Thoreau and "Ktaadn"

[roadtripper]

So I just picked up a copy of "The Maine Woods" by Thoreau due to my fascination with Mt. Katahdin (or "Ktaadn" as he spells it).

I was curious if anybody knew exactly where he scrambled up the mountain (between which current trails?) and where he is believed to have topped out. I think it's pretty clear from the book that he did not make the summit.

Also, I'm getting the sense that he did not cross the Knife's Edge and may not have even seen it due to the density of clouds that day. He mentions "Pomola" in the book, so perhaps he made it to Pamola Peak?

 

[Amicus]

Wonderful book! I read it before a paddling trip on the Allagash a few years ago (only to discover that he turned around before where we began, at Churchill Dam.)

The "Ktaadn" section gripped me too. I've read that he hiked from the south - roughly the current Abol Trail - so don't think he made it to the Knife Edge or Pamola.

 

[cbcbd]

I don't remember the exact route but I remember this book (Katahdin - A Historic Journey) having a map of it and also the story and countless others. Amicus is right, it did come from the South... and I want to say that it might not have followed the slide but to the right of it.
I'm sure Spencer will chime in soon with the answer

edit:
Excerpts from the book -
"Thoreau, on his celebrated climb of 1846, camped at the mouth of the Abol Stream like so many others but then bypassed the slide on his route to the mountain. He did not reach the summit but experienced the great cliffs and precipitous rock walls of the West Branch side's upper portion. Thoreau could have climbed to the summit if he had followed the well worn paths at the lower elevations."

"The path Thoreau chose for his climb is not entirely clear. Although he was aware of the route along the Abol Slide from Charles T Jackson and Jacob W Bailey's accounts, he chose not to follow it".

"Using a compass bearing from the mouth of Abol Stream toward the highest visible peak Thoreau followed an almost straight line to South Peak, passing northwest of Rum Mountain and just east of the Abol Slide. His observation of the Tableland the next day suggests that Thoreau likely reached or nearly reached the ridge between the summit and the South Peak."

The map from the book

 

[roadtripper]

Thanks for the info!

Amicus - I'm just getting to the section about his Allagash trip. Hopefully it helps finally motivate me to start planning a canoe trip. It's been on my mind for a few years now.....

Cbcbd - thanks for the reference! I was getting a slight sense that he was close to Abol Slide, but then he started mentioning waterfalls up high, so I began thinking maybe he was closer to the Hunt Trail & maybe some falls above Katadhin Stream Falls. That map is awesome, thanks for that as well.

 

[Papa Bear]

Thanks for the info!

Amicus - I'm just getting to the section about his Allagash trip. Hopefully it helps finally motivate me to start planning a canoe trip. It's been on my mind for a few years now.....

Cbcbd - thanks for the reference! I was getting a slight sense that he was close to Abol Slide, but then he started mentioning waterfalls up high, so I began thinking maybe he was closer to the Hunt Trail & maybe some falls above Katadhin Stream Falls. That map is awesome, thanks for that as well.

One of the parts I especially enjoyed was when of he talks of the Moose which was "murdered" by his guide.

 

[spencer]

cbcbcbcbd already answered it...

if you haven't read The Maine Woods yet, I suggest you put down your pulp fiction and get with the program.

Also, do be sure to read John Neff's terrific Katahdin book. It's so much fun to read...

and, don't forget folks, it's Katahdin, not Mt. Katahdin. USGS doesn't know what the they are talking about.

 

[Papa Bear]

and, don't forget folks, it's Katahdin, not Mt. Katahdin. USGS doesn't know what the hell they are talking about.

That's what I say!

And Monadnock!

Sheesh, those USGS dumb-dumbs!

 

[SherpaKroto]

That's right: Katahdin!
That's right: Katahdin!

...and I didn't even stutter

 

[spencer]

I just really wanted to make my point... How did that happen anyway? Okay, I'll delete one of them. Didn't there used to be a rule on the wicked old VFTT system about getting flogged for double posts? I thought this fancy schmancy software prevented it.