Attempt two to reach Baxter Peak involved Saddle trail, which according to the trail guide is the easiest ascent. Having seen both the hardest and easiest paths to the top we can reasonably ascertain that there is no easy way to Baxter Peak! Saddle Trail is a steep boulder climb, even though it is short, and several sections of it had so much water coming down that it was like climbing in a waterfall. We were essentially rock climbing, minus the safety gear, plus a thirty five pound pack strapped to our backs. However, after two days of hiking in Baxter Park we finally achieved our goal of summiting Katahdin. The summit was completely encompassed by cloud cover, but we took a selfie next to "the sign" and were excited to start our AT journey officially!
If we thought the Saddle Trail up was difficult, we definitively didn't know what to expect on the way down. Austin quoted Armageddon to describe the AT/Hunt Trail coming down from Baxter Peak as "pretty much the scariest environment imaginable." Words cannot describe the sheer terror and exquisite beauty of this trail. There are large sections which feel like you are walking through a Tolkien novel, followed by strenuous scrambles across rock ridges with steep drops to both sides. We made it, even with full packs, by taking it slowly and carefully considering each descent, but probably won't attempt that again! Now we know why most people leave their gear at the KSC and only take daypacks to the top.
We intended on hiking out of the park this evening, but came across Daicey Pond campground, which happened to have a cabin available. We propose that staying in a cabin with no electricity or running water still constitutes camping. However the wood stove and free firewood allowed us to dry out all of our soggy gear from the last two rainy days. Total win!