The Gulf Hagas is about closed down. Plenty of bunch berry to eat, moose wanderings, people scarce. That's my report. The few I see out here are thru hikers pressing to the Mountain. Several did mega miles after reporting running, or nearly running out of food. It a good catalyst to get er done.
If you thought the river was cold, or the rock hop impossible, it sure is now. Heavy rains washed a bunch of rocks off kilter. Just wade now, knee deep, if you have to.
One really disturbing note. Three different fires, built in the crotch of pine tree roots, high up in the duff (not on wet leaves, like these) have had to be extinguished. Somebody out there, who even wrote on a rock 2100 miles!, thinks this is a viable way to build campfires. Not only are unauthorized camp fires illegal, they can get under the duff and smoulder for weeks, eventually popping up when the wind hits it right.
Some think Maine is so wet. But, dig down into that duff, as I did to excavate one such fire, and find out how dry that duff is. The fire had burnt the roots and up under the tree. Passing thru hikers poured all their water on it, alerted me of the site just south of the Katahdin Iron Works road. I hiked up quickly with 2 quarts of water and spent the next two hours extinguishing and digging it out.
The fine for an illegal fire is $1,000 bucks. I hope they catch some and make a lasting impression.
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