[ARCHIVED THREAD] - (new pics in 1st post) Ride along, touring a favorite corner of Maine today (56k ye've been warned.) (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 4/25/2009 5:51:46 PM EDT
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-disclaimer, if I exceed the bandwidth allowed by photobucket for this month, I'm going to be pissed.
Well, I took off today with a clear destination in mind, and a few things to see along the way. My original destination was Sally Mountain, just west of Jackman, Maine. Sally Mountain looked like a pretty good hike on the map, and offers a commanding view of the north woods in that region. This, and about a 60 mile stretch of Rte 201 on the way North, is a pretty remote area, google- earth it for a better idea of how deep in moose country this is. Rte. 201, just shy of the province of Quebec. Matter of fact, the moose are very thick up there, pretty dangerous, commonly fatal to motorists. Headlights typically shine under their torso, and their eyes do not reflect like a deer's eyes do. I took a bunch of pictures, I'm pretty disappointed with the way they came out, they really don't do justice to the actual views. Also, I rode by a ton of places that I just didn't have time to stop, I covered about 250 miles today. Not saying that's all that much, but it's hard to get anywhere stopping all the time. My first stop was at a little picnic area set up off 201 in East Madison, I had to pee, bad. Nice view. part of the Bigelow Range 
Ok, now this picture shows world-famous Sugarloaf Mountain, the snow-capped mountain on the right. This mountain is about a mile off the Appalacian Trail, (on a side trail) and is well known for incredible downhill skiing and snowboarding. It is the second tallest mountain in the state, after Katahdin. The snow-ca[[ed mountains to the left are the Bigelow Range, which I've hiked a couple of times with my brother. 
I snapped a pic of these, I know there's plaques on there most of the time. I assumed they had been stolen. About this time, an older gentleman and his fiance pulled up, and I chatted with them for a short spell. They were locals, and told me the plaques had been removed for the winter months, for the reason I suspected. 
Now these, I was tremendously curious about. The fella explained what they were, some of it went over my head.  They're some kind of giant bit or augur for drilling something, I don't know... something to do with booms and the river maybe? The chains in the third pic down were huge, undoubtedly wicked heavy, I wasn't about to try to pick them up.
I did notice as I was leaving this spot, the gentleman had Combat Wounded, Purple Heart license plates on his vehicle. I didn't inquire, he didn't offer. By his age, I would estimate Korea, maybe Vietnam. And I thank you, sir. 
I pulled over several times in the next hour or two to snap quick pictures, sometimes there's no good place to pull over. Rte. 201 follows the mighty Kennebec River. They do a ton of whitewater rafting north of the places where these pics were taken. 
Now, arfcom loves history, right? Here's one for ya. 
At this same historic place where Benedict Arnold and his soldiers crossed the Kennebec River in the autumn of 1775, Lootie had neen here recently! 
Alright, now another motive I had for striking up this direction today. I have a great interest and appreciation for the Appalacian Trail, I'm sure a number of you are pretty familiar with the trail. I've hiked quite a bit of it in Maine, a little in NH, and I've criss-crossed it countless times, as far south as the Blue Ridge Parkway. I had been morbidly curious lately, how thru- hikers crossed the Kennebec River in the town of Caratunk. I had to find out. You can't just swim it, the regulation of water from Wyman Dam makes it extremely dangerous. There is a tremendous force of water there, not something to screw with. The signs, and the locals, are extremely emphatic about this. As it turns out, there is a ferry service offered. I had to check out the trail a little in this area. 
This would be heading North on the AT. 
Crossing 201, towards the Kennebec River crossing, and South on the AT. 
I jogged down to the river with the camera, took maybe ten minutes each way. There's still a ton of snow on the riverbanks, these snowbanks are ten feet tall, now that the ice is long-gone. The United States Coast Guard actually sends ice-cutting boats up the river as far as Gardiner, I think, early in the spring to give nature a head start. This aids in preventing massive ice- jams, flooding. 
This used to be a giant spool, for cable. Near as I can tell, there is one of these and a flag on either side of the river when the ferry is running. You erect the flag when you get to the crossing and the folks running the ferry will see it and come get you. If you were hiking north- bound, you're kind of popping out of nowhere when you get there, so the flag is a signal. 
Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires. 
I stopped again a ways further north at a scenic view. Little picnic area. My brother calls places like this, whether on the road or a hiking trail, "scenic poos" as that's what they're usually used for. Information at said "scenic poo" 
The "poo" itself- I kid, it is a prety grand view right there. Couldn't stand back far enough to capture it well. 
Distant logging evidence. This is everywhere, and it's a beautiful thing to true Mainers. Logging is an age-old way of life in Maine. Foresters probably plant two trees for every one they cut down. Selective harvesting is the name of the game. It's renewable. Trees grow every day. All this environmental BS about cutting down trees being bad is massive bullshit. The "rows" you see are where timber are pulled down the steep sides of the mountains. Too steep for heavy equiment. 
Further up the road, more info 
A while later I got up to Jackman, and headed west just a couple of miles to my original destination. A lot of time had transpired by now and I realized I had bit off more than I could chew for the day. I decided not to climb Sally Mountain today, but to come back soon instead. Kind of a mixed- bag of feelings, I really wanted to to this, but I had a great day anyways. I did however take some pictures, and I also hiked down the railroad tracks part of the way to the trailhead, for a better view. 
neat. a trestle 
A quick shout-out to arfcommer Sniper_Wolfe. He gave me this awesome nalgene bottle in the AR15.com Team Christmas Exchange, and a nice pair of gloves. mmm.... spring water... and I was thirsty. The temp was close to 80, freakishly warm for this time of year. 
Next time. There were a few other stops I didn't have time to visit today. Twelve miles up a dirt road off 201 is the Spencer POW Camp Memorial. I've yet to see this one. You can google it, I don't have time right now. Basically, it was a POW camp in WWII, we put the Germans to work in the woods. I suspect they were pretty happy to be there, it had to better than Europe. 
Also, there's Bingham Esker I didn't visit today, and a giant "over the horizon" radar site, that is now inactive. more google. There's another spot I like that I ain't gonna mention. It's a pretty well kept secret. May God damn vandals. I would've liked to stop at Moxie Falls , but I've been there a bunch of times and didn't want to burn time walking in there, and Sally Mountain I hadn't ever hiked before. So that was out for today. I will say though, Moxie Falls is beautiful, and I find it pretty mesmerizing. Last spring, I specifically went in there directly after 3-4 days of rain while the snow was rapidly melting to see the falls in it's full glory. It was awesome. Wyman Dam was also skipped today. If I get a chance to go back up there soon, I'll try to bring the camera, and bring you all along. It would be nice if I could get a good woman to ride with me, but for now I'm stuck with you all.  
I put a lot of time into this post, feel free to bump it so others can see it, or comment, correct, or ask any applicable questions, I don't mind. Thanks for tagging along today. 
––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––- ––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––- Update 5-19-09 No Sally Mountain today, no bike either. But I did have a lady friend tag along. Went to an aforementioned, unmentioned location on the way up. The main destination for the day was Moxie Falls in the town of The Forks, Maine. Well, actually just east of there in Moxie Gore. My main goal was just to spend some time with her.  
Anyhow, here's some pics from Moxie Falls today. This is tied with another as the tallest waterfall in the state, about 100 foot drop. The other pics are of a cascade above the falls. 
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Oh no! I can't see most of the second half of your pics! Photobucket strikes again?!
What I could see was great!
Awesome job and looks like a cool trip to take.
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I see them all, and they're awesome! Thanks for sharing! Cool, maybe they will work. by the way, I took a road trip out to South Dakota when I was about 18 with my best friend. One of the best times of my life. A couple of good old boys from Maine, in a rusty old Toyota, headed for the Badlands. That's a set of stories for another day I guess, but the Dakotas are incredible. Just incredible. |
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You passed by my house and did not stop,,I picked up my DR650 yesterday in Lincoln and want to put some miles on it  Dual Sport 
Logging roads and overgrown trails abound in this state. I should really get a dual sport. Can't afford another toy right now though. Let me know if you want to stay on the tar sometime though. |
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You passed by my house and did not stop,,I picked up my DR650 yesterday in Lincoln and want to put some miles on it Dual Sport
Logging roads and overgrown trails abound in this state. I should really get a dual sport. Can't afford another toy right now though. Let me know if you want to stay on the tar sometime though. Local friend picked up his new KLR 650 this past Sat. Last evening we went for a ride up to the old OTH Radar Station in Moscow/Caratunk. He got stuck in deep snow across the road. We will be on the pavement more than dirt roads. Plus many of our coworkers are bikers and we have many trips planned including Mt wash. soon. |
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IIRC, there's another Benedict Arnold marker near the Augusta / Hallowell line. I'm pretty sure I remember seeing that too. On state street. I can't remember what the significance of that one is. Yep, that be the one. Pretty sure it marks a crossing point, too. Nice pics, btw. It's been a long time since I was up in that area of the state. |
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I've never been to Maine. Now I feel like I've been to your part of it. I hate litterbugs. I hope whoever left the Heinie bottles gets a bad case of the shits. 
Beautiful pics. Actually those empty bottles are treasure to locals, at 5 cents each. Maine has very little litter and a no bill board law. |
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I've never been to Maine. Now I feel like I've been to your part of it. I hate litterbugs. I hope whoever left the Heinie bottles gets a bad case of the shits.
Beautiful pics. Thanks! I'm not specifically from that region, but I frequent it on the bike. There's more in this state than I could ever see in a lifetime, but I've been trying to see it all for years. I'm going to keep trying for years to come, God willing. That's the beauty of this state. Many people come to Kittery, Freeport, maybe Portland, or Old Orchard, and they've "seen Maine" as far as they're concerned. Now there's nothing wrong with any of those places, but there's so much more. Acadia National Park is incredible too, though most tourists never make it out of Bar Harbor. The mid- coast is nice. True down-east Maine is beautiful, and remote. There's an absolute abundance of things to see inland. The Appalachians are grand in Maine. Don't even get me started on Katahdin and Baxter State Park. Moosehead Lake Region is kind of Paradise, but Plum Creek is going to destroy it with a resort. It breaks my heart really. Now they give people tremendous amounts of access to land across the state, so I'm not going to all out flame them, but what they're doing around Greenville is criminal in my eyes. And then there's, you know, the County (inside joke) Aroostook is not for everybody, oh how I love it though. I hope it never changes.
Damn, for such a humble guy, I'm one opinionated SOB!
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Actually those empty bottles are treasure to locals, at 5 cents each. Maine has very little litter and a no bill board law. Well very little bottle litter that sticks around. Other litter we still see though.  Hate litterbugs.
Love the lack of billboards.
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I've never been to Maine. Now I feel like I've been to your part of it. I hate litterbugs. I hope whoever left the Heinie bottles gets a bad case of the shits.
Beautiful pics. Actually those empty bottles are treasure to locals, at 5 cents each. Maine has very little litter and a no bill board law. Yep, I love the no bill board law. As far as I know, Maine, Vermont, Hawaii and Alaska are the only four states that ban billboards.  Unfortunately, there's scarcely a mile of roadside in the state that the roadside doesn't have "nickels" scattered around.
It's like a gold mine when the snow banks melt in the spring though.
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My Dad's territory was the entire state, and every couple years he'd take us up to the County. Ft. Kent (origin / terminus of US RT 1), Madawaska, St. Agatha (yes, I know how it's actually pronounced ), Van Buren ... got to see 'em all. Good memories overall, aside from my butt getting tired of sitting.
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| It's a truly great place to live (my house has never been locked and neither have my neighbors). Got sick of the taxes and moved to Alaska when i was younger and moved back. My wife is from Alaska and said that if i wanted to move back that i would do so alone!. BTW i live halfway between Bangor and Millinocket. The excess taxes are worth it for the lack of crime. |
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Wicked good thread bub yessah!
I love that area. LOVE IT. Spent 5 years guiding whitewater trips between the Nob & Dead. Hunt up there every November. Hit one of them moose 6 years back going 65mph+ crusing from Jackman to the Forks. I was in Kokadjo this morning for a bachelor party.....few things rival the amazing vistas offered by Maine's landscape. Multiply that by 10 if you include a good sunset! Great pics! Great weekend for a ride too...best weather we've had all year. |
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and a giant "over the horizon" radar site, that is now inactive. more google. Moscow AFS, the transmitter site for the OTH-B. Been there a few times. At the time, I hated Maine but have gone back a few times since being out of the .mil and always have a good time. Great photos! |