Day 1
Snowshoe hare at camp
After spending the night at Carol's house, Sam and I made last minute checks of our gear, loaded up the Jeep, and made the 2.5-hour drive up to Baxter State Park. We had reservations for three nights at Katahdin Stream Campground, which I'd never visited. We rolled into camp at about 12:30, moved in to our lean-to (#12) which was very near and above the stream. We checked in with the ranger, saw a small snowshoe hare near our site, and had a quick lunch of bagels, peanut butter, and strawberry jelly. A little before 2 o'clock we headed out for a hike to check out our environs. From the map we chose a loop out on the Grassy Pond Trail to Daicey Pond, and then a return via the Appalachian Trail (AT). We found out from the ranger that the Grassy Pond trailhead had been relocated from its former position at our campground to a place on the AT about a mile from camp.
Loon on Daicy Pond
We set out on the trail and soon got to the Grassy Pond Trail. The trail took us up and over a low ridge to the appropriately named fen. We passed the inlet, where the trail was partly flooded and the bog bridges were floating precariously. The outlet was drier and had a nice view to the north of Doubletop Mtn., Mt. OJI, and Barren Mtn. Onward we hiked to the shore of Daicey Pond opposite the campground. A short connector trail took us to the AT which we followed back to camp. Shortly before we reached the road we crossed a bridge over the outlet of Tracy Pond with a good look at Doubletop Mtn. Back at camp we took a frigid dip in Katahdin Stream's water, which felt as though it had recently comprised a glacier. Our early supper consisted of pasta and sauce and we were soon driving back to Daicey for a short evening paddle. From the small pond we had a panorama of Mt. OJI, the Owl, and Katahdin. We also saw many cedar waxwings, a Loon coming in for a water landing, and a female Red Breasted Merganser with three fluffy chicks. Unfortunately my camera batteries died so I was not able to get pictures. After about an hour on the water we headed back to camp, built a small campfire, ate a few s'mores, and crawled into our sleeping bags for Sam's first night in the woods.
Day 2
View from a dry lean-to into a wet forest
We got up a bit after 7:00, cooked and ate some oatmeal and checked the weather report for the day. We were hoping to make the 6.6 mile round trip to the Owl but showers and thunderstorms were predicted so we decided to stay low and climb something less ambitious. We settled on Sentinel Mountain, loaded our packs, and drove to the trailhead at Daicey. The trail carried us over a high bridge crossing the Nesowadnehunk Stream and through about a quarter mile of tall grass and brambles that could scarcely be considered a "trail". Soon we emerged into open woods and for about 2.5 miles we hiked, passing Kidney Pond, and climbing so gradually that we barely noticed it. We paid for the easy hiking in the last mile which was steep and rocky. We came out onto the summit ledges and settled in for lunch with a view. Over snacks and water we gazed south over the West Branch of the Penobscot River and the Golden Road. It was a hot and hazy day and rainclouds were building so we soon moved on. The trail route followed a short loop around the summit which provided views northeast over Lily Pond to Katahdin, which was soon to be engulfed in storm clouds. On the hike back we heard loons on Kidney Pond and saw a lot of toads. We arrived back in camp at about 1:15, just as light rain began to fall and distant thunder was heard. We were both pretty hot and grimy after the 6.5 mile hike so we quickly plunged into the stream to rinse and cool off. Well, I plunged, Sam rinsed. She prefers her water a little warmer. We watched the storm from the dryness of our lean-to. At about 4:00 the rain and thunder cleared so we made bean burritos. No sooner had we finished cleaning up after our supper that the weather started up again. Back into the lean-to we went to read and go to bed.
Day 3
Mergansers on a rock
Our second morning in camp began sunny, clear, and COOL at 7:30. After eating some oatmeal and filtering nice, cold streamwater for drinking we filled our packs and headed up the Appalachian Trail with thoughts of climbing the Owl. At the 1.1-mile-mark the Owl trail branched off. Tired from the previous day's hike we decided to visit nearby Katahdin Stream Falls instead, and then go for a paddle. We followed the AT another quarter mile to the top of the falls. An unmarked side trail led down the steep ravine wall to further views of the falls which consisted of several shorter drops. At the bottom was a small pool that would make a great swimming hole on a hotter day. Back on the main trail after leaving the falls we crossed a ledge with a broad southwesterly view. We retraced our steps back to camp, ate a snack, and repacked for canoeing. We first drove to Kidney Pond Campground. Kidney Pond is larger than Daicey and has several benches along the shore where trails come close to the water's edge. There was a flock of birds that looked like seagulls only smaller and much more agile. In fact they were Common Terns, a bird more usually associated with the ocean than with inland waters. They were much too fast to photograph. Katahdin, rising to the west, however, was an easy photographic subject. We paddled out along the south shore of the pond, past a tiny island that was home to a nesting Loon, and our efforts were aided by a tail wind that grew stronger. At the far end of the pond we pulled up to shore for a break and to record thepanorama to the north. During our break the wind had increased and pinned us to the shore. After some work we were able to get ourselves out of the jam without getting out of the boat. We picked our way back against the wind and chop, staying close the north shore of the pond which occasionally provided a little bit of shelter. The northeast corner of the pond is shallower, grassier, and tucked a bit out of the weather. We pulled in there and found a bench to eat our lunch on. After lunch we paddled back to the campground. After returning our borrowed paddles and PFD we saw a Barn Swallow nest with 3-4 hungry chicks in it. A parent came by to feed them some insects. We got back in the Jeep and headed to Daicey Pond Campground for more paddling, hoping to see the Mergansers again now that the camera was working. When we arrived, there was a frog hanging out by the dock and the birds were not far off. We got in the boat and made our way to the Merganser family which had climbed onto a rock. They soon hopped into the water and swam away. We paddled around the pond, saw a Loon, and then headed back to camp. We cooked up some sort-of-fresh veggies and some cous-cous for supper. A good-sized snowshoe hare visited our campsite while we were cooking but was more interested in leaves and grass than in the carrot we offered it. After we cleaned up we got a campfire going since it was pretty chilly and we had plenty of marshmallows (vegan ones, of course), graham crackers, and chocolate. We hung out by the fire and ate something like five-thousand s'mores as it got dark out. After the last log had pretty much burned out we went to bed for our last night in the woods, at least for this trip. In the morning it was hard to get out of our warm sleeping bags. We finally did around 8 o'clock, made some oatmeal for breakfast, and packed up our things and loaded the Jeep. After cleaning our site we headed back to Carol's house, stopping on the way in Millinocket at our usual stop for coffee. Sam said she'd want to come camping again but would bring an air mattress.
