Amicus
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- Aug 28, 2005
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As I headed up to Rangeley, ME from Freedom, NH a little before 5 this morning, Venus transfixed the eastern sky like a diamond. The drive up Rt. 16 through Errol and the Umbagog district is beautiful, particularly at that time, and I never fail to see a moose or two. Today, I also saw a pale-coated fox and a mother turkey leading her brood across the road.
I made good time, which permitted a stop for take-out breakfast at Moosely Bagels in Rangeley, which has a wonderful-looking lakeside deck. My brother-in-law John and I rolled into the Saddleback base lodge parking lot at the same time, a few minutes before our 8 a.m. meeting time. Coming from the south, John had given a ride to Roamin' Goat, a seasoned through-hiker making his second traverse, this time N-to-S in sections, who was heading to the Rangeley laundromat and IGA.
It is 15 miles from the base lodge to the AT trailhead on Rt. 4, near the Rangeley-Madrid line, so it was a little after 8:30 by the time we hit the Trail north. What a delightful contrast to some of those rugged trails we pounded in Baxter State Park last week! A well-groomed walk in the woods, with puddles, bogs and actual ponds punctuating the woodland at regular intervals.
Piazza Rock is worth the short detour. It is an enormous, over-hanging glacial erratic. Think Glen Boulder, but much bigger, and unlike GB you can clamber on top, if you are not averse to a little all-fours scrambling. Fir trees obscure the views, however.
The Piazza Rock AT site is huge, with multiple platforms in addition to the lean-to. What most caught our attention was the impressive two-hole privy, with a sign out front - "Your Move." The significance of that appears inside, where a large cribbage board has been built into the space between the two seats.
Once you get above tree-line on a dry, clear day like today, you have begun a view orgy that will last as long as you stay on the ridge, which is entirely above tree-line. At the south knob of the main summit, an unmissable orange sign points to the path down through the ski area, which we took on our return.
At the main summit proper, we had an enjoyable chat with the MATC Ridge-runner in residence (Rick?), who is also an aspiring nature photographer. He really knows his Maine mountains, and was able to confirm or correct dozens of summit IDs we made in all directions. I had done hardly any Maine hiking until two years ago, but have done a lot since. This was a great day and place to take stock, and I could spot in the clear air most of the Maine summits I had climbed. Also, I don't recall another summit with views of both Mt. Washington and Katahdin.
We met a congenial mix of through- and day-hikers as we crossed the deep but exposed saddle to Horn and back, drinking in the panoramas.
The way down through the ski area is blazed by orange sticks, following an assortment of ski trails, and saves a good three miles from the out-and-back route from Rt. 4. I happen to like hiking down ski trails, which I have done often at a number of areas. They're fast and flowery, and often give you great views, if rarely as splendid as today - a WNW panorama of the gold-glittering Rangeley lakes. Close-up aesthetics, on the other hand, can suffer, with lots of snow-making detritus and gravelly places.
The Saddleback base lodge is 800 feet higher than the AT trailhead on Rt. 4, so you could save a lot of climbing by doing our route in reverse. I wouldn't want to climb up those ski trails, however. You'd lose the views.
Got back to my car at the base lodge a little before 3 p.m. Distance: c. 11.5 miles. Vertical feet climbed: 4,115.
Rangeley is beautiful - exceptionally!
I made good time, which permitted a stop for take-out breakfast at Moosely Bagels in Rangeley, which has a wonderful-looking lakeside deck. My brother-in-law John and I rolled into the Saddleback base lodge parking lot at the same time, a few minutes before our 8 a.m. meeting time. Coming from the south, John had given a ride to Roamin' Goat, a seasoned through-hiker making his second traverse, this time N-to-S in sections, who was heading to the Rangeley laundromat and IGA.
It is 15 miles from the base lodge to the AT trailhead on Rt. 4, near the Rangeley-Madrid line, so it was a little after 8:30 by the time we hit the Trail north. What a delightful contrast to some of those rugged trails we pounded in Baxter State Park last week! A well-groomed walk in the woods, with puddles, bogs and actual ponds punctuating the woodland at regular intervals.
Piazza Rock is worth the short detour. It is an enormous, over-hanging glacial erratic. Think Glen Boulder, but much bigger, and unlike GB you can clamber on top, if you are not averse to a little all-fours scrambling. Fir trees obscure the views, however.
The Piazza Rock AT site is huge, with multiple platforms in addition to the lean-to. What most caught our attention was the impressive two-hole privy, with a sign out front - "Your Move." The significance of that appears inside, where a large cribbage board has been built into the space between the two seats.
Once you get above tree-line on a dry, clear day like today, you have begun a view orgy that will last as long as you stay on the ridge, which is entirely above tree-line. At the south knob of the main summit, an unmissable orange sign points to the path down through the ski area, which we took on our return.
At the main summit proper, we had an enjoyable chat with the MATC Ridge-runner in residence (Rick?), who is also an aspiring nature photographer. He really knows his Maine mountains, and was able to confirm or correct dozens of summit IDs we made in all directions. I had done hardly any Maine hiking until two years ago, but have done a lot since. This was a great day and place to take stock, and I could spot in the clear air most of the Maine summits I had climbed. Also, I don't recall another summit with views of both Mt. Washington and Katahdin.
We met a congenial mix of through- and day-hikers as we crossed the deep but exposed saddle to Horn and back, drinking in the panoramas.
The way down through the ski area is blazed by orange sticks, following an assortment of ski trails, and saves a good three miles from the out-and-back route from Rt. 4. I happen to like hiking down ski trails, which I have done often at a number of areas. They're fast and flowery, and often give you great views, if rarely as splendid as today - a WNW panorama of the gold-glittering Rangeley lakes. Close-up aesthetics, on the other hand, can suffer, with lots of snow-making detritus and gravelly places.
The Saddleback base lodge is 800 feet higher than the AT trailhead on Rt. 4, so you could save a lot of climbing by doing our route in reverse. I wouldn't want to climb up those ski trails, however. You'd lose the views.
Got back to my car at the base lodge a little before 3 p.m. Distance: c. 11.5 miles. Vertical feet climbed: 4,115.
Rangeley is beautiful - exceptionally!
