) and 1/3 of a habanero pepper to go with my Lipton's Chicken Noodles. Couldn't have asked for a better place or crew to spend my 25th (other than with my crew of friends back home, of course!). I'll take what I can get and that was plenty :). Brett got a trail name - i'll leave it to him to tell you how he got that one! My pack is heavy but definitely not close to the heaviest one out on the trail - it was amazing to see my food sack shrink (and my load grow lighter) as we progressed... going from 12 days food to none at all is so much weight off the back! Now that we're in Monson and we've picked up our mail drop, it's going to fill right back up, which makes me simultaneously sad (gonna have to carry that weight again) and ecstatic (fresh supply of Snickers, YES!). Let's see... i'm keeping a journal and it is hilariously to look through, as there are just huge seesaws in emotions and the most ridiculous observations that seem insightful the night you write it and insipid the morning after when you read it! One night the journal entry will be full of woe - ankle, shoulder, knee is sore, i'm wet, socks wet, took me 10 minutes to get the stove going, tent collapsed on me this morning, etc - the next night the journal entry will start - WOW! woke up with the sun on my face and my feet raring to go, I love being out here! And that's the best thing - I wasn't sure how I would feel about this but I have loved being on the trail and having my sights set squarely on Springer Mountain. It's a long journey and i'm absolutely nuts about that fact because it means i'll have a long time to enjoy being out here. Bad and the good.

And to all those wondering, no, I have not cried myself to sleep every night thinking about my computer and my mp3s. Just, there's a lot of dirt in the air in those lean-to's sometimes and it gets in your eyes pretty easy...

Anyways, i've rambled on long enough - when there isn't Internet I will be sending letters to Gallagher for him to type up, so someone out there remind him that he's supposed to register on this site! Much love and wishes to all those out there, and thanks for the postcards I got in Monson - it's sooooo good to see the person at the Post Office hand you a nice little stack of mail when you swing into town :). The one thing I really do miss (NOT my computer) is my crew of friends (you know who you are) that I love so dearly to be with and to talk to, and my family (Mom, Dad, Way - i'll call later on today). Until the next time... Miss you all, don't worry about us, just be happy for us. It's GREAT out here!

-shian