arm
Well-known member
twelve days of summer ... so many cool places, so little time
after looking at Quebec maps for years, gaging just how far beyond BSP it would take to visit there, it seemed so far away
when i was 19, i spent a few months living with my Dad, who was looking to sail the Bahamas for a while ... we spent most of our time cruising around Abaco Islands
we heard about sailing regattas in the Exumas, but never sailed there ... like Gaspe, it seemed like it was just out of reach
finally made time to extend a BSP trip, sandwiching a couple weekends in Baxter State Park around a visit to Gulf Hagas in Maine and Parc National de la Gaspesie in Quebec
started with a day hike in Gulf Hagas, the "Grand Canyon of Maine"
checked in at KI Jo-Mary Gatehouse near Katahdin Iron Works, paid the $9 day use fee, checked out Iron Works sites, then drove to the parking lot near the AT crossing of Pleasant River ... last few miles of this dirt road were in rough shape
took off my boots to cross knee-deep Pleasant River, then followed the AT to Rim Trail, negotiating slick roots and rocks along West Branch of Pleasant River, with great views of Screw Auger Falls, Jaws, Buttermilk Falls, Billings Falls, Stairs Falls, and high cliffs that plummet to the river below
after hiking four miles to the Head of the Gulf, i walked back on Pleasant River tote road, an easy walk through the woods, then drove to Baxter State Park, where Jean, Timmus and i had campsites reserved for the weekend
a local Native American Tribe reserves Katahdin Stream Campground every labor day weekend, an annual spiritual journey where they run or canoe to basecamp ... they played music and told stories while we were there
next day, Timmus and Jean hiked Travelers, while i set up camp at Abol Campground, where we'd tent the next two nights ... decided to hike Katahdin via Abol Slide to stretch the legs on a sunny day, checking out Chimney Slide for a future trip
next day we hiked OJI ... after a brief dice game (which Timmus lost) we decided to walk through the Klondike until we reached The Owl ... we decided to cut our loop over Katahdin and the Brothers short, hiking down The Owl, back to basecamp for dinner
found a mouse running around inside my car, who had helped himself to bagels in the trunk of my car ... beer cannisters recommended in BSP
Timmus and Jean headed home the next morning ... i headed north until people started talking funny
next morning, i entered Parc National de la Gaspesie, home of the Chic-Choc Mountains ... weather turned grim as i drove into the Parc, so i hiked Mont Xalibu, past Lac aux Americains, hoping the next day would clear for a loop hike over Mont Albert
grabbed seafood dinner at a pub in Ste-Anne-des-Monts, then stayed at "Le Gris" Hut in the park
next morning, weather was grim, so i hiked Mont Jacques-Cartier
the Parc limits access to this peak, 10AM - 4PM, due to Caribou who live on this mountain, who were designated as endangered years ago
if you ride the shuttle from Centre d'interpretation, plan on spending a full day riding the shuttle, hiking five miles round-trip, then waiting to ride the shuttle back
i drove my car 25 miles on the dirt road leading to the access road for Jacques-Cartier, to save time, so i could reach Forillon that night
rode the bus to the trailhead then hiked up the easy trail to Lac a Rene, under snowy skies ... felt good to walk on snow again
Jacques-Cartier is a tame hike, but Chic-Chocs seem like they'd be a great Winter destination ... would love to ski through the park
ate lunch in the summit tower, then spotted caribou grazing on my way down as skies cleared ... drove along Gaspe Coastline, checking out cool views of coastside cliffs, lighthouses and riverside homes in villages along the St Lawrence River, which felt more like an ocean
set up camp in Forillon, hoping to hike or kayak the next day, but decided to make progress along the coastal drive, to meet friends in Millinocket that night
road construction (travaux) slowed progress along this route, as well as sharing roads with the World's Most Dangerous Drivers (aka: old men wearing hats) ... but none of this crawled under my skin, shedding stress like a van driver in Argentina passing cars around blind corners
got a real sense of freedom, taking this vacation one day at a time, not a worry in the world ... wearing a mile wide smile, driving along scenic coastline, loving life ... at times the Gaspe Coast reminded me of Acadia, stretched out over hundreds of miles
drove back through Limestone Maine, where we camped for Phish festivals years ago ... small village these days, much like villages i'd driven through all week ... many village folk spend time sitting on their front porches, being neighborly, time spent better than sitting on the couch watching TV
met friends in Millinocket, then went out for dinner at a mexican restaurant named La Casa for Millinocket Beer Night ... kitchen was closed, but we hung out for liquid refreshments ... Viva La Casa !
next morning we ate breakfast at the AT Cafe, then backpacked into BSP for a cool four night trip
spent two nights at Russell Pond, two nights at Wassataquoik Lake Island
talked to the RP Ranger, who seems allergic to "stuff left on summits" and asked us to remove anything we found on summits we'd wander to
we followed an old route to a nearby pond, then walked up to a scenic outlook uphill from the pond
next day Stev-o and i canoed a few ponds on our way to Wassataquoik, while FF and TG hiked to Northwest Plateau to stretch the legs
spent the next couple days canoeing lakes, hiking trails beyond lakes, and enjoying remote areas beyond Katahdin
BSP forest was green when we left on sept 11 ... foliage is probably kicking in pretty soon
fun stuff !
posted a few pics
after looking at Quebec maps for years, gaging just how far beyond BSP it would take to visit there, it seemed so far away
when i was 19, i spent a few months living with my Dad, who was looking to sail the Bahamas for a while ... we spent most of our time cruising around Abaco Islands
we heard about sailing regattas in the Exumas, but never sailed there ... like Gaspe, it seemed like it was just out of reach
finally made time to extend a BSP trip, sandwiching a couple weekends in Baxter State Park around a visit to Gulf Hagas in Maine and Parc National de la Gaspesie in Quebec
started with a day hike in Gulf Hagas, the "Grand Canyon of Maine"
checked in at KI Jo-Mary Gatehouse near Katahdin Iron Works, paid the $9 day use fee, checked out Iron Works sites, then drove to the parking lot near the AT crossing of Pleasant River ... last few miles of this dirt road were in rough shape
took off my boots to cross knee-deep Pleasant River, then followed the AT to Rim Trail, negotiating slick roots and rocks along West Branch of Pleasant River, with great views of Screw Auger Falls, Jaws, Buttermilk Falls, Billings Falls, Stairs Falls, and high cliffs that plummet to the river below
after hiking four miles to the Head of the Gulf, i walked back on Pleasant River tote road, an easy walk through the woods, then drove to Baxter State Park, where Jean, Timmus and i had campsites reserved for the weekend
a local Native American Tribe reserves Katahdin Stream Campground every labor day weekend, an annual spiritual journey where they run or canoe to basecamp ... they played music and told stories while we were there
next day, Timmus and Jean hiked Travelers, while i set up camp at Abol Campground, where we'd tent the next two nights ... decided to hike Katahdin via Abol Slide to stretch the legs on a sunny day, checking out Chimney Slide for a future trip
next day we hiked OJI ... after a brief dice game (which Timmus lost) we decided to walk through the Klondike until we reached The Owl ... we decided to cut our loop over Katahdin and the Brothers short, hiking down The Owl, back to basecamp for dinner
found a mouse running around inside my car, who had helped himself to bagels in the trunk of my car ... beer cannisters recommended in BSP
Timmus and Jean headed home the next morning ... i headed north until people started talking funny
next morning, i entered Parc National de la Gaspesie, home of the Chic-Choc Mountains ... weather turned grim as i drove into the Parc, so i hiked Mont Xalibu, past Lac aux Americains, hoping the next day would clear for a loop hike over Mont Albert
grabbed seafood dinner at a pub in Ste-Anne-des-Monts, then stayed at "Le Gris" Hut in the park
next morning, weather was grim, so i hiked Mont Jacques-Cartier
the Parc limits access to this peak, 10AM - 4PM, due to Caribou who live on this mountain, who were designated as endangered years ago
if you ride the shuttle from Centre d'interpretation, plan on spending a full day riding the shuttle, hiking five miles round-trip, then waiting to ride the shuttle back
i drove my car 25 miles on the dirt road leading to the access road for Jacques-Cartier, to save time, so i could reach Forillon that night
rode the bus to the trailhead then hiked up the easy trail to Lac a Rene, under snowy skies ... felt good to walk on snow again
Jacques-Cartier is a tame hike, but Chic-Chocs seem like they'd be a great Winter destination ... would love to ski through the park
ate lunch in the summit tower, then spotted caribou grazing on my way down as skies cleared ... drove along Gaspe Coastline, checking out cool views of coastside cliffs, lighthouses and riverside homes in villages along the St Lawrence River, which felt more like an ocean
set up camp in Forillon, hoping to hike or kayak the next day, but decided to make progress along the coastal drive, to meet friends in Millinocket that night
road construction (travaux) slowed progress along this route, as well as sharing roads with the World's Most Dangerous Drivers (aka: old men wearing hats) ... but none of this crawled under my skin, shedding stress like a van driver in Argentina passing cars around blind corners
got a real sense of freedom, taking this vacation one day at a time, not a worry in the world ... wearing a mile wide smile, driving along scenic coastline, loving life ... at times the Gaspe Coast reminded me of Acadia, stretched out over hundreds of miles
drove back through Limestone Maine, where we camped for Phish festivals years ago ... small village these days, much like villages i'd driven through all week ... many village folk spend time sitting on their front porches, being neighborly, time spent better than sitting on the couch watching TV
met friends in Millinocket, then went out for dinner at a mexican restaurant named La Casa for Millinocket Beer Night ... kitchen was closed, but we hung out for liquid refreshments ... Viva La Casa !
next morning we ate breakfast at the AT Cafe, then backpacked into BSP for a cool four night trip
spent two nights at Russell Pond, two nights at Wassataquoik Lake Island
talked to the RP Ranger, who seems allergic to "stuff left on summits" and asked us to remove anything we found on summits we'd wander to
we followed an old route to a nearby pond, then walked up to a scenic outlook uphill from the pond
next day Stev-o and i canoed a few ponds on our way to Wassataquoik, while FF and TG hiked to Northwest Plateau to stretch the legs
spent the next couple days canoeing lakes, hiking trails beyond lakes, and enjoying remote areas beyond Katahdin
BSP forest was green when we left on sept 11 ... foliage is probably kicking in pretty soon
fun stuff !
posted a few pics
