buckyball1
New member
Getting a bit crazy to "do something", but nursing/rehabbing a sprained ankle from too ambitious 3Ks wanderings around the border swath 9 days ago (not wanting any more damage before my CO and OR trips) i was looking for some low hanging fruit today. I have 5 peaks left in the first 200 of the ME "P" peaks, but they'll wait 'til mid-August. So it was ....
Peaked 1210'-on of the many "Peaked" peaks in ME and one of the easiest. It's near Dixmont Center, west of Bangor and a short 35 minutes from home. Unfortunately it's near civilization where many "P" peaks are home to nearby houses, communications towers and barred approaches-this one was no exception.
From looking at sat pics and Delorme, there was clearly a road of some sort to the summit and perhaps a power line cut along another line of ascent. When i got there and parked, I found a "hard locked" gate covered with " keep the hell out" type signs from the tower owners-none of the land itself was posted. I suspect the signs are mostly for ATV/snowmobile problems and owner liability, but i hate to walk on "posted" roads if i can help it...anyway, i wandered over to another "line" and found the expected power line cut, but the growth was over head high and soaked from the overnight rain -the morning fog was also still like pea soup.
Figuring a peak in this area must have been accessed/cut long before the towers, i looked for and found an old overgrown road which lead me on a shortish steep ascent thru fairly open, very wet woods to the summit area. The summit has so many towers that it looks like an excited porcupine from a distance and there are a myriad of small utility buildings. Some of the area was heavily fenced/barbed wired so a bit of easy 'whacking was needed to get to the "true summit" a bit beyond the tower complex--top is in the woods, no views-total soup....then it was off thru Dixmont and Brooks to the Frye Mountain Wildlife Mang area between Rtes 220 and 137 for
Frye 1139'--yet another beast
--this hike is actually in the latest MMG (2005), but the brief description leads you to wonder when was the last time anyone checked it out. I've run into several persons checking out MMG hikes over the last 7-8 years and it seems like the volunteers are badly overburdened and lacking current on-the-ground beta. I approached the "trail" from the Rt 137 side on Frye Mt and Getchel Rds-see Delorme (the book suggests the longer approach from Rt 220)-dirt, no problems, gate open. The "trail" is unmarked (no trace of the sign mentioned in MMG), but is a pretty obvious old road/jeep trail which is "rocked" at the start. The hike itself is an easy uphill walk of under a half mile with a few mild ledges near the summit. The guide mentions a fire tower with excellent views in all directions-no tower, no views. The tower was apparently removed in 2002?? The summit itself lies on a small rock outcrop about 150 feet from the old tower site and remaining USGS medallion. Evidence of campfires and trash, but no views during a quick search around the area.
well, at least i got out in the woods, didn't hurt myself and both these "peaks" are in the lower part of #s 200-300 on the ME P list--yes, i had planned to stop at 200, but who knows--and i saw yet another area that while close to home , i'd never visited--one of the strengths of this oddball list
jim
Peaked 1210'-on of the many "Peaked" peaks in ME and one of the easiest. It's near Dixmont Center, west of Bangor and a short 35 minutes from home. Unfortunately it's near civilization where many "P" peaks are home to nearby houses, communications towers and barred approaches-this one was no exception.
From looking at sat pics and Delorme, there was clearly a road of some sort to the summit and perhaps a power line cut along another line of ascent. When i got there and parked, I found a "hard locked" gate covered with " keep the hell out" type signs from the tower owners-none of the land itself was posted. I suspect the signs are mostly for ATV/snowmobile problems and owner liability, but i hate to walk on "posted" roads if i can help it...anyway, i wandered over to another "line" and found the expected power line cut, but the growth was over head high and soaked from the overnight rain -the morning fog was also still like pea soup.
Figuring a peak in this area must have been accessed/cut long before the towers, i looked for and found an old overgrown road which lead me on a shortish steep ascent thru fairly open, very wet woods to the summit area. The summit has so many towers that it looks like an excited porcupine from a distance and there are a myriad of small utility buildings. Some of the area was heavily fenced/barbed wired so a bit of easy 'whacking was needed to get to the "true summit" a bit beyond the tower complex--top is in the woods, no views-total soup....then it was off thru Dixmont and Brooks to the Frye Mountain Wildlife Mang area between Rtes 220 and 137 for
Frye 1139'--yet another beast
--this hike is actually in the latest MMG (2005), but the brief description leads you to wonder when was the last time anyone checked it out. I've run into several persons checking out MMG hikes over the last 7-8 years and it seems like the volunteers are badly overburdened and lacking current on-the-ground beta. I approached the "trail" from the Rt 137 side on Frye Mt and Getchel Rds-see Delorme (the book suggests the longer approach from Rt 220)-dirt, no problems, gate open. The "trail" is unmarked (no trace of the sign mentioned in MMG), but is a pretty obvious old road/jeep trail which is "rocked" at the start. The hike itself is an easy uphill walk of under a half mile with a few mild ledges near the summit. The guide mentions a fire tower with excellent views in all directions-no tower, no views. The tower was apparently removed in 2002?? The summit itself lies on a small rock outcrop about 150 feet from the old tower site and remaining USGS medallion. Evidence of campfires and trash, but no views during a quick search around the area.well, at least i got out in the woods, didn't hurt myself
and both these "peaks" are in the lower part of #s 200-300 on the ME P list--yes, i had planned to stop at 200, but who knows--and i saw yet another area that while close to home , i'd never visited--one of the strengths of this oddball listjim
