Monday July 1, 25.2mi/40.6km

Antlers campsite (2140.3) to Rainbow Spring campsite (2165.5) (ME)

I was woken by the sun reflecting off the lake into my tent, and it got very warm inside by 6am.

All morning I walked along lakes and rivers, which meant mosquitoes were always around.

But, I could move fast because I didn’t have to carry any water! (and had little food left). I stopped at a shelter, and caught up to the group that I was camped with two night ago. We all loved the new longdrop toilet!

A mile later, we passed another lake, with a great view of Katahdin!

Sometimes the trail had rooty sections, but overall was pretty nice today.

There was even a set of metal stadium-style stairs to get up a riverbank. Convenient, but it seemed very out of place.

For lunch I stopped at Nahmakanta Lake, it had some nice beaches with sand and soft stones.

I even got to do a quarter mile of beach walking! It’s almost like the Te Araroa…

There was a quick but steep climb up a short mountain, which had great views over the lake, and also to Mt Katahdin. I won’t attempt to spell the mountain.

After descending the mountain, it was an afternoon full of more lakes and small rivers. I’ve noticed that it’s some sort of Maine tradition to leave a rowboat or canoe by the water for people to use.

And there was a nice surprise, the next river crossing was on a bridge! Usually hikers have to ford, as Maine doesn’t seem to know about bridges.

Hiking up along Rainbow stream, there were many small cascades. They provided some nice entertainment for a couple of miles.

I walked another five miles, to camp on Rainbow Lake. A girl scout troop had occupied the lower section by the lake, so I camped in the upper section with a local trail maintenance crew.

They were a fun group to talk to, and two of them were former thru-hikers themselves. And they offered me their extra food!

Perfect timing, since food supplies are usually low at the end of a section. Tomorrow I get to “town” at Abol Bridge. It’s a restaurant and convenience store with showers, good enough for me!