Easter at Beauchamp Point

March 31^st, the weekend after our Vermont trip was Easter Sunday and what a glorious day it was. After the ice storm and grey skies from the weekend before, the sun was shining, inviting everyone to enjoy the day. It brought to mind the proclamation from church services, “let us rejoice and be glad in it.” It truly was that kind of a day.

My hiking buddy and I decided to stroll along Beauchamp Point. Neither one of us felt like going too far, but, we definitely wanted to get some air and admire the gifts of nature. The wildflowers of spring had not really emerged yet, but we knew that at Beauchamp Point we would find an abundance of Skunk Cabbages, one of the earlier blooms of spring. And we found hundreds of them!

We met at a parking lot near the golf course and walked down towards the point. While we ambled along, we discovered quite a few people had the same idea. Everyone reveling in the first beautiful day in quite some time.

Soon, we turned onto a dirt road that would take us closer to the ocean. At the first trail that led towards the water, my friend decided to check it out. I studied the spot where there was evidence that there had once been a rope bannister to help someone down and up the path, and then accessed the steepness of the descent before deciding I would be safer waiting for her at the road. I was glad I did. For the first time ever, I was not the one to fall on a trail. I watched my buddy as she slipped on a patch of mud and found herself sitting in the mud. She wasn’t hurt and continued her trek towards the water.

Once she returned, we continued along that dirt road towards the next path that led to the stony shore. This was a more gentle descent and I was able to make my way towards the ledge where we sat and admired the views. While we were sitting there we met up with some acquaintances of ours. We chatted for a few minutes before going our separate ways.

On our way back towards the parking area, we took a small detour to stop at the Vespers Children’s Chapel in honor of Easter. On the grounds, we admired patches of Snowdrops and Crocuses before heading up the steps towards the chapel. I spent a few minutes there giving thanks for the gifts of nature before we made our way back home.  

Thorne Head Preserve 2024

February 6^th was another beautiful, sunny day encouraging people to get outside. We had stayed close to home during the last few weeks, but now we felt the need to travel a little further afield. I had been to the Thorne Head preserve a few times, but I don’t believe I had dragged my husband to this pretty park not too far from downtown Bath. With the enticement of lunch at a little Thai place after our walk, I persuaded him to take a ride.

Prior to our trip, we discussed whether we needed to bring the microspikes with us, since we were in a bit of a warming trend. I had a tendency to throw the spikes in the car during the first snow and leave them there for the winter. My husband thought about it for a minute and grabbed his spikes as well. It was a good thing we did. The Overlook Trail, which was the main trail through the center of the preserve was essentially a road of packed ice.

We studied the trail map for a minute before deciding to take the Overlook Trail towards the Mushroom Cap Trail. On either side of the Overlook Trail, there were quite a few tracks available for further exploration. Since the last time I had been here, I noticed that the paths were much better marked with fresh blazes and signage naming the trails.

Not far into our walk, we passed a small pond on our left with a bench nearby for observing the activity within the area. A little further along, on our right was a vernal pond with a bench and an informative plaque nearby. Right next to the pond, we found a pretty impressive teepee like structure.

At the end of the Overlook Trail, the Mushroom Cap Trail and the Ridge Trail came in from either side of the Preserve. This was where we found the stones painted like a mushroom. It had received a fresh coat of paint since my last visit. We could see the Kennebec River through the trees beyond this sculpture, but we could not figure out how to get any closer. This was the only point where a little more in the line of blazes or signage was needed.

Eventually, we found the Mushroom Cap Trail and headed towards the river. Unfortunately, we reached a point where we needed to descend some stone steps. Now, I have always had a lot of confidence in my spikes, but somehow looking at those ice covered steps with a steep descent we both chickened out and examined our trail map for another option. The solution was to walk down the lower part of the Mushroom Cap Trail and continue on to the Narrows Trail. This would take us to an overlook to the river.

We made it to the overlook and spent a few minutes admiring the views. To return to the parking area, we took the Narrows Trail back towards the Mushroom Cap Trail. Along the way, I found the largest shelf fungus I had ever seen. After a quick photo of this find, we continued past the intersection with the Mushroom Cap Trail until the Narrows Trail met up with the Overlook Trail. From there it was a short walk back to the car and the promised lunch at Best Thai II.

Ducktrap 2024

We had more cloudy than sunny days this year, a few cold snaps with a few inches of snow and some damaging rains. Finally, on February 4^th the sun came out. Even though it was a bit cold, it was the perfect day to get out with my hiking buddy to catch some Vitamin D. It was a nice enough day for us to seek out a longer hike at the Ducktrap River Preserve.

We needed to don our microspikes just to walk through the parking area. Unfortunately, this was across the street from the trailhead. Given that I am of an age that I cannot sit on the ground to put on spikes and then get back up onto my feet, we crossed the street with the spikes on. This winter gear was not meant for walking on asphalt services, so that part wasn’t very comfortable but, we did make it across safely.

Of course, we stopped just a few feet from the kiosk to study a random ice formation. We could never get that far before we stopped to examine something. Once we got further along, we were walking through a mostly coniferous forest. The green of the trees against the snow always made a beautiful backdrop for winter hikes.

A mile or so in, we met another couple making their way back to the entrance. During our chat, they commented that the bridge was out. I didn’t say anything until after we went our separate ways, when I commented to my friend that the bridge had been out since 2020 (as mentioned at the kiosk). Minutes later, we were stopped by a rather large pine tree down across the trail. I was rather astonished and commented to my friend that the couple could inform us about the bridge but didn’t think to tell us about the tree? We studied our options for a moment before crawling under the branches to continue our walk.

Once we got past this obstacle, it wasn’t long before we reached the ski trail that would take us towards the river. This section of the trail was a little bit more rugged, with an uneven ground of stones and roots. It wasn’t too long before we reached the remnants of the bridge. We wandered around the area for a bit, exploring icicles and the flowing water. I walked around the footing of the bridge trying to get a bit closer to an ice formation when I stepped through the ice. Fortunately, I did not get wet and continued with my exploration.

After lunch, we started to make our way back towards the trailhead. On our return journey, I noticed a double tree with one side completely dead and all the bark stripped off the trunk. As I rounded the tree, I noticed a leaf plastered against the trunk. I liked the artistic nature of it and spent a few seconds studying it before moving on. We continued back underneath the downed tree and walked another 40 minutes before we reached the trailhead. It was a good day.

Tanglewood Winter 2024

On January 28^th, my hiking buddy and I decided it was the perfect day to visit Tanglewood. The temperatures were in the low to mid-thirties, which meant that the preserve would be drier than usual and we would not have to tramp through mud. As an added benefit there was still snow covering the ground and clinging to the trees. Unfortunately, we got all the way to our destination before I realized I had forgotten my microspikes. Fortunately, she had an extra pair of what she called “driveway spikes”. They were still better than nothing.

The parking lot was pretty full when we arrived late morning, but we found a spot, donned our spikes and began our journey. For the past few months, we had only accomplished shorter walks. On this day, I was determined to make it to Turner Falls and back.

Rather than walk down the access road to where the Forest Loop Trail crossed, we started on the path by the kiosk. This short trail eventually intersected the Forest Loop. From there, we turned right on to the Forest Loop, crossed the road and continued on towards the river.

This section of our route was relatively flat and the tree lined snowy road was beautiful. We stopped occasionally to study the ice drops dangling from the evergreens, or comment on a particular arrangement of shelf fungus. We also paused to chat with a man walking an Icelandic sheepdog, who tried to herd us closer together.

When the Forest Loop intersected with the River Trail, we turned towards the river. There were some downhill sections along this path but we proceeded without incident. Soon, we could hear the sound of running water, and then, we were there by the falls.

We spent quite a bit of time by the river, listening and just watching the flow of the water. The ice dangling from the rocks and trees near the spray was quite artistic. Unfortunately, I did not have my camera with me, and I could not get close enough for a decent picture. Instead, we decided to walk along this river path to the property line. The trail was eventually blocked by a tree, but things happen for a reason as the saying goes. A fallen tree with some pretty mushrooms, icicle formations and a river became the best spot to enjoy lunch before heading back.

Plaisted Preserve 2024

The forecast for January 21^st was windy with a high temperature around 20 degrees. It was also sunny, which just begged people to come out and play. My hiking buddy and I, feeling the need to get some outside time, decided to head over to the Plaisted Preserve in Owl’s Head, for a short 1 mile walk.

We travelled along a short straight trail from the parking area before reaching the loop. Not long into our walk, we stopped to listen to the trees creaking from the cold. The cracking sound was loud and ominous enough that I thought that we might soon be surrounded by falling trees. I suppose it was similar to hearing the booming sound that one hears coming off a frozen lake. Once my friend assured me that we were safe, we continued our journey.

There was plenty of planking down across areas that were wet in warmer weather. It was certainly easier walking through these areas while the ground was frozen. When we got past this boggy area, the trail skirted a wall of conifers. In some spots, we could barely make out the trail as it went through this wall. Another blessing of hiking with snow on the ground; it was easier to follow the trail of someone else’s footprints when you couldn’t find the next trail marker.

At some point we were stopped by a tree that had fallen across the path. It was high enough off the ground that we were able to crawl underneath it. There was a yellow blaze right at this spot, so we continued following the footprints. Then, we reached an open area where the foot traffic stopped, and we looked way down at the beach below. This wasn’t right. The loop was supposed to skirt the beach! We backtracked to the fallen tree and the last trail blaze. I leaned over that tree and looked to my right where I spotted the next trail marker down the hill. We crawled back under the tree and walked along side of it down the hill.

Now that we were back on the trail, I noticed some improvements. In the past, this area was a bit steep to the point where it was more of a slide down the hill than a walk. Two sets of stairs had been placed here to make the descent easier.

Within a short time, we were near the shore, looking out towards the Camden Hills. There was a way down to the beach, but it required hanging on to a rope in order to make the descent. My friend scouted it out but wasn’t happy with the debris field at the bottom of the trail, left by the previous storms.

We admired the views and tried to get some photos, but the winds coming off the water were strong and very cold. Within seconds our hands and faces were hurting from the wind chill. We made a quick retreat back into the safety of that conifer wall, making our way back to the parking area and the warmth of the car.