Daicy Pond Trail; Baxter State Park. June 2010

Mt. Katahadin, I didn't have my camera but found this image here:

http://johnsifferman.com/img/katahdin.jpg 

When I awoke my two trail friends had taken off to  hike south.  I am usually the early bird, but being tired from the climb up Baxter Peak, I chose to sleep in.  While I was doing my camp chores the family next door invited me over for a hot breakfast sandwich.  They made me a delicious Canadian Bacon, melted cheese, on warm tortilla wrap.  I learned that they had recently moved back to Maine from Colorado, and they were about to move again to Aurora, Illinois.  They were both teachers and migrating to where work could be found.  They loved the outdoors; hiking, biking and camping.   I was able to tell them about the awesome Palos Trails.  Such kindness shown to me by my camp neighbors was just the first act of love that I would see reapeated over and over again along the Appalachian Trail.

This day I had reserved to search the side of Katadin where the Bicknell's Thrush nests.  The trail I wanted to take is called the Chimney Pond Trail.  The weather on Katadin was terrible so I abandoned my plan to take that trail and decided to spend this rainy day walking the Daicy Pond Trail.  I found that my muscles were sore from climbing Katadin and happily the walk around Daicy  Pond which was relatively flat, giving me a days rest before heading into the 100 Mile Wilderness.  The trail goes south from the AT around Daicy Pond, and back to the AT. There is a little fishing camp and vacation cabins along the pond.  The cabins are roomy and have front porches looking over the pond, where in the morning time Moose are known to feed.  I waved hello to  several campers on their front porch drinking coffee and cooking breakfast from coleman camp stoves.  At the Daicy Pond Camp there is a common area, open to all, where campers can play cards, board games or read books donated to the aging library.  Children's art work, illustrating the plants and animals  of Daicy Pond, are taped to the wall. 

On the Daicy Pond trail I found  many singing warblers and other birds.  The warblers I found were:  Black-throated Green, Myrtle Yellowrump, Black-throated Blue, Common Yellowthroat and Magnolia Warblers.  Also, there were many Swainson's Thrush, Least Flycatcher, Winter Wren and Cedar Waxwing. 

 Myrtle Yellowrump

It was raining again as I broke camp at Baxter Park and headed south toward Abol,  where the section of the trail known as, "The 100 Mile Wilderness,"  begins.  The trail out of Baxter is about 10 miles and passes along Katahadin Stream, past Big Niagara Falls, and across Nesowadnechunk Stream.  Nesowadnechunk Stream was my first ford that I was to do.  When I got to the part where the trail ended and my side of the trail and picked up on the opposite bank I nealy had a panic attack.  Two days of rain had made the crossing chest deep, from what I could tell.  There was an alternate route (a blue blazed trail) in case the stream was high, which I took.  The alternate trail wound around the stream and through a swampy area.  I came to a section of Nesowadnechunk stream that was supposed to be easier to cross.  There was no choice.  My boots were already wet from two days of rain, so putting on stream shoes made little sense.  I walked into the water.  It was up to my hips.  I crossed over and survived my first river crossing.  It was exillerating!  

On my way out of Baxter State Park there were singing Black-throated Blue, Black-throated Green, Northern Parula and Magnolia Warblers. Also, Least Flycaters were singing along the streams.  I found a lone female Common Merganser on the Nesowadnechunk.  I also found my first (so far my only) Canada Warbler  singing from the brushy understory along the trail. 

On leaving (or entering) Baxter State Park hikers sign their name at a wooden kiosk.  Also, at the Kiosk there is information about Baxter and  "Leave No Trace."  At the kiosk southbound hikers, sign out and northbound hikers sign in using their trail names.  Trail names are a way for hikers to keep up with one another.   I could see that my camp partners were using their everyday names.  They hadn't yet been given or given themselves a trail name.  

THE 100 MILE WILDERNESS

At Abol there is a campground and a little general store.  I stopped in for a sandwich and beer.  Stopping at the Abol Store is one strategy thru-hikers use to help extend supplies through the wilderness, where there is little opportunity to resupply for the next 100 miles. There were local people hanging out.  I said, "Hello," to a senior hooked up to oxygen.  He was having coffee.  I told him I was from Chicago and we got a lively conversation going about the oil spill and Obama. He liked Obama!  I found few people along the AT in Maine who did!  I never really appreciated beer until I began this hike.  It is the most easily found "healthy" beverage in the little general stores that service hikers along the trail and the brands sold are representative of the nearby culture.  Maine folks like to drink Shipyard and Double Bag.  In Pennsylvania there is Ying Ling. The people in the Abol store gave me a weather warning; severe storms were forcasted.  I decided to eat quickly and head into the wilderness for the first shelter which was only about 4 miles from the trail head. 

I crossed the west branch of the Penobscot River by bridge.  Following the White Blaze I walked down the road to a gravel area that looked like the local dump.   I lost the White Blaze trail marker.  I hiked a little further and seeing no sign of the White Blaze I turned back to where I had last seen one near the bridge.  This time I crossed the street and found a parking area for trail users.  I decided that the trail must pick up down a gravel road that seemed to go south along the Penobscot River.  After walking a mile and finding no white blazes I turned back again.  When I got back to the parking lot I walked it from corner to corner.  I found the trial picked up in an overgrown, weedy patch along the road.  I wasted about and hour getting lost. 

There is an intimidating sign when you enter the "Wilderness,"  warning the hiker  with excitement entered.  The trail was muddy because of the rain.  It ran through a spruce forest section, across a bog and into another forest section, that opened up to a large pond.  The bog section had a board walk section and some wooden bog bridges.  I found that the wooden bog bridges are often rotted and sometimes even submerged under the muddy peat.  Sometimes they simply disappear.  You can sometimes find out where to step by probing the mud with a treking pole, but on other occassions, they are completely absent.