Nostalgia for Summer

October 29, 2008

Today I received a surprise e-mail from a through-hiker who watched (and documented) Oscar and me back in August as we forded the deepest of those Maine rivers - Big Wilson Stream. Here we are, in transit, thanks to "Boat."


It's great to look back on those warm long days of mid-summer and to know that I've crossed every one of those fords. Any river-fording that I do in future will be purely optional.

Yay Phillies, 2008 Champs!

So Much Water

August 28, 2008

Maine is a watery state and I'm not even talking about the ocean! The whole interior is a boggy sponge overflowing with water that pours out in torrential streams. Here are a few of my bog favorites:

Pitcher plants in the Fourth Mountain Bog of the Barren-Chairback Range

Oscar staying on the bog bridges!

Sundew growing in an old beaver pond near Little Wilson Stream

Morning and Afternoon

August 25, 2008


Here is my view from Barren Ledge in the morning on my way up the mountain.

By afternoon, on the way back down:
Moments later I noticed this dramatic scene in the western sky, and figured I'd better scoot on down before the storm caught me. This was the last hike to complete the famed 100-Mile Wilderness!

Trail Magic

August 25, 2008

Trail Magic is the name for pleasant surprise treats and helpful acts provided to hikers (a ride to town in the rain, a cooler of cold drinks encountered on the Trail). Oscar found his Trail Magic lying on the side of the path!

Trail Dog

August 24, 2008

Oscar's been my faithful sidekick these last two weeks. Here he is bravely fording one of Maine's numerous rivers.

August in Maine - means BLUEBERRIES!

August 12, 2008

Finally the rain has let up - I made a tour of a couple of Maine's state parks. Peaks-Kenny on Sebec Lake had a gorgeous sunset view of the Chairback Range ( my next destination - it's in the 100-mile Wilderness ) with pink and blue clouds on the far side of the lake. Perfect Maine.

Then I went on an overnight backpack over Chairback Mountain to Third and Fourth Mountains - here is the top of Third Mt. with a view north to Long Pond. See the white Trail blaze on the rock?
It was blueberry heaven on the ledges - being part bear by nature, I made slow grazing progress through these patches!

Then I toured briefly north to Moosehead Lake and spent a night at Lily Bay State Park listening to loons in the night.

Monson Slate

August 7, 2008

Here I am in the mountains of Maine, where this summer has seen a lot of rain - 6 inches over last year. This is the southern end of the 100-mile Wilderness.

The Trail goes through the Slate Belt here - many local houses and barns have black Monson slate roofs. The slate is very slick to walk on. Even when on it's been turned on edge by geologic forces, it was later carved smooth by glacial action. Here are scenes from a ridge-top east of Monson.



As a result, I'm leery of hiking in the rain. Today was rainy, so I stayed "home" in the tent and did some reading and email - the campground caters to the RV set, and has wifi.

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

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

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.