Christmas Week in Maine 2014

It's Christmas Eve, and this week I have finally decided to use some of my vacation time to spend the full week in Maine.  I definitely needed the time in the woods, and this week has been perfect for it.  So here are some notes about my adventures in Maine thus far and a wish for all of you to have a very merry Christmas!

Allagash Brewing Company

I left Massachusetts Saturday afternoon and started my week with a stop at Allagash Brewery in Portland, ME.  I'm a big fan of craft beer, and Allagash has long been my favorite brewery.  Allagash does free tours and beer tastings each day (more info can be found here).  The brewery always has their House beer on tap along with three other rotating taps.  That weekend they were serving Interlude, Saison, and Odyssey.  I can honestly say that I have never had an Allagash beer that I did not like, and I could not pick a favorite for this trip.  I ended up leaving with a limited release Midnight Bret and a 750ml of Interlude and Odyssey.  I'm not ashamed to say that these were Christmas presents to myself.

Another thing I love about Allagash is that the people that work at the brewery are always very welcoming and have a passion for craft beer.  It's not just a job for them, and they are always willing to answer questions, make recommendations, and share stories about working at Allagash.  I had the good fortune to stop by on a day that they were not very busy and had time to chat.  I met Ben, a tour guide at the brewery, and Josh, a brewer that worked at Dogfish Head Brewery before coming to Allagash Brewing Company five years ago.  It turned out Ben had worked for quite a time with the hut system in the White Mountains.  That sparked a good conversation about hiking in general, the lodge that he worked at for a time in Greenville, ME, and then the discovery that we had a common connection in the Shin Pond area.  It's funny how Maine is such a large state, but so small when you think about how everyone seems to know everyone.  Josh had grown up in Massachusetts not too far from where I now live.  We swapped some stories about hiking, and then talked about the limited release beers that Allagash has available only at the brewery.  There will be one coming out soon that Josh created the recipe for - I intend to keep my eye out for that one.  It's not often you can have a beer and say you know the brewer that created it.  Or at least it's not often that I can say that.

My experience at Allagash Brewing Company started my week off in the way I always expect my time in Maine to go.  Allagash Brewing Company the place is amazing, but it's made all the more special by the welcoming people that make you feel right at home.

Union/Camden/Lincolnville

The first few days of my trip were spent in Union, ME with a very good friend of mine, Dan.  Union is a place where I always feel like time slows almost to a stand still.  It's such a glaring difference in the pace of everything when compared to Massachusetts.  Of course that can be due to the fact I don't need to go to work when I am there, but I think it has more to do with the people.  Nothing is rushed, and it's so easy to just take time to enjoy a sunset from a random field, enjoy a morning sleeping in, and just actually relax and recharge.

While in Union, I made a few side trips over to Camden and Lincolnville.  Sunday morning breakfast was at Marriner's Restaurant in Camden, ME.  The restaurant is not very big, but they had a great spread for breakfast.  I had buttermilk pancakes, bacon, eggs, toast, coffee - all with this view from my seat:

As I sat there, I listened to all that was going on around me - the locals were going about their Sunday getting breakfast with their families.  Everything from the view to the slower pace to something as small as the accent of the locals just made me breathe easier and feel so much at home.  I had plans to hike up to Ocean Lookout in Camden Hills State Park that morning, but I spent a little extra time just enjoying the atmosphere at Marriner's before going on my way armed with a full belly and a thermos full of coffee.

Camden Hills State Park

A funny realization I came to as I pulled into the parking lot at Camden Hills State Park was that I have never hiked at the park during any season other than winter.  It had been over a year since I had hiked in this park, so I knew I needed to spend a morning taking in the views from Ocean Lookout.  Ocean Lookout is not a very long hike (about 1.4 miles), but it offers views that stretch for miles down the coastline on a clear day.  My intent was to hike there, snap some photos, enjoy my coffee, and then visit with some friends in Lincolnville Beach....instead I kept going to the summit of Mt. Megunticook and then sat on the ledge at Ocean Lookout for almost an hour just having coffee and taking it all in.

There is not much snow right now on the coast of Maine, so I did not need snowshoes for the hike.  I was happy, however, that my friend Ted Coffin has hammered it into my head to carry extra gear and be prepared.  When I got further up on the trail, there was a fair amount of ice to be dealt with.  Now I could have picked my way around the edges of the trail if I needed to, but thanks to Ted - I just threw on my micro-spikes and kept on going.  Here's a photo of just one of the places they came in handy:

When I came out at Ocean Lookout, there was actually a college student from Ohio up there already.  He was the only hiker I ran into that day, and he very obviously did not know Ted Coffin.  Terrence, as he introduced himself, was hiking in sneakers with no winter coat, just wind pants and a sweater, and no winter hat.  He decided he wanted to continue on with me to the summit, and I just shook my head.  I am used to hiking alone, and the only time I like hiking in groups is when it's with people like my TSP friends - people that love the woods and mountains and have a passion for it.  Having a chatty college kid tag along was not what I had in mind for my day on Mt. Megunticook, but that's where I found myself so I made the most of it.  It was a struggle....not to laugh out loud as he slipped all over the place and landed on his butt more than a few times.  It made for slow going, but the summit was only 0.4 miles on from Ocean Lookout.  We hit the summit, snapped a few photos, and then headed back.  I had hoped that he would continue on when I stopped for coffee at Ocean Lookout, but no such luck.  I think he was nervous about heading back down the icy trail by himself.  

I found a good spot on the ledge and made myself comfortable.  Sitting there with my thermos of coffee and looking down the coast, I started to think about this last year.  I have seen and done so much in this year - between moving, starting a new job, traveling all over the country, joining up with The Summit Project, taking part in GORUCK events, and meeting some pretty amazing people along the way.  A view like this clears your head and really makes you think.  I need more views like this:

Before too long, I caught sight of Terrence shivering and felt a little bad for him.  We started down the trail, and he began to ask me all kinds of questions - How long have you been hiking?  How do you know what to pack?  Where did you get your spikes? .... in between slipping and falling all over the place.  So much for my quiet day in the woods... I should have just given him Ted's email address - but hopefully next time when he comes hiking in Maine, he will be a little more prepared than he was this time.

From Camden Hills State Park, I made my way to Lincolnville Beach to visit with some family friends.  Don and Debbie may as well be a part of my family, and I look forward to seeing them every time I am in the area.  We caught up on recent happenings, watched the Patriots eke out a win against the Jets, and shared some local coffee porter from Andrew's Brewing Company.  If you are ever in Lincolnville, check out Andrew's.  I have never been to the actual brewery, but the coffee porter is worth it all on it's own.  If you travel through the area and don't try it, you are seriously missing out.

One more night in Union, and then I was set to make the trek up to Patten, ME for the holidays.  But that wouldn't be without several stops along the way.

Maiden's Cliff - Lincolnville, ME

Maiden's Cliff is a short hike that can be found just off Rte. 52 near the boat landing for Lake Megunticook.  The cliff gets it's name from the tragic loss of a young girl named Elenora French in 1864.  According to her older sister's accounting of events, the wind blew Elenora's hat off.  While Elenora was able to retrieve it, just as she was putting the hat back on, another gust of wind came up and caused her to fall from the cliff to the ground 300ft below.  While she was still alive when they climbed down to her, she died due to internal injuries the next day.  A large white cross was erected on top of the cliff in her memory.  For various reasons, it has had to be replaced many times over the years.  The current cross was installed in 1992 and is reinforced with steel cables set into the cliff:

Cross in December 2014

Monument in Elenora's memory

Maiden's Cliff offers a view across Megunticook Lake, and on a clear day you can see the coast.  I was lucky enough to have such a view when I climbed up the cliff this week.  Here are a few of those photos:

Megunticook Lake from Maiden's Cliff

Maiden's Cliff Cross, Megunticook Lake, and the Atlantic in the distance

I was the only one on the trails that day at Maiden's Cliff, and it was so quiet and peaceful in the woods.  The actual hike to Maiden's Cliff is only about a mile, so I had plenty of time to enjoy the view from the top.  It was around 30 degrees with no wind - the perfect December day, and without Terrence there chattering away, it was easy to get lost in thought.   Moments like these bring a unique kind of perspective and sense of peace.  Moments like these are to be cherished...and so I spent an hour or so soaking them in.

From Maiden's Cliff there is a "Scenic Trail" that can be taken which loops around about 0.3 miles to reconnect with the main trail.  Given that I didn't have to be in Bangor until later in the day, I decided to explore.  I was not disappointed.  There were views of Megunticook, and then when the trail crossed back into the woods, there was even a small set of waterfalls along the trail.  Scenic was a fitting name for this trail.

Icy waterfall off Scenic Trail

The way back to my Jeep always seems to take far less time than the way to the summit.  I don't think that it's entirely due to the trail being downhill.  Leaving the woods is always tough, and my time there always seems to be over far too quickly.  But I am glad that I took the opportunity to head up to Maiden's Cliff before I left the coast.

Matagamon - First Lake and Baxter State Park

On Monday night I had told my dad that I wanted to snowshoe in and hike Horse Mountain at the North Entrance to Baxter State Park.  I said this thinking that the road was plowed to the Matagamon boat landing....and was wrong - it was plowed to just after the Matagamon Store.  That turned it into a roughly 9 mile snowshoe/hike rather than a 5 mile snowshoe/hike in a remote area, alone, with no cell reception.  Needless to say - I still went snowshoeing, but I did the smart thing and changed my destination plans.  The hike from the Matagamon Store to the Baxter State Park Gate was about 2 miles, and there was not a soul around.  There is nothing to compare to being by yourself in the Northern Maine Woods in the winter - it's so quiet and peaceful like something from times gone by.  The trees were all weighed down from the snow and ice, and it looked like something from a Christmas card.

My trip took me through the Northern Entrance to Baxter State Park, and even though I was not hiking it - I could see Horse Mountain clearly from there.  The wind whipping across the lake when I reached Matagamon's public boat landing was enough to make me know I had made the right choice when shortening my hike.  I ended up making my way to the First Lake Campsite.  This meant snowshoeing just over 2 miles on the park road where a snowsled or two had already packed the trail and then trekking the 0.5 miles through the woods (where no one has been since October).

Baxter State Park line

Grand Lake Matagamon from the boat landing

First Lake trailhead

Looking back at my trail

There wasn't any great summit view that was waiting for me at the end of my hike, it as really just a campsite on a point at First Lake.  A picnic table, some benches, and a view of a frozen lake was all that waited for me.  But through all my my hike out, I was reminded of a quote by Ursula K Leguin, "It is good to have an end to journey towards, but it's the journey that matters in the end."  That's how I felt about this time in the woods.  It was more about the cold air in my lungs, the sound of the wind through the trees, and the burning in my legs as I hit mile 5.  I swear that if someone came across me in the woods on a day like that, they would think I was a madwoman.  When I am in the woods, I cannot stop smiling and something as small as spotting a chickadee following me through the woods can make me laugh.  As with Maiden's Cliff, the trip back to my Jeep seemed to take far less time than the trip to First Lake.  I was even a little sad to see my Jeep because it meant heading back into town.  Back to "civilization" to do all the work that comes with a holiday - cooking/baking, wrapping, decorating.  As much as I love Christmas, I love the woods all the more.

And now here we are at Christmas Eve.  The tree is up, there are baked goods all stacked in the kitchen, my brother and his girlfriend are on their way up from Augusta, and my uncle and cousins are coming for dinner tomorrow.  There won't be much time spent in the woods in the next few days, but I'm looking forward to seeing family and catching up.  Here's wishing everyone out there a Merry Christmas!  If you celebrate another holiday then I hope you enjoy that, too :)

Back from Hiatus

This blog has been neglected over this last year, as there have been many changes for me since December 2013.  In the last year, I've moved from my beloved home state of Maine to Massachusetts - and then moved again.  I've transitioned from a job as a work-from-home software developer to a road warrior .. a support consultant traveling all over the country.  And the biggest change - I lost my best friend and four-legged hiking companion, Jack, to cancer in July of this year.  It's been a year of changes - some positive, and one very large negative.  Along the way, I lost track of this blog and have not posted in quite a while.

With the new year coming, I feel it's time to get back on track with writing.  I can't restrict my posts to adventures in Maine, though, as much as I would like to.  So consider this blog re-born as a catalog of all of the awesome adventures that I find myself taking part in.  I will start with several posts about some key events from the last few months, but going forward - expect posts to come with a more regular cadence as I explore not just Maine, but everything I can possibly take in.

Life is short, and it is meant to be lived.  Jack taught me that.  Now I intend to get out there and do it.

RIP Jack - 2007-2014

Paddle for the Bays

Ok so this event was not in Maine - you got me.... but I did participate in it, and it was an amazing time - so it still gets a mention.  :)

I'm sure you have seen my post from a month or so ago about the Lobster SUP Cup (if not, you should check it out here).  While my friend Sarah and I were at the event, we met many new people from all over New England of a wide variety of levels of experience with SUP races.  At the time I had never done a race, and I was only at the Lobster SUP Cup to volunteer while Sarah raced.  During dinner in Belfast at Rollie's after the race, another racer, Kim, mentioned a SUP race that was happening around my birthday in Cape Cod that had both a 10 mile race and a 5 mile race.  Not really thinking it through, I said "Yea of course!  That would make a great way to celebrate my birthday!"  Then in the weeks that followed, I began to think "Holy cow.... I've never done a 5 mile paddle on my board, let alone a race!"  But by that time I was committed, and there was no turning back.

September 20th came around, and it was time for us to make the trek down to Osterville, MA.  By that time, Kim had set up everything for us so that all we had to do was register and show up for the race.  She opened up her home and loaned boards to many racers that weekend since she has her own SUP business in MA.  You can find a link to her website here.  There was a group of 20+ that she brought to the race.  Kim and her husband, Bruce, are truly amazing people that we are so glad to have met.  We arrived at the house we would be staying at, and there were so many racers from all over New England, NY, and beyond.  When we actually sat down to tally it up, we had racers from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, and South Carolina.  And there is a very real possibility I missed someone in there!

About an hour after we arrived, Kim had arranged for us all to do a paddle clinic with Patrick Broemmel of Bahn Pho Surfboards.  I was not sure what to expect from this clinic, as I had never been to one before.  It was so informative and so much fun!  Patrick taught us different techniques for our paddle strokes on dry land to start the clinic going through different exercises we could do on our boards and answering any questions we had.  The second half of the clinic we were able to get out on the boards and put those lessons into practice.  Having never done much with racing, I found it made me feel much more comfortable with the upcoming race.  He was open to giving you critique on your stroke, and there were so many other experienced racers there that they also jumped in to help you out with any questions you had.  After paddling around for a bit, many of the racers traded boards to try out something new.  Everyone was so open to sharing their equipment that I had the opportunity to try boards of different lengths (12'6" boards and 14' boards) and many different types - Bark, SIC, Rogue, etc.  We also had the opportunity to meet a SIC rep that had some boards there for us to try.  My favorite boards was a 12'6" Rogue board that Roxane had, other than the fact that it was pink, that is :)

After the paddle clinic, everyone had supper together at the house.  I like to think that I have a broad range of experiences with things liek this - sporting events, volunteer events, travel.... I can say that I have never met a more welcoming crowd than the SUP community.  You will show up not knowing anyone and come away feeling like you have known these people forever.  I really believe that the people, just as much as the sport, keep you coming back time and again.  A true testament to how small this world can be - the board rep from SIC trained with Tony (see the whitewater rafting blog post) rafting in Maine.  We talked for quite a while about the rafting guide training and stories from the river.  I will say this, though, my most memorable moment that Friday was beating Marta at a game of pool.  Marta is such a tough competitor in anything that she does that beating her at anything is something you'll remember forever.

The morning of the race, I have to say I was very nervous.  I love experiencing new things, but when it's competing in something new like this - I get butterflies.  I always like to do well in any sporting event I take on (who doesn't) but I felt very ill prepared for the race.  I kept thinking "I'm going to fall off my board a million times" and "I haven't ever paddled 5 miles before - let alone on the ocean" and "Why did I spend all my time playing ball instead of prepping for the race?"  But whether I felt ready or not, race time was fast approaching.

It helped to settle my nerves that I knew some of the other racers in the division I was in, and once they called for us to line up to get ready to race - well there was no backing out then, that's for sure!  I felt pretty good at the start of the race, but then of course - like I knew I would - I fell off the board.  Staying on a racing board is very different from the 11'6" BIC I have, and SUP on the lake is a heck of a lot easier than SUP on the ocean.  I ended up falling a total of 5 times across the race, but one of them was not my fault.  A passing boat got too close and knocked me off the board - boats seem to have little regard for SUP racers.

The conditions were brutal (and I wasn't the only one that thought so).  With the wind against us for what seemed like half the race and my lack of overall conditioning for the event, I ended up finishing the race in about 1 hr 45 min.  It sounds horrible, but my goal for my first race was simply to finish and not finish last.  I reached that simple goal.  I came across the finish line and felt like I could barely walk.  Most people ask me about SUP and think it would hurt your shoulders more than anything.  If you are paddling correctly, or trying to in my case, you will feel it more in your core and legs.  Just staying balanced on the board for that long really had my legs burning.  After the race, they handed out the awards for the top three finishers in each division and age group while I sat by sipping on some coconut water and enjoying the break.  I was not one of the top finishers, but I had a great feeling of accomplishment just having been participated, finished, and done something a little outside my comfort zone.

With the awards done and everyone packed up into their vehicles, we made a stop at Kettle-Ho.  There was a local brewery that had sponsored the race, so we had to go have a pint with our supper.  The food there was great, and you could tell everyone really had an appetite after all that work on the water.  Most of the SUP racers that had stayed with us the night before were taking off for home or to visit family after the race, so we said our good-byes before heading back to the house.  I'm always left wishing that they all lived closer so that we could get together and do this more often.  But again - the people just make you want to race even more. :)

Our last night in Osterville was a very chill night with a game of Cards Against Humanity (if you have never played it - go find the game and give it a try - wicked good fun!).  Katie, Judy, Sarah and I were laughing late into the night and finished the entire game before crashing for the night.  I woke up the next morning so sore I felt like I had been hit by a truck, but its' a good feeling when you know you really did something to earn it!  We had to jet home that morning to Maine for a concert that night, but I know that we will see everyone again at a SUP race soon.  And I feel like we've created a birthday tradition in the Paddle for the Bays :)

Crown of Maine Balloon Fest 2013 :)

God, I love the smell of propane in the morning.

I must sound like an escapee from "Apocalypse Now". And honestly, I am okay with that. As my friends will tell you - and the author of this blog I'm guesting for - I have always been a bit of an adrenaline junkie.
When I look back, I can't pinpoint the exact moment where my brain mentally stripped itself of the fear of heights and ridiculously dangerous stunts, or if I just never had it. As a teenager,  I climbed up on rooftops to count stars while my mother worked night shift (oops. Sorry, mom). Later in college, I would climb atop police barricades, or hang outside the window of the highest building on campus. And at summer ninja camp, learning to climb up trees in the dark, be in shadow. (yes, camps for ninjas exist. Just try to find us. heh.) I was the family daredevil who coaxed my dear aunt to go skydiving with me, and later a group of six fantastic women to do a Class Five white water rafting expedition. My father, of course, had no issue taking his first born on his roofing jobs. :) Funny how that works.

Rest easy, I am not nuts. I have always loved just being way up as high as possible, like a bird perching itself on the farthest reaches of a a tree branch, all the green of the world draped as far as the eye can see. Is it any wonder that the "Wizard Of Oz" is one of my favorite movies?

It was only a matter of time before hot air balloons floated its way into my heart and imagination.

Here in the far reaches of northern Maine, the end of summer brings with it the Crown Of Maine Balloon Fest, or as we in the know call it, COMBF - or the week that nobody in PI sleeps, and I am sure the amount of Tim Horton coffee consumption triples by crew and pilots alike.

This year, COMBF was held August 22 - 25, with balloon launches held at dawn (5am, hence the exorbitant java consumption) and dusk (5pm). On average, about a dozen pilots come from near (3 local pilots, two are a father-son duo based in PI, and a retired pilot from Caribou who I fondly call my grumpy guy), and far as Quebec, Florida, and Alabama. A lot of these pilots come from urban areas that have heavily regulated airspace. And as you can imagine, not many open spaces to launch and land. Fortunately, Aroostook County has many open green fields just waiting to be graced by a balloon landing.

And the pilots, I have often heard them say, truly love coming to our far little corner of Maine to fly.
The best ways to experience COMBF is one of four ways: as a photographer, as a crew member, as a passenger, and as a pilot, of course.

For amateur and professional photographers alike, the Crown of Maine Balloon Fest has an amateur photography contest with awards given to whoever submits the most captivating photo during the festival. Details and contest rules are posted on the festival's website, crownofmaineballoonfest.org along with the photographs of previous year's winner. During the festival week, you will see many cars pulled alongside fields and farm roads with their long lenses, gawking at the colors on parade, and hoping to get that perfect shot.  The contest judges often have difficulty settling on one photo as the winner, they see so many beautiful entries!

For a fee and a little courage, you can also become a passenger. To score a spot with a pilot, you should contact the Presque Isle Chamber of Commerce and speak with a staff person there, who have a list of pilots who take passengers. Be advised that hot air ballooning is very much weather dependent. The wind conditions must be right, and rain is definitely NOT good for the equipment, or to fly in. So if you are scheduled to fly, be patient and prepared for a cancellation if the weather is bad. The pilots do want to see you have a wonderful experience flying, so they do reschedule at the next possible time. Also, keep in mind that pilots fly at only two times, dawn and dusk. They do not do middle of the day. So you need to be flexible and open to a flight at dawn if you can't, or are unable to do a dusk flight. Yes, you will lose a few hours of sleep, but seeing a sunrise over the green fields of the County from the air is well worth it, I assure you!

Another way to experience the festival, if you're not afraid of a little elbow grease, is as a crew member to a pilot. If you'd like to experience ballooning up close and personal, and are not afraid to lose an extra few hours of sleep for the week, then this may be right up your alley! If you are truly interested, you need to contact the Presque Isle Chamber of Commerce and let them know you would like to crew. You will need to attend a mandatory training session for crew and pilot members to review basic safety rules, and be assigned to a pilot.

Once the festival starts, you will need to report to the launch fields at 5am (yep, you read that right. Not a typo.) and 5pm for launches. It is work, for certain. You will be helping lift heavy equipment, rolling out the balloon fabric, exposed to high heat, possibly driving the chase vehicle, assisting in both the unpacking and packing of the gear, and lack of sleep. So why do it? Because its FUN WORK. :) You will meet and learn from experienced, kind pilots who have a passion for what they do. You will be surrounded by other people working just as hard as you, with attitudes kissed by sunshine. Because how can you not feel happy by all the color that surrounds you, and the wonder you see on the passengers' faces? Oh, and the stories you will be regaled with by the pilots and crew. Like the one pilot who had a balloon land in his backyard, that so enchanted his young son, that somehow ballooning became a family affair.  Or the one morning that a pilot landed on a farm, and a family of young Amish girls came running out to greet them in their long dresses and bare feet, showing childlike glee at the wonderful sight in front of them. Or how one pilot lowered the basket low enough over an apple orchard, so a passenger could pluck an apple from the very top of a tree.

If you find yourself bit by the ballooning bug and want to become a pilot yourself, there are schools in the United States, and pilots to mentor under. Like all things, becoming a pilot takes time, patience, hard work and the willingness to do your homework.

Tips On Enjoying the Festival -

1 - Be willing to give up a little sleep for a couple days;
2 - Be a courteous driver. You will see chase vehicles on the road, whose primary jobs are to not lose sight of the pilot and balloon and to guide them from the ground via walkie-talkies or cell phones on where to best land. These vehicles make frequent stops, so do not tailgate. Be mindful of the photographers who are also making frequent stops to pull over and take photographs. So be aware as you`re driving.
3 - Do go to at least one Balloon Glow during the festival. Glows happen when the pilot and crew return to the fairgrounds and inflate their balloons, the propane flames visible in the dark. It is truly a beautiful sight.
4 - Check out the schedule of events at COMBF website, http://www.crownofmaineballoonfest.org/events/, for a full listing of events. There are bands playing, a street fair, food trucks, a 5k road race to raise money for Aroostook Teen Leadership Camp, just to name a few.

I have been both lucky and blessed to be both a crew member, a passenger, and a couple times, a student pilot! Perhaps someday, I will be one of the certified pilots to fly at the festival.

If ever there was a truly remarkable way to experience the beauty of Maine, it is from a hot air balloon. It is from way up high, that all the world looks amazing and full of potential.
If by chance, you do make your way to the festival, I hope that you do get to see or perhaps even fly in one of the beautiful balloons floating through the County skies.

 May the winds always be at your back!

Acadia National Park: Gorham Mountain Trail and The Bowl

Jack and I on top of Gorham Mountain

Tuesday I had tentative plans to climb Mt. Katahdin - which I have never done before.  It's a bucket list item that I hope to cross off next summer.  So with a day off from work and hiking plans fallen through, what was I to do?  Find another hike, of course!

I chose Acadia National Park because they are a dog-friendly park.  If I had followed through with Baxter State Park, I would not have been able to bring Jack with me.  When I got to Acadia, I was not sure what hike I would end up doing because they do not allow you to bring pets on every park trail.  A quick stop by the Visitor Center was all it took to figure out which hike to do.  The park officials were very helpful in answering my questions about the hike, how long it would typically take, and my dog's ability to complete the hike.  We settled on a loop that started at the foot of Gorham Mountain and traveled up and over the mountain with a quick hike up to The Bowl before heading back down to Sand Beach and the Ocean Path.  As I was coming back to the parking lot, I could hear people making comments like "I didn't realize dogs were allowed in the park."  Well yes, folks, they are!

There are some trails that you can take without actually going through the park gate, but this is not one of them.  Should you decide to try this hike, you will need to either pay a $20.00 access fee (good for 7 days access to the park) or you can pay a $40 access fee for a season pass if you plan on coming back again.  Both are available right at the park gate where they will also give you a complementary trail map.

To get to the beginning of the hike, take the Park Loop Road past Sand Beach and Thunder Hole.  The parking lot for this trail is clearly marked with signs.  In our case, the parking lot was full - but no worries!  A short drive past that parking lot there was another.  The loop that we hiked can be found here minus the quick hike up to The Bowl.  Without the added trip to The Bowl, the hike is approximately 3.5 miles at a moderate difficulty.  The trail is clearly marked with blue trail markings and cairns.

While it is a pet friendly hike, I'd like to make some recommendations when bringing your pet:

• I would not recommend taking any smaller dogs on this hike.  Jack is a 75lb dog, and he could easily navigate the climbing that was required.  I would not be surprised if any smaller dogs would need to be carried over part of the trails.
• Be sure to bring appropriate supplies including baggies to clean up after your pet, water/water bowl for your pet, and snacks for your pet.  Like any human hiker, dogs have needs, too!
• Do NOT bring your pet on this hike unless they are very good on a leash.  The trail can be very steep in places.  No hiker wants to tumble on their descent when their dog decides to pull on it's leash.
• Do NOT bring your pet on this hike if they are not good around other people and/or dogs.  This is a popular hiking trail for families with small children and pets.
• I would highly recommend alerting any hikers you may come upon with children of your presence before you get close.  No matter how friendly your dog is, some children have a fear of large dogs.  A simple "Is your son/daughter okay with dogs?" is much appreciated and gives you and other hikers a chance to scoot around each other in a comfortable manner.

Now - back to my hike! :)  This is the one photo that I got on my hike that day.  Unfortunately when I got to the actual summit of the mountain (about 525 feet), I was holding my phone in the same hand as Jack's leash when he decided to pull on it.  A < 3 foot drop later, and my phone was toast.  The photo above is courtesy of a very nice family that I met from NY.

From the Gorham Mountain Trail.

I took this at a little turn out just before reaching the summit where Jack and I stopped for a water break.  In the left of the picture you can see the coast over near Sand Beach.  There are spectacular views from this mountain, and I am very sad to have not gotten the opportunity to capture them.  But that gives me a reason to hike it again!

There were many people of all ages on the trail that day, and Jack and I stopped for a chat with quite a few families.  The family that took our photo at the top actually hiked most of the rest of the way down the mountain with us, and the little girl probably would have taken Jack home with her if she could! haha  We said goodbye at the start of The Bowl trail, as they were headed on their way directly to Sand Beach.

The Bowl is not a very long or difficult hike.  A map of the trail can be found here (minus The Beehive portion).  The "Advanced" difficulty rating you see when following the link is specifically for The Beehive which takes you up a cliff face with iron rungs set in to help you climb.  Jack's lack of opposable thumbs took that off our itinerary for the day ;)  I was surprised to find that The Bowl trail was made up of mostly steps that were set into the trail.  It was quite the flight of stairs to climb, but the view at the top was worth every one of them.

Looking across The Bowl.

Acadia National Park permits swimming only in certain areas of the park.  Lucky for us, The Bowl is one of them.  This is what makes it such a popular spot on a hot day.  Sand Beach is very busy during the summer months, as everyone wants to swim in the ocean.  While there were people here swimming yesterday, it was not over crowded.  As soon as Jack saw the water he was very anxious to jump in and cool off.  We made sure to make our way around to an area of the pond where there were no swimmers.  While the park has restrictions on taking your pet off a leash, I did sneak in a few minutes of free time for Jack to get a swim.  We spent 10-15 minutes just playing fetch in the pond before turning back to the trail to make our way down to Sand Beach.

The hike back down to Sand Beach seemed to take no time at all.  There were some very rocky areas on the trail, but it was fairly easy going.  Once we reached the Park Loop Road, the Ocean Path was like a stroll in the park - literally.  The Ocean Path is just what it sounds like.  It's a dirt pathway that takes you along the ocean between the shore and the Park Loop Road.  We walked by Sand Beach and Thunder Hole on our way back and stopped to talk with several people along the way.  Something about having a dog makes everyone want to be your friend, or so it seemed.

The entire hike took us 4 hours or less.  I was timing our hiking time on my phone, but we all know what happened there!  Jack was tired enough when we reached the Jeep that he took some coaxing to get him to jump in the vehicle.  I think he had a good time making new friends, getting some exercise, and swimming in a new pond, though :)

For more information on park trails, where you can swim, and where you can take your pets - please visit the Acadia National Park website at http://www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm.

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Rafting the Penobscot with Three Rivers Whitewater Rafting

I'll start this out with saying - best day EVER! :)  I had done a whitewater rafting trip on the Penobscot with Three Rivers Whitewater Rafting a few years ago with some girls I work with.  Our guide, Josh, was great, and we had an amazing time.  Due to one of the girls in our raft not being able to swim very well, we didn't hit the rapids as hard or surf like the other rafts - no complaints to the guide, as he was just doing his job and doing it very well!  But I had always wondered what it would be like to get in a raft full of crazy people like me .... this weekend that's what I got!

I'm always trying to drag my friends along on these little adventures, so when I had a weekend open up to book a trip I called up Sarah and Rashell to see if they wanted to join.  I don't think they had to think too long on that one!  We packed up and headed for the Penobscot Outpost on Friday afternoon with plans to spend Saturday rafting and Sunday hiking.  The Penobscot Outpost is worth the trip all by itself.  Friday night was karaoke night, and between the guests, the staff, great food, and cold beer we had an awesome night.  Three Rivers has several options when it comes to accommodations, but being that we are all County girls - we obviously chose to rough it with a tent campsite. :)  The campsites are very reasonable at $10 per person per night, and with The Boatman's Bar & Grill on site - there were definitely some good times to be had.  I will also say that this is one of the cleanest camp sites that I have ever stayed at.  The staff at Three Rivers have high standards, and it was a pleasure camping there.  Should you ever visit them and not want to rough it in a tent over the weekend, they also have several other options available.

We started our Saturday off right with a buffet style breakfast before gearing up and running through a safety briefing.  Being that we had such a good time on the last trip, I had requested Josh as a guide on this trip, as well.  While they accommodate those requests whenever possible, it turned out that Josh was on an overnight rafting trip that weekend.  No worries, though, as we ended up in a raft with one of the owners, Tony, and I dare say there is no one that knows the river better.

Once everyone had their guide assignments, we loaded up onto the buses and headed for the starting point of our 13 mile rafting trip.  The water level wasn't quite as high on this trip as it had been a few years ago, but I think that was a good thing.  We were able to take the time to put the raft in and go through some of the basic commands Tony would be giving us during our trip.  The first time I had rafted the Penobscot, we did not have this luxury since the water was running at about 3,200 cfs rather than 2,600 cfs - which sucked us right into the first rapid rather quickly.  After going through "all ahead", "all back", "back left", "back right", etc. we started on our way down the river - with our first rapid being a Class V!

To sit here and give you an accurate description of how much fun this river was.... it can't be done.  It's one of those things you have to experience to understand.  All I can say is that they live up to "The Home of Serious Fun".  We had a raft full of crazy people like me that wanted to hit every rapid as hard as we could.  I've heard people say before "I went rafting, but I wish I had been in the fun raft."  Well we were that raft!  We took one hit so hard it broke the zipper on our raft!  Don't worry, we were fine - it didn't affect the raft's ability to hold air, only it's ability to hold it's shape.  It was loud, but we were almost to our first stop on the trip so we just picked up another raft there.  Plus we got the bragging rights that we were so awesome the raft couldn't handle us ;)

Lunch is included as part of the rafting trip, and I remember sitting there at the picnic table just being in awe of Maine.  Which, if you have read other posts on my blog, happens quite often and with good reason.  Here's just a sneak peek of why I say that now:

Photo by Three Rivers Whitewater Rafting.

Here we were, all 100+ of us, sitting around picnic tables having a hot lunch that the guides prepped for us over a fire next to the river.  People from all over were connecting, enjoying the great outdoors, and it's just always a good feeling to witness that.

Directly after lunch, we were set to hit Nesowdnehunk Falls.  I have always thought this was funny.  Let's feed you and send you on the equivalent of a rollercoaster ride.  My last experience with the falls was in 2011, and it was memorable enough that Josh remembered me even though it had been two years since I had seen him.  As I said before, we had a raft of 6 women (most of whom I worked with).  One of the women is deaf, so it made it a little more challenging for her since she could not hear Josh's instructions from the back of the raft.  She could only watch me and do what I did, as I was sitting in the front of the raft.  Before hitting the falls, Josh gives us the "game plan" - how are we going to approach this section of the river.  He told us that he needed us to paddle all ahead as hard as we could right up until he told us to hold on.  If we didn't give him all we had right up til that moment, we weren't going to hit the rapid how he wanted to.

The river bends left just before the falls, and you can't see the falls until you're about to head into it.  It's not really that rough before the falls, so you can actually hear the roaring of the water well before you get there.  The anxious feeling of not being able to see what's going on around the corner is crazy!  And it's heightened when you see a raft go around the bend and all you can hear is people screaming like they would on a rollercoaster.  When it's our turn, Josh gives us our instructions and we start paddling with all we have.  Till we hear "Oh sh**! Hold on!"  As one we immediately stop paddling and grab onto whatever we can near us.....and realize it was not Josh that yelled.  Being deaf, one of the women hadn't gotten Josh's instructions.  If someone could have gotten a picture of his face in that moment, it would have been priceless.  There was no time for us to grab our paddles and recover, it was all on Josh at that point.  When we went over the falls, the left side of the raft took a hard hit - which is where I was.  I got thrown across the raft and remember thinking along the way "Oh well!  It will be a good story!"  While I didn't end up going out of the raft, I did end up caught half in/half out of the raft and took quite a pummeling from the river.  But nothing I couldn't handle!  Thanks to Josh we came out of it without flipping our raft and a story that both us and the guide would remember.

Because of the last time going over the falls, I was a little anxious already.  Then I heard the falls.  Then I heard the screaming as the first raft went around the bend.  At this point I was pretty confident in the group I was rafting with NOT to stop paddling, but still my stomach was all butterflies.  We came around the bend following Tony's instructions and I remember that moment as the raft was starting to go over the falls.  Picture it - there you are in a raft at the edge of a 13ft waterfall looking down over the falls.  It's one of those moments where you get a huge adrenaline rush and time slows down... until we actually went over it.  On the first run of the falls (yes that's right we did it more than once!) we took the biggest hit.  The raft tipped up on it's left side.  I had a hold on the rope and leaned way back trying to transfer my weight as far that way as I could to keep the raft from flipping.  I joked later that it felt like riding one of those mechanical bulls.  We came out the other side with the raft upright but we were missing several passengers - including our guide!  There is a pool after the waterfall, though, so getting everyone back into the raft really was no problem at all.  With everyone loaded up, Tony asks us "Are you ready to do that again?"  That's right - we did the falls not once, but three times!

This view of the falls is from the opposite side of what we run.  It's more impressive from the other side of the river, but here you can see the exposed rocks in the middle of the river.  That's where we carried the raft upriver to run the falls again.... and again!  We also got the chance to do some surfing at the falls - which was a lot of work but so much worth the effort!

 The raft in the above photo is actually facing upriver.  Tony referred to the falls as "recess" because after lunch we stopped there to play for at least an hour.  Eventually we had to head back downriver, though, even though I honestly could have spent an entire day at the falls.

There are many rafting companies here in Maine, but I was impressed by everything about Three Rivers.  We learned a lot about the area we were rafting through, heard some great travel stories (I swear my bucket list doubled in size), and anyone that can put up with all those bad attempts at British accents and over abundance of sarcasm in our raft deserves kudos.  We had so much fun that we decided to stay another night and leave on Sunday rather than head north Saturday night.  With nightly bonfires, a band on Saturday night, and great people - how can you turn that down?! :)

Three Rivers Whitewater Rafting also has trips on the Kennebec River and the Dead River that run out of The Forks.  I have not had the opportunity to do either of these trips yet, but I plan on being there for Last Blast on the Kennebec in October.  Next year maybe I'll get up the nerve to do a Jump & Raft package with them (which includes rafting and skydiving).  For now, though, find Three Rivers Whitewater Rafting on Facebook and check out their website for more information on the trips they offer.

Lobster SUP Cup 2013

I'm a little late getting this entry in, but better late than never!  Two weeks ago I had the pleasure of being a volunteer for the inaugural Lobster SUP Cup.  If you haven't read my previous post about Stand Up Paddleboarding, you can find it here.  SUP is relatively new to Maine, and while constantly growing in popularity - it's still relatively unknown to most people who live here.  It seems every time I am out on Brewer Lake I will get questions about "What do you call this?", "Where can I get one?", and a range of other questions about the difficulty of the sport, what I like about it, etc.  As such, Maine hasn't developed much in the area of competitive SUP racing.  Until now...

Thorfinn Expeditions hosted the first SUP race here in Maine with their 2013 Lobster SUP Cup.  The race spanned two days and covered 25 miles of Maine's rugged coast line.  Being that I just picked up the sport this year for exercise more than as a serious racer - I only attended as a volunteer this year.  My best friend, however, did race.  That's right.... she's a super star!  She just picked up the sport in May, and already has done a long distance race.  Here she is at the start of the SUP Cup in Rockport Harbor:

Our trip started the day before the race, as we wanted to make sure to be there with plenty of time to help out in any way necessary.  All of the SUP racers and volunteers were very friendly and in no time at all we felt like we had always been part of this group.  We filled out all of our paperwork, and then were left with the rest of our Friday night to just chill in the Lincolnville area.  Saturday morning would be when all of the festivities/race would start.

Saturday morning's race began in Rockport Harbor and traveled to Lincolnville Beach with a detour into Camden Harbor.  I spent my morning helping load up the boats while Sarah and the other racers prepped for start time.  Typically I consider myself to be a fairly athletic looking person, but looking around at the athletes in this race I no longer felt that way.  These people were in some serious shape - which is a testament to exactly how great a workout SUP can be.  This race had drawn people from as far down the coast as NC and even a former Olympic gold medalist from Canada named Larry Cain.  You can find his blog post about the race here - his post is probably much better.... he does this for a living, so cut me some slack!

While everyone else was going to spend their day on a board, I got the opportunity to spend my day on a boat taking photos of all of their hard work.  Jared Cumming's boat The Osprey was the place to be if you were a volunteer.  I'm always amazed at how openly welcoming people are in Maine whether they grew up here or have come from away.  The volunteers on The Osprey were no different.  All of the volunteers were so much fun to spend the day with, and Jared was a very gracious host.  This race featured some spectacular scenery along the Maine coast, and it was a pleasure volunteering to photograph it all.  Some of my favorite shots were as the racers passed the lighthouse coming out of Rockport Harbor, shots as the racers came through Camden Harbor, and catching video of the start of the race.

Lighthouse coming out of Rockport Harbor.

Marta Downing coming through Camden Harbor.

As the racers came through Camden Harbor, there were plenty of spectators all cheering them on.  From there they traveled up the coast to finish in Lincolnville Beach where they were rewarded with an after party at McGlaughlin's Lobster Shack.  There they had their choice of a lobster dinner (not one, but TWO lobsters), fried seafood platter, and BBQ chicken.  The food here was amazing, and the atmosphere was on par with the food.  It was great to be able to spend some time with the SUP racers, share some of the day's photos, and make some connections for some future races.  As part of the after party, awards were given out to the top 3 male racers and top 3 female racers.  

Day Two of the Lobster SUP Cup started in Lincolnville Beach with a finish line in Belfast.  Rather than start from the water as they had in Rockport Harbor - the racers were doing an actual beach start.  Unfortunately given the nature of the start, I could not get some video of this one.  I did get to spend the day on the water again, though.  I'm constantly amazed at the things that are available to people right here in Maine.  There is so much to experience if people just seek it out.  Being out on the ocean for the day was no different.  Everything from the scenery to the people - could not have planned a better weekend on the coast.

Since I was on a chase boat rather than the photography boat, I did not get quite the same photos on the second day of the race.  With my camera it always seemed that the SUP racers tended to get lost in the rock face they were paddling by - but here's a peek at part of their trip that day.

I think that my favorite part of day two was following the last racer's trek towards Belfast.  She showed such perseverance and determination that it was inspiring.  Inspiring enough for me to agree to do a smaller race (only 5 miles) in Cape Cod later next month. :)  Here's my absolute favorite shot of the day - her crossing the finish line while everyone cheered her on from shore.  I wish the angle had been better so I could have gotten everyone else in the background - such a supportive group!

This day the after party was in Belfast, and we all headed for Rollie's.  Rollie's is such a great little bar - the beer selection had something for everyone and the food was awesome.  We spent a good bit of time there refueling before heading to the unofficial after party place - Three Tides.  I can't think of a better place to have had the after party.  This is an eccentric bar/restaurant that didn't disappoint.  They even have bocce ball set up for their patrons.  Being that we were in a competitive crowd, it didn't take long for us to make use of that.  The evening ended with all of us exchanging contact information and making tentative plans to meet up at future races. All in all, it was an amazing weekend with some really great people!

Saying goodbye at Three Tides.

For more photos of the race, find me on Facebook or visit the Lobster SUP Cup Facebook page.