IAT '20 "Beaver Bogs and Murder Mosquitoes"
- Cassandra Smith
- May 4, 2021
- 3 min read
Day #1 Canadian Border Monument to mile 13.4
July 18, 2020
We woke up early at Gulf Hagas to pack up our gear and pack the car. We'd been camping with Maggie and Sparky the last couple nights so we could visit for awhile before they dropped us off at the border (literally so grateful for friends that will drive like 12 hours for you). We left the campsite around 8:30 and stopped at McDonalds in Millinocket for breakfast. It felt so weird being back, the last time I was there was after summiting Katahdin in 2018. Sparky then drove us the rest of the way up to Fort Fairfield where the trail starts. Quick stop at the post office, the gas station, and the ATM and we were at the border hugging them goodbye.
The trail started on the town roads and we quickly met a nice border patrol agent who asked us question after question about the trail. The road walk was hot in the beating sun and we were glad when the trail finally disappeared into the woods. We passed by several border monuments- some marking Canadian side and some marking US. We follow the border, or what everyone up here calls "The Slash" for about 15 miles.
We stopped at the first shelter to dry our stuff out and make some ramen. It felt so good to be back at a shelter with Cobra, our stuff exploded around us, eating trail food again.
Our gear dried quickly in the bright sun and we packed up and headed back out. The trail was nicely mowed and easy but that quickly went downhill. It wasn't long until the trail became overgrown in waist high grass and bog. We reached a beaver bog that took us about a half hour to get around because of how deep the muck was. We tried unsuccessfully to bushwhack around it before we realized it was impossible without going a mile out of the way in any direction. We finally got out of it and were back on dry land again and I (foolishly) thought it would be easy again.
It was about a half hour later that swarms of mosquitoes came out. It was truly miserable. We tried to stop for water but couldn't. I trucked uphill out of breath trying to outrun them. We are covered in bites. Cobra never gets mosquitoes bites (it's the south Floridian in him) so I know it's bad. We had one break where they disappeared because of a breeze blowing in the right direction so we sat in the grass to collect ourselves. The rest of the evening was horrendous. We eventually set up the tent here, illegally, on this private property because I was close to tears. It was already dark, to the left was Canada (which we could not camp on) to the right was private property and it didn't seem to end for miles. We searched in the dark for a good spot away from the trail where no one would be able to see us. While we searched by face, lips and hands started to go numb from the sheer amount of mosquito bites. I felt myself getting a little panicked but focused on the task of helping Cobra set up the tent as quickly as possible before we dove inside.
The next 5 minutes were spent slapping the walls, floor, and ceiling to kill the few that managed to make their way inside in the 3 seconds it took us to clamber in.
We sat there silently, our packs at our feet and caught our breath. Never have I experienced anything like that before. I popped a Benadryl, laid down and chewed on some jerky and I'm going to bed. I have absolutely no energy to cook or eat dinner. God, I hope somehow tomorrow is better.
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