BIGEarl
Well-known member
August 6, 2011: Laps on Knife Edge – Baxter State Park
Trails: Chimney Pond Trail, Helon Taylor Trail, Knife Edge Trail
Summits: Pamola, Chimney Peak, and South Peak (Katahdin)
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue), and me
Last year we took a day and had some fun on Knife Edge. We decided to do it again this year. Our first decision was on the route we would follow. With four hours of drive time the previous day we weren’t interested in any drive time more than necessary for this one which meant hiking from Roaring Brook Campsite. Climbing Pamola via Chimney Pond and Dudley Trails is nearly 1.5 miles longer than following Helon Taylor Trail. We decided on the shorter route which would leave extra time on Knife Edge.
First, we enjoyed a brief conversation with the Park Ranger. He was familiar with the Crazy Mitchell Party – that’s us, and had a very good memory of a late exit Sue and I had last year when the Park Rangers had a fire drill looking for us. Evidently, late exits are unusual for these guys. He was good about it, but he remembered the name of the group, and the name of the trailhead from which we hiked. Sue signed us in and we took off for Helon Taylor and our climb to Pamola.
The previous day we really burned ourselves out on the Traveler Loop and didn’t adequately re-fuel after the hike. We didn’t have a very good breakfast before this hike either. The day was very warm and humid. By the time we were an hour into the hike I think we both knew it was going to be a difficult day. Anticipating the worst, I started packing fuel; energy bars, energy chews, GU gel packs, Gatorade. I grabbed everything I had, which is unusual but I had a strong feeling about what was coming. My inventory included three liters of water and two quarts of Gatorade, which should have been plenty with lots of insurance. In the end it was enough, but that’s about it.
We found a comfortable pace and climbed. There are a couple steep pitches on the early part of the trail and then we enter a section of boulders. The early boulder field is a collection of huge, smooth boulders and exposed ledge which is very comfortable hiking terrain. We made it through the early boulders and moved into another steep pitch which is also very rocky and loaded with ledge. In some places there are short bypasses for ledge sections that are difficult to climb. Eventually, we cleared this steep pitch and were hiking through the scrub near the treeline. The views were starting to open up, we were starting to enjoy some breeze, and areas of clouds were passing through. The cloud shadows felt really good.
Once we were above the treeline the views were terrific off the ridge to the north and south as well as up the ridge to Pamola and Knife Edge. We also started to see others hiking the area. As we made our way closer to Knife Edge we could see it was a busy place.
Climbing Helon Taylor to Pamola is a relatively mild approach, compared to Dudley Trail which we did last year. The final ~half mile is a pretty good climb. In this section I started to really drop behind Sue due to leg cramps. I was expecting something. Again, I started throwing everything I had at the problem. After some Gatorade, another GU Gel Pack, and a couple Cliff Shot Blocks things quieted down, for a while.
We made our way to Pamola and started looking. We expected to see Michael and Melissa somewhere on Knife Edge. They were climbing from a different direction but we were pretty sure we would see them during our playtime on Knife Edge. We took care of the summit details on Pamola and made our move to the base of Chimney Peak. That meant a climb down from Pamola to climb back up The Chimney. Both sides are pretty much straight up – with good foot and hand holds. We descended from Pamola but needed to wait before starting up to Chimney Peak because others were already on their descent.
Finally, it was our turn. I believe we both remembered the approach we used last year and the climb went well. We were quickly on Chimney Peak and ready to start doing laps. Knife Edge is only a mile long if you only do it once. Many sections of Knife Edge seem very different depending on the hiking direction. In other words, Knife Edge from Chimney Peak to South Peak seems like a different place when compared to Knife Edge from South Peak to Chimney Peak. It’s a really fun place, if you enjoy that sort of thing.
When we were ready to start out I told Sue to just take off and get as many laps done as she wanted. I was on rubbery legs that were cramping at times and couldn’t push as hard as I wanted. Generally, we were always in sight of each other (there are only a couple places where that isn’t the case). Sue agreed and took off. At first we were together but slowly Sue put distance between us. By the time I was mid-way across my first pass Sue was approaching South Peak and preparing to u-turn back. On the long climb to South Peak we met, Sue was on her way back to Chimney Peak for another lap. I told her my plan was to wait on South Peak for her and then decide what to do after.
I reached South Peak and started looking for Sue. It took a while but eventually I saw her blue pack and green top. She was on her way back to South Peak. I found a comfortable rock, had a snack, and some Cliff Shot Blocks, and just enjoyed the afternoon watching Sue on Knife Edge. When she reached the long climb to South Peak I could see her progress had slowed. Sue was really feeling the heat and humidity. We had quite a hangover from the previous day’s hike and this day was kicking our butts. We had outstanding conditions to enjoy but were just low on energy, right from the start.
Sue arrived to South Peak and told me she was calling it a hike after four laps. After relaxing for a few minutes we were on the hike back to Chimney Peak and our exit. Descending from Chimney Peak on rubbery legs is probably not recommended but I knew what I had and worked with it. I think Sue was in the same boat. We spent a lot of time studying the rocks last year and still had the descent approach in our memory. We reached Chimney Peak and simply continued over the edge to our descent. Climbing down was a little slow but we managed to make the trip in good time and without any problems at all.
Soon we were hiking our exit hike on Helon Taylor Trail. I had no more cramping problems and the descent went reasonably well. While still above the treeline we noticed several hikers ahead of us by about a half mile and Sue said let’s try to catch them. Yeah, that’s what I want to do. Off we went. We were making pretty good time but not pushing the pace too hard; a trip and fall can leave a mark. We reached the treeline and were soon in the upper boulders and slabs. Still moving well we continued on with as few stops as necessary. Roughly a mile before the junction with Chimney Pond Trail we caught the six hikers that were ahead of us. We were moving a little slow but they were moving a lot slow. We had seen this group on Knife Edge (Sue saw them three times – show off). They stepped to the side of the trail and sent us through – we never saw each other again. Roughly half way to the trail junction we pulled out the headlights to help us finish what we started. There are a few tricky spots on the way out. I hope the others had lights with them.
We reached Chimney Pond Trail, made the turn, and were soon on the porch of the Roaring Brook Ranger Station signing the register. As we were leaving we met another Park Ranger.
He approached and asked “Are you part of the Crazy Mitchell Group?”.
Sue: “Yes, we’re done playing for the day”.
Ranger: “Playing? What were you doing?”
Sue: “Laps on Knife Edge – back and forth”
Ranger: “You are crazy!”
We also told him about the six others that were behind us. They were moving slowly but they were moving and only appeared tired.
Thanks Sue – it was a crazy fun day on Knife Edge.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
Trails: Chimney Pond Trail, Helon Taylor Trail, Knife Edge Trail
Summits: Pamola, Chimney Peak, and South Peak (Katahdin)
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue), and me
Last year we took a day and had some fun on Knife Edge. We decided to do it again this year. Our first decision was on the route we would follow. With four hours of drive time the previous day we weren’t interested in any drive time more than necessary for this one which meant hiking from Roaring Brook Campsite. Climbing Pamola via Chimney Pond and Dudley Trails is nearly 1.5 miles longer than following Helon Taylor Trail. We decided on the shorter route which would leave extra time on Knife Edge.
First, we enjoyed a brief conversation with the Park Ranger. He was familiar with the Crazy Mitchell Party – that’s us, and had a very good memory of a late exit Sue and I had last year when the Park Rangers had a fire drill looking for us. Evidently, late exits are unusual for these guys. He was good about it, but he remembered the name of the group, and the name of the trailhead from which we hiked. Sue signed us in and we took off for Helon Taylor and our climb to Pamola.
The previous day we really burned ourselves out on the Traveler Loop and didn’t adequately re-fuel after the hike. We didn’t have a very good breakfast before this hike either. The day was very warm and humid. By the time we were an hour into the hike I think we both knew it was going to be a difficult day. Anticipating the worst, I started packing fuel; energy bars, energy chews, GU gel packs, Gatorade. I grabbed everything I had, which is unusual but I had a strong feeling about what was coming. My inventory included three liters of water and two quarts of Gatorade, which should have been plenty with lots of insurance. In the end it was enough, but that’s about it.
We found a comfortable pace and climbed. There are a couple steep pitches on the early part of the trail and then we enter a section of boulders. The early boulder field is a collection of huge, smooth boulders and exposed ledge which is very comfortable hiking terrain. We made it through the early boulders and moved into another steep pitch which is also very rocky and loaded with ledge. In some places there are short bypasses for ledge sections that are difficult to climb. Eventually, we cleared this steep pitch and were hiking through the scrub near the treeline. The views were starting to open up, we were starting to enjoy some breeze, and areas of clouds were passing through. The cloud shadows felt really good.
Once we were above the treeline the views were terrific off the ridge to the north and south as well as up the ridge to Pamola and Knife Edge. We also started to see others hiking the area. As we made our way closer to Knife Edge we could see it was a busy place.
Climbing Helon Taylor to Pamola is a relatively mild approach, compared to Dudley Trail which we did last year. The final ~half mile is a pretty good climb. In this section I started to really drop behind Sue due to leg cramps. I was expecting something. Again, I started throwing everything I had at the problem. After some Gatorade, another GU Gel Pack, and a couple Cliff Shot Blocks things quieted down, for a while.
We made our way to Pamola and started looking. We expected to see Michael and Melissa somewhere on Knife Edge. They were climbing from a different direction but we were pretty sure we would see them during our playtime on Knife Edge. We took care of the summit details on Pamola and made our move to the base of Chimney Peak. That meant a climb down from Pamola to climb back up The Chimney. Both sides are pretty much straight up – with good foot and hand holds. We descended from Pamola but needed to wait before starting up to Chimney Peak because others were already on their descent.
Finally, it was our turn. I believe we both remembered the approach we used last year and the climb went well. We were quickly on Chimney Peak and ready to start doing laps. Knife Edge is only a mile long if you only do it once. Many sections of Knife Edge seem very different depending on the hiking direction. In other words, Knife Edge from Chimney Peak to South Peak seems like a different place when compared to Knife Edge from South Peak to Chimney Peak. It’s a really fun place, if you enjoy that sort of thing.
When we were ready to start out I told Sue to just take off and get as many laps done as she wanted. I was on rubbery legs that were cramping at times and couldn’t push as hard as I wanted. Generally, we were always in sight of each other (there are only a couple places where that isn’t the case). Sue agreed and took off. At first we were together but slowly Sue put distance between us. By the time I was mid-way across my first pass Sue was approaching South Peak and preparing to u-turn back. On the long climb to South Peak we met, Sue was on her way back to Chimney Peak for another lap. I told her my plan was to wait on South Peak for her and then decide what to do after.
I reached South Peak and started looking for Sue. It took a while but eventually I saw her blue pack and green top. She was on her way back to South Peak. I found a comfortable rock, had a snack, and some Cliff Shot Blocks, and just enjoyed the afternoon watching Sue on Knife Edge. When she reached the long climb to South Peak I could see her progress had slowed. Sue was really feeling the heat and humidity. We had quite a hangover from the previous day’s hike and this day was kicking our butts. We had outstanding conditions to enjoy but were just low on energy, right from the start.
Sue arrived to South Peak and told me she was calling it a hike after four laps. After relaxing for a few minutes we were on the hike back to Chimney Peak and our exit. Descending from Chimney Peak on rubbery legs is probably not recommended but I knew what I had and worked with it. I think Sue was in the same boat. We spent a lot of time studying the rocks last year and still had the descent approach in our memory. We reached Chimney Peak and simply continued over the edge to our descent. Climbing down was a little slow but we managed to make the trip in good time and without any problems at all.
Soon we were hiking our exit hike on Helon Taylor Trail. I had no more cramping problems and the descent went reasonably well. While still above the treeline we noticed several hikers ahead of us by about a half mile and Sue said let’s try to catch them. Yeah, that’s what I want to do. Off we went. We were making pretty good time but not pushing the pace too hard; a trip and fall can leave a mark. We reached the treeline and were soon in the upper boulders and slabs. Still moving well we continued on with as few stops as necessary. Roughly a mile before the junction with Chimney Pond Trail we caught the six hikers that were ahead of us. We were moving a little slow but they were moving a lot slow. We had seen this group on Knife Edge (Sue saw them three times – show off). They stepped to the side of the trail and sent us through – we never saw each other again. Roughly half way to the trail junction we pulled out the headlights to help us finish what we started. There are a few tricky spots on the way out. I hope the others had lights with them.
We reached Chimney Pond Trail, made the turn, and were soon on the porch of the Roaring Brook Ranger Station signing the register. As we were leaving we met another Park Ranger.
He approached and asked “Are you part of the Crazy Mitchell Group?”.
Sue: “Yes, we’re done playing for the day”.
Ranger: “Playing? What were you doing?”
Sue: “Laps on Knife Edge – back and forth”
Ranger: “You are crazy!”
We also told him about the six others that were behind us. They were moving slowly but they were moving and only appeared tired.
Thanks Sue – it was a crazy fun day on Knife Edge.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
