Maine's High Point Trip Reports
Back to High PointsThe highest point in Maine is Katahdin. It sits within the 200,000+ acre Baxter State Park. Most of the park's land was donated by Governor Percival P. Baxter. From 1930 to 1962 he bought parcels of land and gave them to the state of Maine. In 1933 the Maine Legislature designated the land he had donated as Baxter State Park in the governor's honor.
In 1941, Governor Baxter was quoted as saying:
Katahdin always should and must remain the wild storm swept, untouched-by-man region it now is; that is its great calm. Only small cabins for mountain climbers and those who love the wilderness should be allowed there, only trails for those who travel on foot or horseback, a place where nature rules and where the creatures of the forest hold undisputed dominion.
As modern civilization with its trailers and gasoline fumes, its unsightly billboards, its radio and jazz, encroaches on the Maine wilderness the time yet may come when only the Katahdin region remains undefiled by man. To acquire this Katahdin region for the people of Maine has been undertaken by me as my life?s work, and I hope as the years roll on that this state park will be enjoyed by an ever increasing number of Maine people and by those who come to us from beyond our borders.
Katahdin stands above the surrounding plain unique in grandeur and glory. The works of man are short lived. Monuments decay, buildings crumble and wealth vanishes, but Katahdin in its massive grandeur will forever remain the mountain of the people of Maine. Throughout the ages it will stand as an inspiration to the men and women of this state.
This is a very special place for Todd and I. It is his favorite place on earth and we return once a year to hike the mountain.
2010, September 2nd - Abol
September 2, 2010 Photo Album2009, September 13th - Sandy Falls Apart
This year we invited our friend Sandy Sabella to come with us on our annual pilgrimage. She had been to the mountain three times, but had only been able to summit once. This year she wanted to even the score. Todd knew Sandy first. He met her while working at Loctite a few years back. I first met Sandy the day I moved to Connecticut. Todd asked a few of his friends to help us unpack the U-Haul. She and I went to Big Y to pick up some pizzas for the crew. She was amazed how friendly everyone was to me and vice-versa. She said she had never seen anything like it. That I just ooze friendliness. Needless to say, a friendly girl from Nebraska was taken aback by her brashness. I wasn't sure if I wanted to be friends with her or not. Well, since then she has grown on me. Perhaps she has gotten used to my midwest mannerisms or maybe I have become more brash. Either way, I was happy that Sandy was coming with us.
Our plan was to drive up to Maine on Saturday, with a quick stop in Kittery so Sandy could shop at the Kittery Trading Post. Although mornings are usually tense at our house (in other words, Todd is not a morning person), we left with less distress than usual. One aggravation happened when I dropped the dogs off at the vet and learned that canine influenza is going around. In order to board the dogs there again we will have to pay $280 to get the dogs vaccinated. That is a lot of money! Hopefully the outbreak will pass and we won't have to do pay for the vaccine before their next boarding in February when we go to the Vineyard. While I dealt with the dogs, Todd made a last minute decision to take his new Jetta instead of my faithful Saturn. Todd realized recently that a wheel bearing may be going out and he didn't want to risk getting stranded with Sandy in the car.
When we got to Sandy's house, I was surprised to see that she had packed everything she needed for the weekend, except her hiking boots, in one pack. Wow, what an accomplishment. We are too used to parking near our campsite. We had filled the back of the wagon with our stuff. And despite Todd accusing me of being the cause of all the "stuff" being in there, he had almost as much as I did. Sandy does long distance back packing often and she knows how to pack light. I wonder what she thought when we opened the back of the car the first time?
The first two and a half hours of the trip went by quickly as we made our way to Kittery. It was sprinkling when we got there and there was a lot of traffic so we had a hard time finding a parking space. We had no hope of finding a spot in the Trading Post parking lot. As Sandy shopped, Todd and I walked around the store. Outside there was a huge blow up gun scope. Todd noticed as we walked by a window while inside the store that there was a picture of a deer inside the cross hair of that huge scope. How strange to have such a thing. I suppose they thought it would be good advertising. I just thought it was a waste of money. The good news was that Sandy found an acceptable backpack to replace the one that digs into her back. After she paid for it we fought the traffic getting out of town. We were once again on our way. Sandy is not used to eating at fast food restaurants, so she was at a loss when we stopped at Wendy's for lunch. She avoided the fat and calorie laden taco salad that I ordered and opted for the caesar salad minus the croutons.
Millinocket is the closest town to Baxter State Park. It has not been taken over by tourism yet. Todd likes to do his part for the local economy so we try to buy some of our food at the local Hannaford grocery store. There are some bins out front that are used to collect either used clothing or perhaps recycling. They are painted bright colors and have smiley faces on the front. One of these days I am going to remember to take a picture of them.
We arrived in town around five or five-thirty, quickly picked up our supplies and headed for the park. Because it was getting late, we did not stop at the beautiful painted rock on the road to Baxter like we usually do. When we got to the gate, the ranger informed us they were having problems with bears this year and to be sure not to leave anything that has a scent outside of the car. A few years ago they were having problems with deer. There were actually parents pushing their kids towards the deer to get a picture. Surprise, surprise, the deer would try to attack the kids.
On Sunday we were going to hike the Chimney Pond and Saddle trails to the summit. We had hoped to stay both Saturday and Sunday night at the Roaring Brook campground since the Chimney Pond trailhead was located there. Unfortunately we made our reservation too late and the campground was full for Saturday night. Luckily we were able to get a reservation for Sunday night, so we could walk off the trail and into our campsite. One good thing that Todd found during the reservation process this year was a web site that shows the campsite availability.
For Saturday night, we settled for a site at Abol campground. None of us had ever been there and we were pleasantly surprised. Since the Abol trail is not as traveled as some of the other trails because it is so steep, the campground doesn't seem to get as much use. The campsite and bathrooms were very clean. I was happy to see (and hear!) a stream flowing behind our site. We unpacked the car, setup our sleeping quarters and ate our frozen dinners that we heated up over the campfire. An extra bonus about camping is that Todd and my sleeping bags zip together. We never have to worry about getting cold! We were all tired from our travel day, so we fell asleep early anticipating the hiking we would do the next day.
As I mentioned earlier, Todd is not a morning person. When he was talking with the ranger at the front gate he mentioned we would probably be driving by the gate the next day around 6:30 on our way to Roaring Brook campground. Me, being the morning person that I am, I took that as gospel and popped my eyes open at 5:40ish. Sandy also was up at that time. Todd was hating life. He had no intentions of getting up that early. But after some prodding, he rolled out of his sleeping bag and started his day. We did not make the 6:30 deadline, but 7 A.M. was acceptable to me.
When we parked at Roaring Brook we found something very disheartening. One of the bears that the ranger warned us about had torn into a soft sided Jeep looking for food. Strewn about in the parking lot was an unopened package of Twizzlers, raw pasta that was opened but not eaten and part of a label from a package of salmon. Bingo. That is what the momma bear was looking for! The owner was nowhere to be found. We found out later they had camped at a remote campsite the night before and weren't even aware of what happened. When we left on Monday morning, the owner had torn the back window almost completely off, as if it say, "Take whatever you want. Just leave the Jeep alone!"
We signed in at the trailhead around 7:30 A.M. Everyone was in good spirits, although we all had different aches and pains that could make the day challenging. Sandy's knees were bothering her Saturday, but as we started our journey she wasn't feeling any pain. I was still healing from my foot injury. It had been feeling good for a couple weeks, but Thursday night with my trainer had irritated it again and I was feeling tingles when I stepped wrong. Todd had a sprained ankle and was walking with an Active Ankle brace. None of us were concerned about Todd not making it to the top. He would drag himself with bloody knuckles to the top if he had to. Since Sandy was a slower hiker than either of us, we let her set the pace.
The weather wasn't the greatest. It was warm, but there was a 40% chance of rain after 1:00 P.M. Todd and I could make it back down below treeline before the rain started, but since Sandy hadn't hiked this trail before, we wondered if we could make it down in time.
We spent the next couple hours chatting and cursing about how the rocks were strategically placed so that we couldn't get into a nice walking rhythm. We stopped at a clearing to take some pictures and visit with a couple from Tennessee. Chimney Pond is my favorite place in Baxter State Park. It is approximately half way between the trailhead and the summit. We stopped to drink in the beauty of the area and have a snack. Sandy filled up her water bottled and added some iodine to purify it. Todd and I do not use iodine because we pack enough water. As I watched her water turn brown I was happy that we don't use it. There was hardly anyone around, which is much different than the other two times I have been to the pond. We picked up the Saddle trail which would take us to the top. There were clouds building on the summit. I was a little concerned, but was still hoping for the best.
The trail got steeper as we headed for the actual saddle part of the trail. It is a short section above treeline with sand and small loose rocks intermixed with larger, more solid rocks. The last time I did this section was on our honeymoon and it was very difficult. I depended on Todd to guide me up the trail. This year I knew that I would not feel comfortable going at Sandy's pace up that exposed, slippery section. So when we started to rise above the tops of the trees I passed Sandy and made my way to the top of the saddle alone. The clouds were on the tableland, but they hadn't reached down into the saddle yet. That meant there were beautiful views which made me slightly uncomfortable. When I reached the safety of the tableland I sat down and took stock of what I had just accomplished. Just a few years ago I could have never done that stretch, let alone by myself. A park employee was standing on the tableland visiting with people as they reached the top of the saddle. About 10 minutes later Todd and Sandy arrived. The clouds were building so we set off almost immediately for the summit. Even though it is called the tableland, we still had some climbing to do. Sandy was getting tired. She was slowing down, complaining more and mumbling instead of talking. Todd and I were getting our second wind and teased her incessantly.
By the time we reached the summit the weather was starting to turn. The clouds were very thick and the air was heavy. The thing that brightened my day was seeing a new sign. The old one had really gotten ragged looking. Sometime in the last year someone hauled a brand new sign up the mountain and their reward was having to hall the old one back down. We took a few pictures, ate a quick snack and headed down. Sandy and I left first while Todd took some video. We were making good time when Sandy stopped suddenly complaining of a leg cramp. She was in a lot of pain. We tried to massage it out, but it didn't seem to help. She sat down and started screaming. Wow, I had no idea what to do. I could only see a few feet and as far as I could tell, no one else was around. Todd heard her screams off in the distance and shouted down to us, asking what was up. I told him what was going on and he ran to help. By the time he reached us she was laying on her back stretched over a rock moaning.
He decided she was low on sodium. She didn't bring any salty snacks and left her Gatorade behind. We gave her some of Todd's salty crackers and my Gatorade. The Gatorade was a bad idea. As she started to drink, she laid back down on her back and Gatorade poured all over her face and fleece jacket. I grabbed the bottle and we tried to bring her back to reality. Later she would call it an out of body experience. We just refer to it as a black out.
Eventually the cramp subsided and we continued on slowly. Todd and I were freezing. We weren't expecting to be above treeline this long and especially not in the rain (note to self: buy rain pants!). Soon Sandy got a cramp in her other leg. Once again there was lots of screaming. At this point Todd took over the situation completely and Sandy did whatever he said. He told her to put on her rain coat, take off her wet cotton shorts and put on her rain pants. Todd turned around as she changed, but she said she didn't care who saw her naked . I helped her put her pants on, but I was really cold and really concerned about the weather. Todd and I were exchanging worried glances. Two women walked by and asked if they could help. Todd told them that we needed help and asked them to tell a ranger if they saw one.
Finally I said that I couldn't stay with them anymore. I needed to make time so I could generate some body heat. Todd agreed and I took off. My plan was to get down below the saddle and wait for them. Before this point I concentrated on each foot step, trying to minimize the pressure on my sore foot. But I pushed all that aside and moved as fast as I could. I could hardly see because my glasses were so spotted, so I took them off and held them in my hand. I would do anything to get into the safety of the trees as soon as possible. I was hoping the park employee was still waiting at the saddle, but unfortunately she had left.
I stopped momentarily to put my glasses in my pack and then I started my descent. I soon passed the women who were going to look for a ranger for us. Oh well, I thought, I guess it is up to me! It was not raining on the saddle and the wind subsided also. That made me feel better and I was able to concentrate on the terrain. The trail was covered by a cloud so I didn't have to worry about seeing anything too far from my face. I moved smoothly around the rock obstacles and never lost my footing. Finally I was below treeline, but unfortunately the rain returned. I decided to keep moving instead of waiting for them. Constant forward progress. I was moving slow because of the slick rocks and I was hoping that if I moved slowly I would stay warm enough and maybe those guys would catch me. Many people passed me and I always asked if they had seen Todd and Sandy. All of them said the same thing - they are moving slow, but they are fine. So I kept pressing on myself. It is only 1.2 miles from the top of the saddle to the ranger's station at Chimney Pond, but it seemed like it took forever.
I was so excited to see the ranger's station. I went inside and he was waiting for me. Many of the other hikers that finished before I did had told him about the situation. I recounted exactly what had happened. He asked questions and determined we would wait for them to arrive. That the situation was not that bad. I felt the same way after talking with everyone on the trail. It seemed like forever, but it was probably only 10-15 minutes before they came around the corner. Sandy looked good. She hadn't had any other cramps. Todd had given her a bunch of Pringles and carried her bag until they got below the saddle. Rich, the ranger, gave her some more Gatorade and we sat in his office for a while. The ranger was very friendly and talked about his other careers before he came to Baxter State Park. He was retired Air Force and had been to Offutt Air force Base in Bellevue, Nebraska. That was pretty interesting to me since I worked on Offutt for six months. But there was no more time for chit chat. We still had two hours of hiking left, so I put on some dry pants and a hat and we took off. The last part of the hike was relatively uneventful. We kept a fast pace because it would be getting dark soon.
Just as the campground came into site, I was in front and I glanced over towards the stream we were paralleling and saw two baby bears. One was heading straight for me, although I don't think he had seen me yet. The other one was still in the water, but heading in the same direction. I quickened my pace and told Todd there were two bears. He yelled run and I took off. Sandy was the last of our group and she had started to zone out with the finish in site. Todd yelled for her to run too, but it took a few times before she realized what he was saying. She eventually took off too. We passed a cabin with some kids in it. They came out to see what the commotion was about. Being young, the first thing on their mind was finding the bears. Crazy kids. Todd tried to talk them out of it, but eventually he left them.
We had been on the trail for 10 1/2 hours, which is about 3 1/2 hours longer than what it usually takes Todd and I. I was exhausted! Sandy and I walked to our campsite and Todd drove the car over. Bill, the ranger in charge of the Roaring Brook campground, was at our site cleaning things up. He was very nice and smiled when I told him Rich said hi. After Todd arrived with my dry clothes, I quickly changed out of the wet ones. I was chilled straight through and really wanted to warm up. Todd was nice enough to setup our bedding so I could warm up. He also fixed me dinner in bed. What a great husband! We laid out our wet clothes, ate a hot meal and fell asleep.
Monday night I wanted to attend a industry meeting that was being held in the building I work in. That meant that we had to leave early from Baxter. Once again, Todd was hating life on Monday morning. Somehow I was able to get him up and we left the campsite at 6:20 A.M. We joked on the way home about Sandy's out of body experience. She indicated she had fun and would do it again. She probably had her fill of fast food restaurants on Monday. We had breakfast and lunch at McDonalds! We rolled into Rocky Hill around 3:30 P.M. After dropping Sandy off, I still had time to pick up the dogs and take a shower before going to my meeting. Another great adventure at Katahdin. I can't wait for next year! To see more photos from our trip, click on the photo below.
September 13, 2009 Photo Album