Second Community Service Saturday

We couldn't climb the tower this past service due to a freak April snowstorm so we planned on playing games and going for a hike. Somewhat surprisingly we had a record turn out!

Tag in the snow is definately fun to play and it's extra fun to whipe out!

Daisy was thrilled and made friends easily.

Danny and his crew worked hard to get the fires going to keep us warm and toasty.
Finally we headed up to the ski trail for the view and a group photo!

The two Morgan(ne)'s taught knots in the yurt while waiting for the summit crew to return.

Overall a very nice service day, perhaps a little bit too much snow considering the time of year - but it's all good. Nice job everyone - we'll be on the Alpine Tower this weekend!

Google Earth

I'll admit it - I'm addicted to Google Earth - it's fun, free and I get the same simple pleasure out of flying through the Grand Canyon as I do looking at the house where I grew up.

Anyway the quality of the images for our neck of the woods have improved a great deal. Here's the route I took on the hike on Saturday as near as I can figure. (Click on the picture to see it bigger).Notice that big S-curve south of Mud Pond. I didn't have to do that but I hiked down the length of the pond before finding a connector trail that brought me up to the skidoo trail. According to this it was about a four mile hike, but it could have been shorter if I had cut out that loop and if I knew better where I was going.

Morning Hike

Ever since Katka and Adam hiked back over Burleigh in the days before the summit trail I've been wanting to do it too.
I'd hiked a couple of times as far as Mud Pond but never had time to go further. This morning I busted a move and made it past that point to the summit of what I think is Hershey Mountain.
I love the south side of Burleigh - it really feels different. It has much more of a northern Maine feel, lots of signs of wild life and logging and skidoo trails.

On the hike in I saw signs of moose, deer, beaver, chipmunks, grouse and fox.

Mud Pond doesn't have much of a name but I actually find it quite lovely. It's obviously been a stop over spot for loggers, campers, hunters and hooligans of all sorts.

From there it was a relatively simple matter to find a side trail that hooked up with a skidoo trail. I was making for the next high point south from Burleigh so I figured there would be some kind of trail at least part of the way.
From there it was some off trail bushwacking uphill looking for the easiest path. About halfway up the hill I saw some orange flagging tape that looked like it might be a trail.
Sure enough after loosing the trail a few times I followed it up to the summit.

Check it out - just like Katka and Adam had reported back in the day there was a little cabin up there!


Sarah was coming back into town so I beat feet back half running and half sliding back down.

Great hike to an amazing and isolated spot - amazing views to Ragged Mountain, Cardigan Mountain, Lafayette and Flume. Remarkable and just what I needed after this lousy week.

I felt tired, happy, renewed and inspired.