A cold-weather hike…

The weather at the end of September, and early October, were unexpectedly mild. It inspired me to try an overnight hike on the first week of October, because I really wanted to get as much hiking done before winter as possible! The next one was a little intimidating though, because the guide book I have describes it as “the most difficult part of the East Coast Trail”!

That didn’t stop me though, I was up for the challenge! It was about 1 hour away by car, so my husband was so kind and woke up with me at 5:30 am to get to the trail as early as possible!

By the time we arrived, the sun had started to rise, and the cool morning air gave me energy to start at a fast pace!

I started from the south this time, because according to the hiking app I use, it was the more difficult part. There was a very steep climb, and I saw it quite soon.

It was really scary-looking, but actually, it was over before I knew it! I was quite tired, but it was over before I knew it!

It was nice seeing the sun come through the clouds over the ocean.

After the steep hill, things weren’t so bad. The path went north for a few kilometers, and then turned back south before finally going west for the rest of the way. It’s a very scenic route, both literally and sarcastically!

Yes, I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt in 6-degree weather!

I love seeing little caves like this! I wish I had a kayak so I could paddle there and explore…

I finally reached camp around 3:30 pm, and I had my dinner at 4. More MREs!

Most of the MRE was tasty - or at least edible - like before. However, this time I had a truly HORRIBLE experience. Look at the picture below. Can you guess what it should be?

Any idea? It’s… fried rice!

The texture was awful, and the chemical pack didn’t do a good job of heating it up, so for the first time, I didn’t eat any of it. I tried a bite, but it was so disgusting. So now I know which item to avoid!

I knew that night would be very, very cold, so I came prepared. I brought hand warmers, and I put on 2 pairs of socks, with one hand warmer between them. I wore a warm sweater to bed, and brought a pair of jogging pants that I usually wear around the house as warm pajamas.

However, despite the preparation, it was still VERY cold. The coldest I’d ever been. It was difficult to sleep that night, and I had to wake up now and then the shake the hand warmers to re-activate them.

However, I did get some sleep, and I woke up early for another long day of hiking. I didn’t have the energy or the spirit to take more pictures, so I’m sorry I don’t have much for day 2!

Finally, I got to the end of the trail, but I took a wrong turn. Instead of coming out to a small parking lot in a small town, I came to an abandoned street with old houses that hadn’t been used in years. I was forced to walk along the side of a house, and realized it was truly abandoned.

I staggered along the road to a nearby restaurant, because I had to wait a few hours for my husband to get me after he was done his work. After a cold couple of days, it felt good to sit on a (mostly) comfortable chair and eat some warm food!

It was a very delicious, very filling (and a bit expensive) meal! I wish every trail ended with a local restaurant I could try, but usually, I’m not so lucky, haha!

I’ll see you next week for the final overnight hike of 2025! It’ll be another cold one, and very, very wet.