Meggie goes to Baxter

Trail Crew Supervisor:

Paul Sannicandro

Abol Crew Leader:

Steve

Abol Crew Members:

Alex

Meggie

Mike R.*

Ned

Sam

Kidney Crew Leader:

Neal

Kidney Crew Members:

Chase

John

Mike

Tony*

Shane

*carrying over from summer to fall crew.

I drove from Aunt Robin and Uncle Bob’s house in Littleton to Baxter Park headquarters last Sunday, where the Fall trail crew was meeting Paul Sannicandro at 4:00 pm. We had quick introductions and an explanation of the plan for the evening, which was for nine of us to drive to “Hannafuhd’s” (Hannaford) across the street to pick up groceries for the week, then follow Paul in his park vehicle back to the cabin at Abol Pond (home to half of us for the season), meet the trail crew leaders (one for the Abol crew, one for the Kidney crew), divide up the food, and then the people assigned to live at Kidney Pond would drive on to there; each crew would have dinner and settle in for the night.

The grocery trip was very efficient. We paired up, each pair receiving a list with two aisle numbers and a list of items and quantities. Sam was my partner. Sam is a Vermont Redneck. Already certified at something like three levels of chainsaw training, he finished his last year of high school in a logging program and has been working since he was eight years old.

Monday morning we had to be ready at the usual time, 7:00am. Between 6:00 and 7:00 workdays we make and eat breakfast, pack our lunch and get dressed in our uniforms, and at 7:00 we begin work for the day. On this morning we had to be packed for our three-day, two-night wilderness skills trip in the SFMA (Scientific Forest Management Area). Starting at 7:00 we divvied up day packs, headlamps, helmets and other PPE (personal protective equipment) for the season and then did some orientation and training, including watching videos at headquarters and getting a driving tour of Millinocket. Then we drove up I-95 to the park’s North entrance, heading to the volunteer cabin at Trout Brook Farm where we stayed for the night. About half of us (including me) slept outside, mostly in tents. I just put my sleeping bag on my tarp so I could look at the stars, which the many mosquitoes proved difficult to enjoy. One good thing about sleeping outside is that you wake up early. I woke up at about 5:15 and from my dewy bed caught a glimpse of our crew leader Steve doing pushups on the screened-in front porch. John, retired Navy veteran of 30 years, next walked around from the bunkhouse in back of the cabin with a towel over his shoulder. A few minutes later I rolled up my sleeping bag, folded my tarp, and went inside to get dressed and ready for the day. After breakfast Paul briefed us on each crew’s itinerary. First up was Leave No Trace training, taught by the husband-and-wife team Gabe and Marcia Williamson at Frost Pond. Gabe is a ranger, and Marcia is an interpretation specialist. She interprets Governor Percival Baxter’s gift to us; Baxter purchased the land that is now Baxter State Park parcel by parcel with his own money, and then set up a trust fund which continues to independently fund the Park.

After LNT, the two crews split up. The Abol Pond crew drove through the SFMA and parked at a spot a half-mile away from the lean-to site at Webster Lake, left the truck there and hiked to the site. We didn’t have too much planned the rest of that day, so we relaxed, went swimming, and Mike R and I took the resident canoe over to a small island in Webster Lake right across from our campsite. We saw a frog there that must have been at least 1.5 lbs. It started to rain for a short time so we headed back to camp (the only time we experienced anything but sunshiney weather on the trip). After dinner we hung our bear bag and went to bed. The next morning we backpacked eight miles east on the Freezeout Trail, to the northwest corner of Lake Matagamon. There we met Paul, who took the six of us (Abol Crew) out on four canoes for a bit to teach us canoe strokes and practice T-rescues (in case someone’s canoe flips). Back at camp we worked on a few more skills (knots, compasses) before dinner. The next day, Thursday, we took the canoes southeast along the lake back down to Trout Brook Farm to meet the Kidney Crew. My canoe partner for the day was Ned, a big football-player type also from Vermont and into forestry (but not a redneck). We drove south through the park all the way back to our cabin at Abol, where we cleaned and put everything away, then got ready for our weekly barbeque. While we started dinner, Steve, Neal, and Mike R., who are training for an October 17 marathon, went for a seven-mile run.

In addition to our two trail crews, ridge runner CJ joined us for dinner. He is an interesting example of the type of person who lives a lifestyle I am only beginning to understand. During college, if I remember correctly, he transferred four times while earning his degree in elementary education. All he learned in college was that he loves to travel, he said. Apparently it is much easier to travel worldwide than I would have thought. All you really need is a plane ticket, and accommodations in foreign countries cost pennies on the dollar of what an American like me would expect to pay here. So CJ works seasonal “poverty jobs” such as the one he has now, saving more money for travel than he did teaching. As ridge runner, CJ explains in a voice that echoes Owen Wilson’s, “I hike around and if I see some litter, I pick it up; if I see people scratching their heads, I answer some questions.” After the barbeque we (Alex, CJ, Mike, Mike R, Neal and I) caravanned up to Kidney Pond where ranger(?) and amateur astronomer Doug was hosting “Star Magic.” In addition to making our own star wheels and going outside to identify constellations, we also witnessed on this clear night the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, a stunning show.

Friday morning I went with many trail crew members into Millinocket to get our paychecks, do laundry, and take advantage of free wifi at the laundromat. We ate lunch across the street at Angelo’s. I ordered a salad and jalapeno poppers, but was disappointed to find out that they no longer have jalapeno poppers (guess they aren’t a big seller in these parts), so I went with mozzarella sticks instead. Mike R. drove Neal and me an hour away to Bangor, the nearest city. We went to the local YWCA gym, walked around town, shopped at the natural foods store (I bought some granola, dried apricots, and chocolate covered ginger), and had dinner at an Indian restaurant before heading back to Baxter.

Back at home I threw my small paper bag of bulk foods on my bed, showered and went outside to hang out by the fire for a bit. Not five minutes after I went to bed, I heard the scuttling of a mouse in my room. I turned on my headlamp and spotted one running across the floor near the foot of my bed! I decided to get out of bed and take care of the problem. First and foremost of course I went for the food – just in time too, because when I shined my headlamp on it, another mouse was hanging off the curtain about to jump into the bag! I put it safely in the refrigerator, then organized the entire room, utilizing every drawer, hook, and trunk in the room to completely eliminate clutter. I didn’t hear a mouse again for the rest of the night…lesson learned.

Saturday, six of us (John, Mike R, Ned, Steve, Tony and I) went on an eight mile hike up the Doubletop trail starting at Kidney Pond and down the other side of the mountain to where we staged a car at the Nesowadnehunk campground. That took up most of the day yesterday, and we had a pretty slow evening at Abol last night.

This morning Sam and I walked from our cabin along a part of the Appalachian Trail that took us to a store 1.6 miles from home where I picked up a Maine bumper sticker and a six-pack. After that I drove to town and spent most of today hanging out at McDonald’s, the other place in town with wifi. At 6:00 I met up with several crew members at Hannaford for our weekly grocery trip, joined them for dinner at another pizza place in town, and am now at the Laundromat providing you all with this extensive update. What a week!