White Cap


August 10, 2007

Here I am on White Cap Mountain, 3644 feet. The white blazes mark the Trail.
This is the last major view north-east to the Katahdin massif. And it's the northern extent of the slate belt, so from here south the Trail crosses slate bedrock - sharp edges and slick faces make for tricky footing.

This trip ended at the Gulf Hagas trail head 11 miles south of here. I took a side trip (a zero mile day in hiker-speak) to explore Gulf Hagas, a canyon cut through slate by the West Branch of the Pleasant River. A recent thunder storm blew down lots of trees so getting around the Gulf was tricky.

For more pictures of this outing, see the photo album at:
http://homepage.mac.com/char46r/PhotoAlbum23.html

Working Forest


August 9, 2007

Here's the working forest in action - when we see these guys coming, we get out of the way!

Moose Tracks


August 6, 2007














The AT crosses the outlet stream of Crawford Pond - look closely at the lower left corner for a big moose foot print.

I had several close encounters with the big girls, both on road and trail, but somehow the camera was always stowed out of reach at the critical moment.

Hairy Rocks

August 3, 2007

When I'm not admiring Mt. Katahdin across one of the many lakes, I'm wandering through forests full of old glacial boulders with ferny hair on top.

To see more check out this photo album:
http://homepage.mac.com/char46r/PhotoAlbum23.html

More Lake Country


August 3, 2007

Here's Pemaduncook Lake on a hazy day - still our mountain dominates the horizon.

Lake Country


August 2, 2007
















Here I am on Nesuntabunt Mountain, looking down onto Nahmakanta Lake with - surprise - Mt. Katahdin looming over the ridge.

Into the Wilderness


August 1, 2007

I'm working my way south into the fabled 100-Mile Wilderness. It crosses a land of glacial lakes, low granite hills, and numerous boggy in-between areas like this - plenty of mosquitoes here.

It's really not such a wilderness; it's a multiple-use area with logging roads where recreation is secondary to the working forest. The AT crosses these roads in 5 places, so I had plenty of access points for my 2-3 day trips.

Local Wildlife

... the sight of a moose which swam across the pond to our side and then wandered into the woods.

Nature Watch

July 28, 2007

Stopping at Sandy Stream Pond at the end of the day, we are mesmerized by ...

Trail Crew

July 28, 2007

After a week of working hard and learning about rock work, here are some of the crew standing on our new flight of steps on South Turner Mountain. Leaders Ali and Julie are in the front; Tecla, Britta, and I in the back.

North to Maine


July 22, 2007

In northern Maine, Mt. Katahdin looms on the horizon everywhere. Here it is across Upper Jo-Mary Lake, where I stayed at a campground on my way to Baxter State Park to work on an AMC volunteer trail crew.