Ne 100 Highest-labor Day W/e Hike

[pegwillen]

hello....does anyone know if the group that sometimes gets together to do the bushwack peaks in the Eustis Maine area (Boundary, Snow, Kennebago Divide, etc) is planning a Labor Day weekend hike this year?...thanks for any info.

 

[Kevin Rooney]

Many years ago Gene Daniell used to organize one, but hasn't for a long time. You might also check the hikes listed in the back of the AMC Magazine, especially under the Maine & NH Chapters.

If you don't have a luck finding a hike, PM me. I can give you an email address of one or two suspects who are twisted enough to find bushwhacks to Whitecap, Kennebago, etc actually fun and with whom you might hook up with.

 

[Paradox]

Dear Pegwillen,
I have a GPS. We don't need no steeenking guides! So lets just do it dammit!

I just got permission from my wife to leave here (central NH) after work on Thursday (8/31/06) if I am back by Saturday afternoon of Labor Day weekend (family function on Sunday/Monday). I figure it will take about 3:30 hours for me to drive up to Woburn, Quebec, putting me there about 9:00 pm. on Thursday evening. I can sleep in my vehicle (with two very enthusiastic Labrador Retrievers) both nights, or bring a tent.

If this is do-able for you, respond on this thread or PM me.

 

[Paradox]

Maine: Safe for Dogs?

Dear Kevin,
I noticed that you wrote the trip report for Mohamed Ellozy's website on hikes in the Cupsuptic Snow/Boundary Peak area. You mention a bear baited area. In your humble opinion would you take your dog into the area again?

 

[bill bowden]

NE100 Labor Day Trip

Won't happen this year. Gene cannot hike at this time. The FTFC is trying to arrange a similar event for next year.
We were up exploring the roads to Snow, Kennebago Divide, Boundary and White Cap and found them in reasonably good condition with Porter Brook reachable by a conventional vehicle via Wiggle Brook Road and reachable by Burnt Mountain Road in a 4WD vehicle with little difficulty. There was one rather memorable spot to challenge a sedan on Burnt Hill road.
For old-timers who have been in the area in the past, the presence of snowmachine trails and 911 service has resulted in quite a number of road signs which make navigation in the area comparatively straightforward compared to ten years ago.

I can probably provide some details for interested parties by PM.

 

[dms]

Bill, there are now road signs for all the "major" roads off Beaudry Road also. Such well known byways as Haynestown Road, Pine Tree Road and Lowelltown Road are all clearly marked with large signage. Civilization making its mark in the boonies!

 

[bill bowden]

Civilization as we think of it you mean!

Just to show how civilized, I found a dead critter (woodchuck?) in the road, just beside the 18 inch high grass on the drive to Cupsuptic Pond. How bad must your luck and judgment be to get hit by possibly the only vehicle in a week traveling at maybe 5-10 mph? we used to call tha tsort of thing buzzard's luck, but I suppose a buzzard would call it great luck.

 

[Kevin Rooney]

Dear Kevin,
I noticed that you wrote the trip report for Mohamed Ellozy's website on hikes in the Cupsuptic Snow/Boundary Peak area. You mention a bear baited area. In your humble opinion would you take your dog into the area again?

Paradox -

Just so that we're clear - Mr. B hasn't hiked in Maine, but to answer your question - yes, I think that area would be safe for dogs. My reservation re: taking a dog to Boundary is this - the trail crosses and re-crosses the international boundary countless times. Not far, maybe 10' each way, but still ... So, what happens in this hyper-security bubble we now live in if INS or the Mounties jump out of the brush and nab you and your dog? This might seem a bit far-fetched, but - when you cross the US/Canadian border with your dog, you need to be able to verify vaccination status, and this (along with your passport) is probably the last things you'll be worrying about on your way to Boundary (carrying enough water is a much more pressing concern). In the unlikely event you were detained, I'd be concerned for my dog's safety and well-being while the matter was being cleared up.

OTH - I may have been in the sun to long! Still, whether I had my dog with me or not, in this day and age, if I were doing Boundary again I'd make damn sure I knew where the actual boundary was (it's easy to see as there are big markers every .1 miles) so that I could scuttle to one side or the other, depending upon my nationality.

Kevin

 

[onestep]

- the trail crosses and re-crosses the international boundary countless times. Not far, maybe 10' each way, but still ... So, what happens in this hyper-security bubble we now live in if INS or the Mounties jump out of the brush and nab you and your dog? This might seem a bit far-fetched, but -
Kevin

I've been up on the US/Canada border swath in 6 different locations so far this year chasing 3k peaks without issue. YMMV, but our northern border is w-i-d-e open in my opinion. We (and 2 other groups that I know of this year) even went to Quebec in order to cross the border swath back into Maine to bag Twin Peaks and Barker Mtn.

Onestep

 

[Paradox]

Paradox -
.... when you cross the US/Canadian border with your dog, you need to be able to verify vaccination status.... Kevin

Thanks Kevin for the reminder: Hence I just called the vets office and Zippy is not up to date, we have an appointment Friday. (Don't anybody tell her before we get there, please.)

By the way: what is "YMMV"?

 

[Papa Bear]

I would second Onestep's analysis. I was there in 3 separate areas (with him and separately) about a month ago and in many sections of the boundary, it would be highly unlikely to find any border patrol. I was worried too, but when I got there and saw the situation, I basically didn't worry about it. Disclaimer: I would never advise anyone to do any thing illegal.

But I would mention to Kevin: The big boundary markers (they are called "monuments") are more like every 1 - 2 miles. There are small markers (disks mounted on small concrete posts at ground level) where ever the boundary changes direction, but sometimes those are quite hard to find. One that we actually searched for, we could not find, even when we knew where it was to within a foot.


Here's a big one (# 446 which you pass if you bag HH Boundary Peak from the Canadian side):

Monument 446

Herer's a little one (can be hard to spot):

Monument 447-2

So on the one hand I'm saying don't worry, on the other hand I'm saying if you want to worry, you will have a hard time not crossing the boundary.

 

[Kevin Rooney]

Paradox - YMMV = Your Milage May Vary.

Papa Bear and Onestep - I agree with you entirely in that the border appears wide open. It feels quite remote and like you're in the middle of nowhere, especially if you 'whack in from the US. While I've never done it via Quebec (except via the variation mentioned on Mohamed's website) from the trip reports I've read it's not as remote as it seems if you approach via Quebec highways.

In terms of the US Border Patrol - while I agree it's highly unlikely that you'll run into any officers from either the US or Canada - that's not to say some of our hard-earned dollars aren't invested in motion detectors, heat sensors, etc, and in the not too distant future a helicopter could show up rather rapidly if a sensor was activated. I don't know how you can tell a moose from a human, but that's another story.

As for the distance between markers - hmm... my recollection was they're much closer together. Thanks for the correction. It's been 2 or 3 years (maybe longer) since I've had the pleasure(?) of doing Boundary. Maybe they're closer together near the termination of the Long Trail (Journey's End)? Was there not too long ago - dunno. Memory is the second thing to go - can't remember the first.

 

[pegwillen]

thanks

to all who responded, seems like this won't be the year for these peaks for me!...I would only be free to hike the 3 days of the weekend anyway, and, last w/e lost my clutch in my old faithful 1992 Toyota 4x4 due to 'oxidative stress' a.k.a. rust, 20 miles in on a logging road, so am feeling a bit insecure about dirt roads until I get a new vehicle....again, thanks!

 

[Paradox]

Anybody else up for stompin' the border, on the first of September?

 

[funkyfreddy]

I might be up for doing Boundary and other NE/Maine 100 highest later in Sept. or Oct., but can't do it Labor day weekend, so if you don't make it up there keep me in mind.