K is for Katahdin

Maine boasts of one big mountain (over 5,000 ft.) Mt. Katahdin.

It tops the end of the 2,184 mile long Appalachian Trail.

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To many Mainers, climbing Katahdin is a rite of passage or an item on their bucket list. To some, climbing its trails is a yearly tradition.

I've only climbed as far as Chimney Pond. I was told, "It's only 3 miles." I thought, "I can do that." No one told me it was climbing a rock staircase, with each step a foot tall, for 3 miles! I didn't go all the way up the peak with the rest of the group.

I sat at the Pond's edge with a snack and binoculars. I could pick out my son's bright red shirt all the way up Cathedral Trail and across Knife's Edge. I saw A mother moose and her calf walk right by me and swim to a small island. A pair of squirrels, used to pinickers at that spot, were determined to get into my backpack.

The mountain and the woodland wilderness is beautiful, but it is also dangerous. The trails can get icy or foggy. If a hiker wanders off the trails, he can easily get lost. Every year, the rangers rescue stranded visitors.

The story of a lost boy, Don Fendler, has been made into a book and movie.

Lost on a Mountain in Maine

I doubt I'll ever climb Katahdin again, but I like to look at it. I prefer gazing up at mountains, rather than looking at the world from the top. Mountains remind me of how small and insignificant I really am. To me, they are a symbol of God's greatness and steadfastness.

My dream house is a log cabin on a lake

beneath a magnificent mountain.

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