Out of Our Rut Blog Welcome Page

Welcome to the Out of Our Rut blog landing page.

Who we are:

We are a couple of former engineers that lived and worked in the Rochester New York area for over 30 years. When we were laid off from two different companies, one day apart, we took that as a sign to change things up. We had built a beautiful home on 50 acres and loved the place, but with plenty of time on our hands, we began to travel more and realized that when we were on the road for weeks on end, we didn't really miss all the “stuff” we had back home. Plus the work involved with maintaining our home and property seemed to be the only reason we would head back home. That prompted us to get out of our rut and sell 95% of our possessions and our home and move into our 38 foot motorhome and travel the country full time starting in June of 2016.

Chris and Jack Hiking in Washington State

At Pullout Along Rugged Oregon Coast

Our mission:

To explore the country with a strong bias towards outdoor activities. Our passions are hiking and geocaching with some mountain biking on the side. I am an avid photographer. I guess working at Eastman Kodak for 32 years had an influence in that. And while we live in a motorhome and stay in many campgrounds, we really are not campers. We seldom have campfires and don't have a corn hole game. We rarely stay at a campground for its amenities. We pick a place that is near where we want to explore. We think of it more like our home happens to have wheels and can move around. Our desire in these travels is to slow the pace. We didn't want to see if we could get to all the National Parks as quickly as possible. We like to keep a travel day to less than 200 miles and if the place warrants, stay for a week or more.

At Geocaching Headquarters in Seattle for #10,000

The blog:

For friends and family (as well as us) to keep track of what we have been up to, we have created this blog. It chronicles where we've been and what we've done as we wander around the country. Each stop along the way will, at minimum, get mentioned in the blog. Some longer stops in areas we enjoyed may get multiple blog posts in order to give that stop it's due. Generally the blog has lots of photographs as I find it difficult to eliminate photos I like. The blog will talk about the campground to some extent, but it shouldn't be considered a campground review. We seldom seem to exhaust the things we want to explore before we exhaust ourselves and need to move on. That means we may completely skip some activities or places in an area that others may consider essential. We look at that as a reason to come back in the future.

Pretty Sunset in Quartzite Arizona

At the Window in Big Bend National Park

This landing page:

The problem with just about any blog is that fact it is chronological. This is fine since that is how the events occurred in real life. But since our blog is so much about a given location, it can be difficult for somebody to find a specific blog post for a given location. I even find it a challenge to remember when we happened to be at a given location if I wanted to look something up. For instance, if someone asked about Twin Falls Idaho. I know we stayed there but it might take me awhile to figure out that we were there in June of 2017 to get them to the right post. If I could only look at a map of all the places we have stayed and have an easy way to get to the relevant blog post.

Since I already use Google My Maps to keep track of our locations, I have created a special map that has all of our stops since going full time. None of the routes are included in the map since that just seems to clutter it up and don't really add value. By clicking the link below the map, an interactive map with all of our stops will open in another window. It is then possible to move around the map and zoom in an area of interest. Clicking on any pin on the map will pop up the name of the location along with a link to the blog post(s) associated with that stop. Since I am nearly always 2 to 4 weeks behind in the blog, some of the most recent map points may not have a link to a blog, but they will in time. The GREEN pins are locations that happen to include one of our annual or yearly reviews.

So if you want to see what we found to explore in a given area, this should provide a much easier way to find the blog post.

Click HERE to open interactive Google map

Baxter State Park

Map of this blog's locations click this link to open the map

One of the main reasons we had picked Katahdin Shadows Campground in Medway Maine was its close proximity to Baxter State Park. For those that aren’t aware of this place, it is somewhat famous at least for serious hikers. It is the home to Mount Katahdin which is the start (or end) of the Appalachian Trail depending if you are heading south or north. There are campgrounds within Baxter SP however they are almost exclusively sized for tent campers or possibly a truck camper so we realized we needed to stay outside the park.

We knew there were a lot of hiking options within the park. My initial inclination was to do the last leg of the AT to the summit of Katahdin. We have done many day hikes on the AT all along it’s length and while we have no desire to through hike it, completing the last/first leg of it sounded like a good goal. It didn’t take all that much investigation to determine that there were two big problems with that aspiration. First and foremost, the hike along the AT to the summit of Katahdin is just under a 10 mile round trip and has over 4100 feet of elevation gain. We watched some YouTube videos and saw how strenuous of a hike it is, as well as how much of the upper portion has a fair amount of exposure and would not be great for a person with a fear of heights.

The second reason for not attempting this hike is the logistics associated with doing it. When Baxter SP was established in 1931, it was setup with preserving nature as the main mission and recreation was secondary. This means that the infrastructure within the park isn’t as well developed as one may expect for this size of park. The net result is that parking for the trailheads is limited to keep the number of hikers on the trails to levels they find acceptable. During the peak summer months, they actually have a parking reservation system for the parking lots at the few trailheads that have trails to the top of Mount Katahdin.

We had gone into the visitor center in the town of Millinocket earlier in our stay to get information and recommendations about other hiking options. We also wanted to better understand what areas we need to have parking reservations and where we can visit more on a whim. We discovered that they don’t have very good trail maps of the park other than buying one from the visitor center. With our detailed map in hand and suggested hikes, we head in the 26 miles early one morning to the southern entrance to the park which is closest to camp and also has more of the popular destinations within Baxter SP. About 2 miles before the Togue Pond Gatehouse was a geocache hidden at a roadside pullout. The Pockwockamus Rock is a huge boulder on the side of the road with a scenic mural painted on its large face.

Keep Maine Beautiful

At the entrance gate, we pay our $16 fee and have to answer some questions about where we are heading to within the park and even a phone number of a person to contact in case of emergency. That was a first for us. Fortunately my sister in Cincinnati never needed to be called. The park road is decent gravel but we do discover that there are a fair number of trees that are encroaching into the road and a few of them have rather extreme roots protruding from the ground which makes for a very unexpected bump. We stop at a few pullouts to take in the views before reaching our first intended destination.

Pond Along Tote Road

Stump Pond

Abol Campground (about 6 miles from the entrance gate) is the start of our first hike. Besides the camping area, there is a day use parking lot near the entrance with enough room for about 16 vehicles. Since this is also the start of a different trail to the summit of Katahdin, it was pretty crowded when we arrived just before 11AM. This was one of the parking lots that was part of the reservation system, but we saw no signs indicating reservations were required, so we parked and headed in. Our goal was not to take the Abol Trail to the summit - an eight mile round trip hike with 3964 feet of elevation gain. But we were planning on following the Little Abol Falls Trail - a 1.7 mile out and back with just under 300 feet of elevation gain. It sounded scenic and fairly easy.

Abol Campground

Stream Crossing on Trail

The trail was in good shape and a pretty hike. There was a family at the falls when we arrived and we needed to wait while they took multiple permutations of pictures of the family members. We started talking with the mother and she is from Maine and comes to Baxter frequently. She gave us a few other hiking suggestions before we make our way back to the car.

Little Abol Falls

Mushroom

Our next destination was the Katahdin Stream Campground at the 8 mile mark. This is a larger and more popular area to hike to the summit of Katahdin simply because this is where the Appalachian Trail comes through and heads up. The parking area for this trailhead is not visible from the road, so it isn’t until we pull in that we see there were spots available. This is also an area with parking reservations but we don’t see any signs indicating what the rules are so we park. We obviously don’t understand what the parking rules are or maybe they just create the rules to limit the number of people from wandering in with the fear there will be no parking available? There were some nearby picnic tables so we head to one of the, to enjoy lunch before our next hike. It was clear that many of the other people here are much more serious hikers with their heavy packs laying on the ground. They would occasionally use binoculars to check out the peak which was just visible over the trees.

Katahdin Stream Campground with Summit in View

After lunch, we set out on our hike up the Appalachian Trail - also known as the Hunt Trail at this point in the park. We make sure to sign in at the trail register. We have heard that in Baxter, the sign in and sign out sheets are actually looked at and may result in a call to your emergency contact if we don't sign in/out properly. Our goal isn’t the summit but another set of waterfalls about 1.25 miles up the trail gaining just over 600 feet. It was a pretty hike that follows right next to Katahdin Stream almost the full way up.

Signing the Trail Register

Heading Up Appalachian Trail

Cool Mushrooms on Fallen Birch

Stream Next to Trail

Given this is part of the AT, it wasn’t too surprising that the trail was in good shape although there were some rather rocky sections. At one point there are signs explaining about the hazards you may encounter along this trail and how help can be many hours away. We hope to not need to test this given we aren’t going to the summit.

A Rocky Climb

Welcome to the Wilderness

Just before we reach a bridge that takes us over the stream, there is a split for a trail to some peak called The Owl. Since it would add about 4 miles and 2150 feet of elevation gain, we decided to focus on our intended mission and find these falls.

Hike Through the Woods

Bridge Over Stream

The trail on the other side of the stream is much steeper and has lots of exposed rock outcroppings to get up and over. At one point I stop for a break and look behind to see we have gotten high enough to have a pretty decent view to the south.

Large Rocks

Nice View Looking Back

We could hear the falls before we could see them. We found there were a couple of different points to get a decent view of them. A lot of people passed by and really only glanced at the falls. I guess if your goal was the summit, seeing these falls is somewhat inconsequential but we thought they were quite pretty and we deserved a snack while we enjoyed them.

Katahdin Stream Falls

Close-up View

Different Viewpoint

The return hike back down to the car was a fairly easy one. It was around 2:30 when we got back. We still had some daylight left and more importantly, we still had some energy in the tank. We had also been told that the hike around Daicey Pond was a pretty one. This spot is only a couple miles beyond Katahdin Stream campground and then a mile or so drive to the camping area at Daicey Pond so it there isn’t a lot of travel time wasted. The campground seemed to be closed but there is a day use parking area and we head out for the 1.6 mile loop.

View at Daicey Pond

Mount O-J-I

Being a relatively flat trail, which direction is arbitrary but we headed around counterclockwise simply because we spotted the trailhead in that direction first. The first half of the trail along the south end of the pond was quite wooded and had an enormous amount of moss, ferns and other low bushes all along the trail. Often the trail was overgrown and it felt like we were wading through a sea of green. We kept expecting to get glimpses of the pond but the trail was well in from the water and with the lush vegetation, we seldom saw the water.

Lots of Moss

Undulating Forest Floor

As we got closer to the eastern end of the pond, the trail converged with the pond and we intersected with the AT again. It was a beautiful afternoon and there was a couple out in a canoe. This was one feature of Baxter SP that sounded interesting, they have canoe rentals on several of the ponds that is only $1 per hour and is just on the honor system. Since I can’t swim, we tend to stick with land based recreation.

Canoe Launch

Out for a Paddle

As we worked our way around the northern end of the pond, there were spur trails to the nearby Grassy Pond and Elbow Pond but we stuck with our original plan. When we got back to the parking lot around 4PM, we came upon the family we had met earlier in the day at Little Abol Falls. We compared notes on what we had done and the mother suggested we might want to check out a place called Ledge Falls. It was a bit further into the park along the main road and sounded pretty - so off we go.

From Far Side of Daicey Pond

It is about 6 miles up the main park road past several more trailheads and a picnic area. The falls along Nesowadnehunk Stream is very convenient to the parking. There is a small lot a next to the road, cross a guard rail and you’re there.

Ledge Falls

Nice View

There is a huge exposed rock surface right next to the stream near the road. Based on how smooth the surface is, it looks like the water level is over much of the exposed ledge during seasonal high water events. It is definitely a pretty spot and we took advantage of it to eat the dinner we had brought along since we knew we would likely spend most of the day in the park and there really aren’t any dining options in the park.

Fast Moving Water

Good Dinner Spot

It was after 5PM by now and we figured we should start our journey back to camp. Since we had driven a fair ways into the park, I thought it may be quicker to just head out the northern entrance so we at least had the chance to drive by some additional places. It turns out that Ledges Falls is about 14 miles in from the southern entrance at Toque Pond but the problem is, this is just one third of the way. We would have another 28 miles of rather slow driving on the dirt road plus the extra distance back to Medway by coming out so far north. Since it would be getting dark soon, we decided to simply turn around and head out the way we came in. Baxter State Park is a really big park and seeing even a small portion of it would take quite a few visits and a lot of driving.

On the way back, we still had a little bit of daylight remaining and stopped at the parking area for the Elbow Pond Trail. We were still hopeful that we may encounter a moose while in the park and we guessed looking at dusk might improve our chances. As we started down the trail there was a small red squirrel that was munching on a pine cone just a couple of feet off the trail. It was so intent on eating that our presence didn’t seem to bother it.

Pine Cone Dinner

It was a pretty walk in the woods with a couple of water crossings. Fortunately the planks over the water were in good shape and dry so the footing was good.

Chris Does the Balance Beam

Mountain Reflection

As we made our way along the trail at the edge of Elbow Pond, the sun was just starting to set. As we crossed another set of planks raised above the water on some wooden cribbing, we came to what would have to be the end of our hike. The boards came down and submerged under the top of the pond by at least a foot or so. It looked like the beavers had been busy here building up a dam next to the pond outlet where our crossing is. But with the construction of their dam, the water was now making this trail impassable. I’m just glad we hadn’t tried to do some longer hike around Daicey Pond since these trails would have been the ones we would have taken to make a bigger loop.

Sunset at Elbow Pond

Submerged Trail

We made it safely back to the car with dry feet and just a glimmer of daylight left. A quick stop on the drive out at Abol Beach to use the restroom. We were the only people around and while I suppose there was a small strip of sand at this point of Abol Pond, I’m not positive it should be considered a beach. While I was waiting for Chris, I discovered a very large spider in an intricate web on a bridge over some water. It was the size of ones we more frequently see while in Florida. We still had nearly 30 miles to drive back to camp but we thoroughly enjoyed our trip to Baxter State Park.

Abol Beach

Reflection at Dusk

Big Spider

We took the next day off to recover from exploring but on the following day we were ready to see some more of the area. We debated heading back to the Penobscot River Trails for another bike ride. We had really enjoyed the trails there but realized we would really only be repeating what we had done a few days earlier. We also looked for other hiking in the area but realized that returning to Baxter SP made the most sense. It is reasonably close to camp and we know there is much more to see there. We decided to concentrate on one longer hike instead of the many short ones we did on our first visit.

We selected the hike to the summit of Sentinel Mountain. It is just under a 6 mile round trip hike with 1200 feet of elevation gain. Okay, so it’s not the Appalachian Trail to the top of Mount Katahdin, but it should be a challenging hike for us and from the sounds of things, it is a very pretty hike.

Entrance Sign

The trailhead for this hike is out of the Kidney Pond Campground. It is a little over a mile off the main park road but the road into the campground was in fine condition. There was one stream crossing with a great view of one of the nearby mountains - likely one called Doubletop Mountain. This camping area appears to offer cabins for rent and there were a few people out and about. The trail starts out following along the edge of Kidney Pond which also offers some excellent mountain views.

Doubletop Mountain

View at Kidney Pond

Starting Out Along Kidney Pond

This section of trail is reasonably flat and quite scenic. There is one huge boulder sitting at the edge of the pond with a cute sign - “Kidney Stone, Do Not Remove”. There is one turn back to Celia and Jackson Ponds but at a bit over half a mile is the trail to Sentinel Mountain.

Don't Take the Kidney Stone

Mountains Beyond Kidney Pond

Even after turning away from the pond and starting up the trail, the terrain actually stays fairly flat with just a couple of rolling hills.

Water Droplets on Shelf Fungi

Snake in the Grass

We were enjoying the trail but realized that the longer the trail stayed flat, the steeper it would need to get in order to make it to the summit. At one point, we came upon a solo hiker heading back down the trail. We stopped to talk with him and asked when the trailhead started going up. He told us we were close to that point. He was right at about the 2 mile point into the hike, we finally start going up. For the next half mile or so, the average slope is 24% and we could definitely feel it in our legs and lungs.

Roots

Rocks

Big Rocks

At the summit is a loop trail. I initially expected the summit to be a broad open area with views in all directions and the loop was just a representation of the map we had. But it turns out that the top of Sentinel Mountain is fairly wooded and there is a narrow trail that circles the edge of the peak. We head around counterclockwise and pick a large exposed rock outcropping with quite the view to serve as our lunch stop.

Chris Picks Lunch Spot

Decent Lunch View of Mount O-J-I

After eating and resting a bit, we continue the half mile or so loop around the summit. The trail was actually a bit challenging at spot with narrow spots through thick brush and rocks to climb up and over. With the heavy tree cover, the distance views were not continuous but sporadic in nature. This meant that the views seemed to slowly change each time we had a bit of a clearing.

Another Nice View

Rocks to Climb Over

A New View

We spent close to an hour circling the summit and enjoying the great views. We really weren’t looking forward to the next half mile going down given how steep the trail is but we managed to make it without incident.

Textured Mushroom

Last View From Mount Sentinel

Bumper Crop of Mushrooms

Once we got back the flat section of the trail, it was a pleasant hike again.  Now that it was late afternoon, the lighting back at Kidney Pond was completely different and actually better than on the way up.

Back to Kidney Pond

This time we knew we had consumed nearly all of our energy so we weren’t looking forward any additional hikes.  But that didn’t mean there wasn’t one other area we wanted to check out. When we had asked the ranger at the Baxter SP visitor center about seeing moose in the park, her recommendation was to go to the Roaring Brook Campground and walk out the short trail to Sandy Stream Pond at dusk. We knew our timing was good to get there by dusk but the problem is this area is yet another popular trailhead for hiking to Mount Katahdin and they limit the number of vehicles permitted. We had also read about a limited number of special passes they call “Moose Passes” that permit visitors without a parking pass to get a 3 hour pass.

When we came into the park this morning, we asked at the entrance station and were told that if Roaring Brook Road did not have a barricade across it, we were free to drive up. Since this road isn’t far from the main entrance, we would be driving right by the side road and if it was open we would drive the 8 miles to the campground it if it was closed, we would simply head home and call it a day. As we approached the turn, we saw the road was wide open. I suspect that we were far enough outside the popular summer season and so many of these parking rules were not being used in mid September. It was a pretty drive but not many trailheads or other areas along the drive. The parking lot at the campground was fairly full and there were quite a few people camping in the sites near the parking. We took the opportunity to eat our dinner we had brought along before heading to Sandy Stream Pond.

One of the other rules that Baxter has and apparently does strictly enforce, is that hikers must carry flashlights during hikes. We hadn’t been too concerned for the other hikes we had completed since they were all done during daylight hours but since we were leaving for this one right at dusk, we needed to bring along our flashlights.

Plaque for Perceval Baxter

It’s a relatively easy trail out to the pond and is just under 3/4 mile long. There are a few other trails that head to other parts of the park including the summit of Katahdin but the trail markers are pretty clear. There are several boardwalk sections as well get to the pond. One of them had a rather extreme undulation to it but as we made our way further in, we saw all sorts of lumber stacked up along the trail and it appears some of the bad sections are being rebuilt.

Boardwalk Issues

There are three different spur trail that head out to the pond. We silently approached with the hopes of finding a moose or two wandering around but we came up empty.

Sandy Stream Pond at Dusk

Path to Another Viewpoint

One of the areas had around 6 people sitting on the rocks just above the lake taking in the views and talking. We waited until it was pretty dark before giving up on seeing moose. We dug out our flashlight and started the slow walk back to the car. There were a surprising number of other people out there and they all hadn’t been at the pond so it wasn’t clear if they were returning from some longer hike or just out exploring.

Popular Spot

Final Light of the Day

This was a completely different day than our first time here and I suspect we could come back for quite a few more days and have an equally fun time but our week in Medway was coming to an end and we were heading out tomorrow to start heading back south with Old Town Maine our next destination.