Over Hill and Dale
I sat in my SUV peering down this very steep, very long hill to Angel Falls. Even if I made it down unscathed I still have to get back up the hill. I was beginning to regret only getting front wheel drive. This looked like a four wheel hill for sure! How do I get myself into these situations?
Decision made
I backed up next to the car on the shoulder to contemplate my next move. While I was mulling things over a group of hikers came up the hill. They belonged to the car next to me. One of the group assured me the hill wasn’t as bad as it looked. He patted my car and said I’d have no trouble with an SUV like mine. He added that I would have to cross the brook 3 times to get to the falls but not to worry, it was only a trickle. Hmmm a warning to the “old lady” or just friendly chit chat? I made my decision, I’d drive the hill.
The Old Gravel Pit
That guy was right. Once I got started the hill was a piece of cake. At the bottom was an old gravel pit. A huge stone covered with graffiti was another landmark on my directions. This was where we could park. The trail to the falls was about 1000 ft up a logging road and marked with red blazes. My directions said nothing about the distance from here to the falls but I was more concerned with the “rock hopping” to cross the stream.
The Hike
I started off pretty good. Everyday of vacation my hip had been getting stronger. I was pleased to note that as I started out I didn’t even have a twinge. Not too far along I came to the first brook. Berdeen Stream was slow and shallow. I figured if I fell off the rocks I’d just get my feet wet, no major disaster, but I made it. I was using 2 trekking poles for stability and had my camera in a backpack. After the crossing the trail began to climb. Lots of rocks and tree roots.
http://dustyroadsphotos.zenfolio.com/p178338573
Brook Number Two
As I huffed and puffed my way up the trail I noticed the sun disappeared. Right after that it started to rain. I made sure my gear was protected and continued on. The climb was getting steeper. I was ok until I hit the rocks. I might have been ok if it wasn’t raining but wet rocks are slippery rocks. This was the bank of Mountain Brook, the next stream I had to cross. This was not a shallow, sleepy little brook. This one was running pretty fast and was probably 3 feet deep.
Sometimes its better to walk away
Better to stop now than to break a leg on slippery rocks. I was alone. No one else was on the trail. I guess you could say I got cold feet. If I ever win the lottery I’ll have a helicopter airlift me in. Or maybe I’ll just hope I keep healing so I can try again another day. Oh and guess what. After I got back to the parking area, the rain stopped and the sun came out. Go figure. No Falls no Moose, what a day!
My handout from the Chamber of Commerce describes Angel Falls as one of Maine’s tallest Waterfalls. It claims to be 90 ft. We saw Bash Bish Falls at 60-80 feet and that was pretty impressive. Time to top that one with a 90 ft drop. The directions were pretty specific. “Turn right on to a unnamed gravel road (adjacent to a large open field)” Now that’s pretty clear don’t you think? believe it or not, I found it!
able to navigate the back roads of the places I wanted to visit, like Maine, New Hampshire and Duxbury Beach. (that’s another story). I turned onto an unnamed gravel road next to a large open field and there was a one lane bridge over the Swift River. This matched my directions perfectly. That bridge look pretty questionable but I tried it anyway.
My directions then told me to take a right on Bemis Road. That’s a little confusing because there is no right and I thought I was on Bemis Road when I went over the bridge. No worries, I’ll just keep going a little farther and see where it takes me. After passing a cute little house surrounded by lilac bushes the road made a sharp right. A hand lettered sign said “Gate Closed” 1 mile. I continued on. The road was bumpy, rutted and filled with pot holes. The deepest holes had sticks standing upright in them as a warning, or so I assume. A friendly Maine driver waved at me so I pulled over. He assured me I was headed in the right direction and told me to ignore the “private” signs and “no trespassing”! he said it was beautiful out there and I might even see a moose.
SUV as we lurched over another set of ruts. Finally, as I passed a car parked on the shoulder, I saw a sign with an arrow, Angel Falls. It pointed left but as I gazed at the dirt road down the hill my stomach almost flipped. I felt like I was at the top of a roller coaster about to start down! Yikes! I don’t do roller coasters!
I can’t say Tuesday was the most successful day I’ve ever had but I certainly made every attempt to accomplish at least some goals. At 7 am I left the cabin in hopes of spotting that elusive moose, or even a deer. It was pretty much me and the road and the morning shadows. I stopped to take some scenery photos like the long rows of pines. After all, this is the Pine Tree State and a field of Lupine. A hour later I turned for home without seeing so much as a rabbit much less a moose.
A blue jay landed on the porch railing this morning so I’m going to take that as a sign. I picked another “scenic drive” and headed off.
The first one, Noyes Overlook, had a nice panoramic shot but the black flies were nasty even with bug spray. Maybe because of the thunder storm earlier. I’m sure it rained somewhere.
down the trail and got some pictures of the brook that bubbled nearby. I was surprised that even that little bit gave me a thrill.