Advice for Maine 4000 footers

[MEB]

With all the rain last weekend I had quite a bit of time on my hands and so I started to plan out some of the routes/trips for the Maine 4000 footers and I have some questions and need some recommendations. First, I have the AMC Maine Mountain Guide...are there any other books that I should consider buying? I'm looking for something similar to the NH 4000 footer book (I'm guessing there isn't one as I probably would have heard about it.)

Here are some of the routes I'm considering....first are these doable day hikes and if so what direction would be best, difficulty? I have not done much hiking in this area and any feedback or advice is welcome!

Sugarloaf, Spaulding and Abraham--starting at CVR via AT and end at Fire Warden Trail in Kingfield.
Crocker, South Crocker and Reddington--start at 27 via AT and end at CVR (or reverse). The guide book mentions a there is somewhat of a trail to Reddington...is this easy to find and what can I expect?
Saddleback and The Horn--out and back from route 4 via AT. This looks long but I'd prefer to go this way rather than via the ski trails.

-MEB

 

[David Metsky]

Sugarloaf, Spaulding, Abraham - Sounds like a fine plan.

Reddington - There's a bushwack from the Crockers to Reddington that can be done. The direct route up Reddington is an extremely well established path that follows roads most of the way. Mohamed's Reddington page

Saddleback and the Horn - Definately go from Rt 4, much nicer hike IMO.

Bigelows - Up Firewarden's trail, across to Horns and Horn Pond, down from there, makes a nice loop.

-dave-

 

[sli74]

Hey MEB,

I did the Maine 4000-footers as a backpacking trip in October of last year. I took my time and went from Rangeley to Stratton, with a side trip to Abraham, a short detour to Sugarloaf summit, and a harder than expected bushwhack to Redington from the AT . . . after a night in Stratton, I got back on the AT and went up and over the Bigelows. It was quite an adventure and in one day, I got to meet 2 hiking celebrities, Tim Seaver and Flying Brian Robinson . . .

Apart from the 10 peaks you can bag doing the trip I describe above, you have Old Speck which you can do as a dayhike or as part of a longer trip on the AT and the 3 peaks inside Baxter State Park, Baxter, Hamlin and North Brother.

Let me know if you need/want any other specifics.

sli74

 

[SherpaKroto]

I did them all the way Dave describes, except did Abraham as a dayhike.

For Crockers and Redington, I did in/out on Crockers from CVR, drove up to Redington HerdPath and hiked in from there. Very doable in a day. There is something about Caribou Valley that just awes me.

Saddleback/Horn is one of the nicest hikes that you can do. Much variety, from great woods to numerous ponds to above treeline hiking. The col between Saddleback and the Horn is impressive - to see and to hike!

I really enjoyed the Bigelows/Horns. Only regret is that I did not head over to N. Horn. The views are great along that entire hike. Tank up on water just below Avery Campsite.

You will fall in love with that section of Maine! I mostly hike Maine in July - far fewer crowds!

 

[The Sikes]

We did Reddington as a single....I don't know if it's changed much but if you have good directions, it's easy. I didn't feel like we actually did a 4000 footer when we did that one.

As for Sugar Loaf and Spauling. We did that easily in a day and would have done the Crockers too but we didn't feel like rushing ourselves because we were going to do the Bigelows and the Horn the next day.

We did Abraham as a day hike. It was nice. Finding where to start was interesting but I had good directions.

What a beautiful area to hike. We had perfect weather when we did it. The kids want to go back and camp on the Bigelows and do more exploring...can't wait to go back up there.

Enjoy!

 

[John S]

I’ve done them both as day hikes and a backpack and highly recommend the backpack. There is some very nice hiking between The Horn and Spaulding and the view from Saddleback Junior is terrific - you can see virtually the whole trip from Saddleback to the Bigelows. If you don’t have time for a thru hike you can break it in two, say two nights on the AT from Rt. 4 to Rt. 27, then some combination of day hikes to Reddington and Abraham with an overnight using the many Bigelows camping opportunities. Hiking the whole Bigelow Range would also be fun.

Ditto on Caribou Valley. Not many places where you can see what you are hiking to. Try for raspberry season.

The Maine AT Guide has great maps.

 

[ChrisB]

MEB,

Not sure if you want to do any of these trips as overnights, but there are some nice camping options if you do...

Saddleback / Horn - Nice leanto at Piazza Rock. Also, a nicer pond another 2 miles in, just below where trail steepens to go up peak.

Sugerloaf, etc. and Crockers - If you camp along CVR, you can do these trips on two subsequent days. Nice camping at Caribou Pond (mid-week) and you can also camp near where the AT crosses the road for easy access to both trailheads.

Reddington - You might do this the afternoon of the day you do the Crockers in the AM. I hear mixed reports about the bushwhack from S Crocker, but you can also bring a mountainbike for the commute to the Redington trailhead via the road. The actual trail portion of the Reddington trip will be about a 30 (one-way) trip for you.

If you have not done them already, save the Baxter peaks for a winter expedition. Nothing like it!

cb

 

[Tramper Al]

MEB,
Not sure if you want to do any of these trips as overnights, but there are some nice camping options if you do...

I totally agree. Hiking these peaks while backpacking that section of the ME AT was a fantastic time!

If you have not done them already, save the Baxter peaks for a winter expedition. Nothing like it!

Hah, unless you are in a hurry to 'finish'!

 

[MEB]

Hi Everyone-

Thanks so much for the responses....this helps me out quite a bit! I'm looking at maybe doing some as backpacks and some as day trips....either way I can't wait....this part of Maine is really beautiful!

-MEB

 

[TenPeaks]

To throw in my .02 cents, I did all the Maine 4K footers as day hikes, except the Bigelows. If you decide to backpack the Bigelow's I highly recommend camping at the Avery tentsite. There are a couple of platforms near the outhouse that have spectacular views. Also, there are not nearly as many bugs as there are at the unknown pond tentsite. Including the Horns (S. Horn is a NE 100 Highest) in a loop over the Bigelows is a great trip and the hike out from the pond is easy.

The road walk to Redington is very easy. Starting at the bridge 1.1 miles from the AT you can be on the summit in under 2 hours. And that's at a leisurely pace.

Abraham on a clear day is a must. Awesome views. If you want to cut a couple miles off the Firewardens trail, you just have to follow the logging road over the bridge to the right of the trailhead. The trail re-crosses the road at another road intersection about 1.5 miles from the trailhead. There was a rock cairn marking the trail when I was there last fall.

Following the AT out and back over Saddleback and the Horn is a pleasant hike. Unfortunately, the day I did this trip was miserable. It rained the entire time I was out there and I didn't have any visibility better than a 1/4 mile. Add to that flooded trails and slippery ledges and you've got a recipie for an aweful day on the trail. With that in mind, I was still able to complete the 15 mile hike in about 11 hours. Some friends of mine did it in about 9.5 on a much better day. I'll have to repeat this hike some day to see the views I missed.

 

[ken]

i stayed at a campground in kingfield for 3 days when i did it the 8 in that area - first day i went up abraham from the east side over to the AT, then headed north for spaulding & sugerloaf and down the AT to caribou road - - - second day i did the bigelows from a dirt road that goes to flagstaff lake - there is a trail that leaves the dirt road north of the AT and connects with the AT, then i took the AT over the bigelows - - - third day i went up reddington and back from caribou road (parked near a delapidated bridge) - then i went over to the AT and did crockers - - - fourth day i went to rangely and did saddleback & the horn from the rangely ski area trail - in four days i had done 10 4000' peaks - - - for baxter i stayed in milenocket 2 nights - got there late friday night - climbed katahdin & hamlin saturday (went up knife edge and down hamlin ridge) - sunday i did north brother - - - next i went to n.h. for a weekend - on saturday i did cabot & wamback and did old speck on sunday (old speck is right near the white mountains) - in 7 days you can have all maine 4000 footers.

 

[bobandgeri]

MEB - see our trip report from last Labor Day weekend when we did all those peaks over 3 days. Pics, maps, and details are posted.

http://rbhayes.net/laborday.html

Sugarloaf, Spaulding and Abraham - We started and ended at CVR - long day but a fun hike - once you reach the ridge it's fairly easy stuff. Having hiked with you we know you will not have any problems. FYI - just below the road where the trail starts next to the river is a good camping spot if you want to stay there overnight and do the Crockers the next day form CVR as well.

Crocker, South Crocker and Reddington - We started ended at CVR - trails to the Crockers and then the Herd path to Reddington - as of Laborday the Herd path was so clear and easy to follow it is almost as good as a regular trails - pics on our web page with map.

Saddleback and The Horn - We did this as an out and back. One of our favorite hikes. Of the three hikes save this one for the best weather day - lots of time above tree line on large rock slabs - just beautiful!!

We did these all as day trips, but you could do it as a backpack trip in either direction.

Have fun, and lets us know when you are going - these are some of the peaks we want to do again.

 

[MichaelJ]

The new edition of the AMC Maine Mountain Guide is due out this spring so you'll want to pick that up.

I'll be doing all of the aforementioned peaks over 3 backpacking trips from May into June. This was all very timely advice!

 

[SherpaKroto]

...in 7 days you can have all maine 4000 footers.

ken, I've hiked a lot in Maine. My big question - why rush? The only reason I can see to hurry is if you have a long drive to get there. MEB, I know Maine is pretty eay for you to get to , so savor those hikes! It has many of my favorite places to hike. That might explain why we own a cabin there. No disrespect meant, as I seem to do similar trips when in the ADK High Peaks. If I only had more time...
BTW, you might also take a look at the offerings in the Evans Notch area when you don't have as much time.

 

[askus3]

Photos from dayhikes in the Maine 4,000 foot mountains

Only thing to add is my 1981 Photo Album of my Maine 4,000 Footer trip. Redington & Spaulding were not 4,000 footers then so I am going back this summer to repeat these fine mountains which deserve a return visit 24 years later and the two additional peaks.

 

[SherpaKroto]

Aaron: Thanks for posting those pics! Like a trip down memory lane. Intersting to see how some things have changed so, yet some remain so much the same.

 

[MarkJ]

doable in a day

You can do the Crockers,bushwack to Red down rd ,wack to At,up Spaulding,over to Sugarloaf .back down to CV rd.I did it in a day ...e mail if you want more info......MJ

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

"There is something about Caribou Valley that just awes me."

Sherpa, are you referring the to clear cuts, or "something" else? I have often thought of this privately owned land as a late 20th century example for how the Pemigewasett in the Whites might have appeared under the thumb of timber baron J.R. Henry in the early part of the 1900s.

MEB, on Reddington you will probably see a bunch of clearings along the ridges that were sites of experimental wind towers a few years back. Local environmentalists, many who participate on this board, remain very much against wind farm development in this area.

Fortunately, the Bigelow Range and the lakes to the north were saved by environmentalists in the 1970s from the largest all-season resort and jet port ever proposed for the Northern Forest.

Saddleback ski area was recently bought by a retired geology professor from UMaine-Farmington and his family to maintain (no pun intended) the traditional narrow curvy trails and relatively minimal surrounding development.

In sum, whether one spends three days or a couple weeks, the Rangely-Stratton area is fabulous for bagging some NE4s in any season.

 

[ken]

ken, I've hiked a lot in Maine. My big question - why rush? The only reason I can see to hurry is if you have a long drive to get there.

long drive and the wife & kids wouldn't stay for longer than they "have to" since they won't hike.

 

[SherpaKroto]

Ken: understood totally.

Dr D: I can't exactly put my finger on what it is about Caribou Valley that does it for me. I agree that the clearcuts are ugly, but sometihng makes me see beyond them. I get a different feeling when I'm there, and in all honesty, don't quite understand it myself. Maybe someting about alone, and alive in the wilderness, maybe something about the friends, and memories I've shared it with. Maybe a lot of both.