Day 107 | The Mahoosuc Notch - the toughest, most fun mile of the AT | Appalachian Trail 2021

June 9
Mile 1911.8 - 1921.3
Total 9.5 miles

[@cwetfeet]

I first hiked the Mahoosucs in the late 60's as a young teenager. I still remember the sunrise at Speck Pond. Thank you for the videos.

[@Head-ck4hu]

I've always wanted to put some trail magic out at the beginning of the notch. A big bag of knee pads.

[@knittingnighthiker]

I was thinking, they should have carried knee pads for this part!

[@megankovatch4101]

That looks amazing! I can not tell you how much I have enjoyed watching your journey. One day I would like to complete a full thru hike of the AT.

[@frolege1]

The MN looks like so much fun... great filming Taylor.. you really showed the toughest of the Notch.

[@515aleon]

This is one of the best views of this I have seen with you two being able tag team each other. Nice campsite!

[@ronaldbettendorf7596]

Thanks for the great views/experience of the Notch! No one so far has captured it as good! Thanks again for taking the time! Venezza B

[@teamcoggins5]

Looks like fun! I love watching you guys.

[@Raveler1]

Wow, what a section! You did a great job vlogging it - it definitely looks like a fun kind of tough!

[@hdbinnc8583]

Wow! What a day. A really tough climb rewarded by a beautiful sunset. Attitude is everything and you guys have a great one. Keep charging!

[@nancyb.7541]

I was so looking forward to seeing you tackle the Mahoosuc Notch and Arm--well done!

[@alech729]

This just made me so stoked to get to this part on my AT thru hike next summer. You’re killing it Taylor!!!

[@g8torfan462]

Enjoying every minute of your vlogs. Thank you. :)

[@UrDoinItWrong]

I love these vlogs! You do a great job with overall feel and pace of them, and I've had a great time following you two on your adventure! I don't want it to end haha You two need to hike another trail ASAP!

[@buoy5579]

Agree 100% with you!!

[@keno7800]

7:46 Stretch's Duplex setup on the platform, I see a face with tongue sticking out. Hahah. Nice job, so funny. I loved the Mahoosic Notch, but that tight squeeze gave me legit claustrophobia just looking at it. Love you both! Keep on rockin' to Katahdin!

[@billcompton6050]

Taylor looks like a lot of fun for you guys. I am liking the high hair bun action. You two make a good hiking pair. Its nice to have someone to share the experience with. thx Da Breeze

[@danielandhisswiftiebuddyev1073]

My family have been watching you over the last few weeks. Every morning we watch you progress together. We are all from Maine. It's fun to watch a local girl kick butt.

[@deborahs6978]

Congratulations! The VERY BEST footage of Mahoosuc Notch! I got a touch of claustrophobia just watching it. : )

[@jerrym2367]

Wow. What an epic day for you two. Thanks for sharing it with us.

[@lorik7591]

Great video! Thanks for sharing those tough climbs!

[@melizabeth908]

That looked like so much fun! Thanks for sharing.

[@elsajohnson6663]

Glad you were able to video it. Some people only show certain sections. Amazing Stretch can hike practically barefoot. Wild and beautiful area. I hope to do it someday. I grew up in Berlin looking at it outside my window, so its been on my bucket list forever

[@francesbrooks2320]

It was nice of you to get Stretch a new pair of shoes.

[@surfandstreamfisher5749]

those two are good hiking partners. they really care about one another!

[@mistikbunny7840]

That's beautiful trail! Looks tough. Thanks for sharing your hike!

[@raychaos57]

Excellent work on the Mahoosuc!

[@colleen2503]

Somehow you smiled all the way through that so-called trail. I would have been crying my eyes out!

[@davebryer6133]

Thanks for showing so much of the Notch, many don't show much of it. I don't know what the date was when you made it through but other volgers recently did not show snow, so you are really killing the trail this year. Good for you.

[@karinpaoletti5806]

Was hiked on 6/9. She puts the date and miles hiked in the vlog description section.

[@jamesfpeterson3532]

So beautiful you and the trail 😇🥰

[@AdamHoyt]

What an awesome day. That notch looked so cool. So different from the rest of the trail lol. I can tell some newenglanders chose the path for this section lol

[@bevliechty1161]

Great pictures you show so many new areas that others don’t show

[@kyridgejumper]

Great job on the coverage of that part of the trail

[@carolsikora889]

Thanks for sharing that sunset! 🌅

[@joannelama8775]

Such a nice view ! And that does look fun !

[@NancyandMako]

Great job climbing wow I can’t wait to do that section of trail thx for filming!!!!

[@jimmyjenkins9240]

Awesomeness in motion‼️👏

[@rosiodo]

Wow that looks beautiful and difficult!!

[@PedroNord]

Great job !! Fabulous day !! You’re approaching the home Stretch (pun intended).🦋

[@carmenhernandez6102]

You guys are awesome..

[@alankee1065]

That is insane terrain.

[@reneeh2050]

That looked like an awesome day 🔥🥾

[@devildog7602]

It seems like it only took you a split second to get from Mahoosuc Notch up to Mahoosuc Arm. Good job! Taylor, have you ever done The Lost River in New Hampshire? That's what the Mahoosuc Notch reminds me of. It was also very nice of you to get Stretch new shoes. I think you will remain friends forever. Thank you for posting.

[@coachhikes2747]

That sunset is the money shot💪

[@razzbazle1582]

You guys rock!

[@johnalden5821]

Cool shots from the Notch! I gotta think that would take me all day to get through. The knees don't like bending as much as they used to. . .

[@JASHJustASectionHiker]

Love the trekking pole throw.

[@aromaofhope]

You guys get around like mountain goats! Amazing!

[@djg5950]

Nice that you bought Stretch some new shoes. He needs them. Notch had to be extra sketchy for him with all the ice and snow (and rocks) with worn out tread. That was where you needed the most grip a shoe provides. Good job on the notch though. I'm surprised that there was still that much snow in there.

[@michaelbutler4961]

I loved hiking the notch :) The Arm was a little tough. Nice sunset :) Hike~On~~>

[@robopecha]

the part with the rocks looked really fun. if you are with someone. i wouldnt have fun hiking that part alone.

[@BuzzCarrick70]

You're really improving on camera. Much more comfortable and natural.

[@judytombaugh2990]

Great job 👏

[@colleenbreining624]

Gotta love Kaine! Such a beautiful State ❤️

[@colleenbreining624]

Maine 🤭

[@samuelfink4799]

I just don’t see that happening with my surgically replaced knee, I would meet my demise there. Guess I’ll have to live vicariously through you guys.

[@edfarthing]

Thanks again for a great way to start my day following you and Stretch - glad you made it safely through the notch - looking forward to tomorrow - onward and northward.

[@boxturtle6809]

Nice work. (I met a young Sobo when I arrived at the Notch and when he told me that it took him two hours to cover the mile, I figured it would take me three. But I went over the top and rock hopped it in 80 minutes. At that point I was very enthused beginning the mile and a half up the Arm. However, the time I saved through the Most Difficult Mile was used up during the following climb.) You'll be members of the club in short order.

[@gratefulhikes]

Morning Taylor! What an awesome day! Challenging and refreshing indeed! I love that there is still snow there. You are a great partner ordering stretch some new shoes. His shoes definitely needed replacing. There is something special about sunrise/sunsets in a Maine, they are just so beautiful. Thanks for bringing us along today. I hope tomorrow’s miles are kind. Keep truckin’ and be well. -Grateful

[@daviddisalvo4462]

Speck Pond..such a nice spot!

[@garylindenmuth7468]

Great climb be safe almost there

[@pattiweaver7288]

You guys rock … tackling the hardest but enjoying it and laughing around. Does stretch have a KZbin site?

[@toadlguy]

Like everyone else, watching your progress has been my guilty pleasure when I get up most days. You guys really do seem to be having a terrific time of it 😁

[@theodoredesmarais4219]

Your so cute ! and the views are so nice, I'm in the dry west, but your food choices are atrocious ! get some good fruit, veggies and nuts ! Gourmet camp food is not difficult, spices: ginger, cinnamon, garlic, to liven up potatoes, apples, which you can do hundreds of different dishes with. Hard boiled eggs, dried Wild Ak Salmon, or foil packs, portable packs from costco of brown rice, quinoa, and lentils are so quick and easy to heat, a really good water purifier and a portable camp stove are crucial ! Do Yosemite, next ! A show of the skinny dipping rock quarries would be great too. Monadnock and Chocorua would be good to cover ! I especially like swimming in Whitten Pond and diving at the Milford quarry. Love to You both ! great shows !

[@johnelliott5923]

Nice love it!

[@OntheWrightPath]

That looked more like spelunking than hiking. Really interesting.

[@leachandler2845]

So that “trail” looks sketchy- like someone is playing a joke on all you Thru hikers to see if you would actually climb over/under/through those jungle-jim crazy areas & down those “metal bar” steps. 😳. Also- are the white blazes easy to spot? Love the QUEEN snickers!

[@NickEDowning]

Boy howdy does that look fun. I am not sure how you fit through that first pass with your pack on.

[@jumpingjacki4541]

What a good day!!

[@bradjohnson-dupre4901]

Rockstars you are !!

[@juketreks2192]

Only a hiker would start a conversation with,” I walked point three away from…….”

[@TrailsVonMudder]

High quality. For anyone wondering, the strava CR / de facto FKT for the Notch is 28:15

[@leeleach6005]

I love that you have the sound of the under rock stream in the Vlog. Also, when I did this section last July, I bonked going up Mahoosuc Arm, not to speak of the aggressive grouse that I couldn't out climb.

[@donnaburns2944]

OMG!! WOW!! 💚🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@Burps___]

I would definitely follow Stretch on KZbin. 📺 ❗️4:46

[@kurtdanielson9862]

The beavers look busy on that pond.

[@spartyhikerfromme5492]

I believe that lake is the highest elevation lake in the State of Maine. Peace, Love and Kindness.

[@timandrew1091]

Have to finish the AT in July, NH and Maine left... I didn't see many white blazes in video

[@korrinanolan8665]

When do you finish your thorough hike in the Appalachian

[@davidh5101]

The guy who put the trail through Mahoosuc Notch had a sense of humor.

[@lilygg8018]

I'm not sure where you and Stretch are on the trail now but as you past the area please remember Inchworm, Geraldine Largay, the AT hiker who was last seen at the Poplar Ridge lean-to and got off trail heading to the Spaulding lean-to in July 2013. Sadly she lost her life unable to find the trail again. Searchers combed the area for three weeks. She was found more than two years later by a surveyor, solving the mystery of what happened to her and closure to the family.

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

We heard that story from a sherif in town. I want to read the book when I get off trail about it

[@lilygg8018]

@@TaylortheNahamshaHiker Oh Taylor, hello! I didn't know about the book. I'm going to read it too. I followed the news at the time, it was such a mystery as to what happened to her. Seemed unbelievable she wasn't found. The authorities determined that they had been as close as 300 feet to her camp. Such a tragedy. Have you passed the Poplar lean-to already? You guys are crushing it, you're such an inspiration! Thank you for sharing your journey. :o)

[@sinkguid]

@@TaylortheNahamshaHiker Google “Mainernews Gerry trail” and there is a review of the new book and many more details and opinion on her demise, by an investigative reporter which is absolutely fascinating. Also on Animal Planet’s North Woods Law, there is an episode where the crew chronicles the searches and recovering her body by the game wardens (I have seen it, and it was not re-enacted). Moral of story - don’t rely on your cell phone to save you. By the way this episode of yours is my favorite, videoing each other really shows the difficulty of this section of the trail, and you two have been a joy to follow! Thanks for sharing!

[@JohnPetrie]

Hey Taylor - are you and Stretch going to be first on Katahdin this year? Is anyone ahead of y'all? Happy hiking!

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

We have a few friends ahead of us! Uphill made it to katahdin, that's the first we've seen

[@rachescakes]

The guys doing a calendar year triple crown have finished the AT as well.

[@brandoningersoll5034]

Has the Circus (Betty White, CVS, etc). caught up yet?

[@kaiserwilhelmnh932]

There was the giant ladder! Speck Pond

[@spectrum10]

At 1:55, if you look closely at the sign you will note that somebody added KS to the end of Mahoosuc.

[@djg5950]

I didn't even notice that. I was trying to figure out what was written on the one below it. The one that was vandalized with the paint scraped off. I was trying to find the distance to the notch and that is what someone scraped off. Something is written above it too.

[@StevenTorrey]

Is there a hiking route bypassing that?

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

There might be , but I didn't look

[@RichRich1955]

Those spring peepers know summer isn't for another week

[@AaronBrooks1]

Taylor, I didn't realize you were editing your own videos while on the trail. First - kudos! Second, what app are you using to edit?

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

Thanks! It's called power director

[@RichRich1955]

Iceman is in that ice I'm sure!

[@nolan5251]

good morning

[@lauramritenour7243]

How close are y’all to worth Heading north?

[@karinpaoletti5806]

At this point in time, Worth Heading North is about a day behind. He ended his day on the 9th at the Gentian Pond shelter in NH.

[@leonardbertaux6897]

The second time I did this trail there was a rotting moose near the beginning. The moose had broken its leg in the winter and slowly decomposed over the summer. The smell was intensely bad.

[@trailnamejasper9457]

Ok so I take a size 14 Altra Lone Peak 5 would be nice. Thank you.

[@jazzjokesjalopies]

Will a career related to this adventure follow?

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

I'm still going to adventure, but I already have a great career

[@danielstoddart]

Taylor the "Can You See My Sweat?" Hiker

[@HazenDemietrie603]

how hard is this part ? Me and a friend are wanting to do just this section

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

I don't think it's hard, just very time consuming figuring out how to get around all the obstacles

[@eveostay]

those crevices and caves are full of snakes, right???

[@eddyarundale1566]

👋

[@miketognacci7937]

Hi Nahamsha

[@TaylortheNahamshaHiker]

Hi dad

[@briangriffin5524]

That is one crazy hike. I could see the trail was marked with blazes and arrows. I'd hate to get lost in that maze of rocks and boulders.🧗⛰️

[@kc8hyg]

Good morning

[@freeheel748]

You made the podium!