Day 155 of a northbound Appalachian Trail thru-hike, somewhere in western Maine, and the group is falling apart. A cold, wet night has knocked out several hikers — the writer's dad and trail companion Dreamcatcher are down with illness, and another hiker, Small Bites, is only just functional. On a long thru-hike, constant physical stress means even a minor bug lingers for days.
That left just two of them to cover the day's miles, and it started badly: they walked a mile in the wrong direction before correcting course. But the reward made up for it. The terrain in this stretch of Maine finally relents a little, and the day's climb delivered a bald summit with sweeping views of early autumn foliage — peak colours starting to show in late September.
The destination was the Om Dome, a hostel near Andover that the rest of the group had reached a day earlier. Their messages back were glowing, so the two hikers put in their headphones and pushed hard to arrive by nightfall.
The Om Dome is not your standard bunk-and-laundry trail hostel. It runs a spiritual, mindfulness theme: ambient 'om' music playing in the background, a meditation tent stocked with singing bowls and gongs, and even an organised horseback riding trip scheduled for the following morning — announced as the house's one rule upon check-in. The writer, a self-confessed meditation novice, joined a guided session led by fellow hiker Dreamcatcher and found it genuinely slowed things down.
Even for sceptics, the practical fundamentals hold up. The writer praises the comfortable beds, spotless facilities, hot showers, and mountain views — capped off by watching the sunset from a backyard swing with chanting music drifting behind. For tired thru-hikers running on immune systems in tatters, it's exactly the kind of place that turns a rough stretch of trail back into a trip worth taking.
For anyone hiking the AT's Maine section, or plotting a section hike through the Andover area, this is a reminder that trail towns and hostels can be destinations in their own right. Late September brings the foliage, cooler hiking weather, and thinning crowds — but also shorter days and cold nights, so pack layers and build in rest days. Illness is one of the most common reasons hikers quit; a comfortable, restorative stop can be the difference between pushing on and going home.
