Morning Run @ Bangor City Forest

I went for a quick two mile run this morning before work at the Bangor City Forest.   I pretty much had the forest to myself, only seeing one other person as I made a loop combining the Deer Trail and the East-West Trails.   

Little Bigelow Mountain (Dead River TWP)

Friends and I hiked the Appalachian Trail southbound up Little Bigelow Mountain today.

The 6 mile roundtrip hike starts flat and gradually becomes steeper as it ascends the mountain.  This was a great hike with excellent views.

Kayaking Ben Annis Pond (Hampden)

Ben Annis Pond is an isolated 25 acre pond in Hampden that is accessible via Patten Stream, a very narrow stream that connects Hampden Pond to Ben Annis Pond.  

I set out to go kayaking in the mid-afternoon today.  Given that it was a beautiful sunny, 85° Saturday, Hampden Pond was very crowded. 

The outlet for Patten Stream into Hampden Pond is not readily apparent until you get close to it and see water flowing. It is also very shallow, forcing me to pull the kayak up the stream approximately 6 or 7 feet before getting back in.  

There were several spots where my one person kayak bottomed out, forcing me to push against the stream bottom with the paddle to continue moving.  Shortly before reaching the pond, I encountered a beaver dam requiring that I again exit and pull the kayak over the dam. 

Having finally reached Ben Annis Pond, I quickly realized that it was worth the effort.   I had it to myself, spotting a river otter, snapping turtles and an osprey catching and then feeding on a fish.   

Kayaking Fields Pond (Holden)

Considering the weather forecast initially called for rain all day, I was happy when the sun popped out and it started to warm up.  I headed out and explored Fields Pond by kayak.  I paddled across the pond to explore an island (the channel on the northwest side of the island is impassable due to marsh grass) and then paddled back for a total distance of 1.6 miles.

Souadabscook Stream (Hermon)

I did my first kayak trip of the year after work today on Souadabscook Stream upstream of Hermon Pond and saw a muskrat (blurry picture below), bald eagle, and several turtles.

The Mountain (Rome)

Two weeks ago I hiked Mount Phillip, a land trust managed by the Seven Lakes Alliance. Today I hiked a different Seven Lakes Alliance property - the 207 acre The Mountain preserve.

Today I hiked the preserve's well maintained 2.7 mile Outer Loop Trail, which gently climbs the mountain and offers views of the area's lakes to the east and west as it circumnavigates the mountain.  

Bangor Water Works Road (Eddington)

A friend and I walked their dog at the Bangor Water Works Road this evening.  This is a great option for dog walking as it's a wide paved closed road so it's easy to get a walk in without worrying as much about ticks.   

Bald Mountain (Dedham)

Did a quick after-work training hike at Bald Mountain tonight.

Bud Leavitt Wildlife Management Area (Charleston)

I explored the 6,385 acre Bud Leavitt Wildlife Management Area in Charleston today.   

I hiked a little over two miles on an ATV trail,, climbing steadily until the path leveled out and started to descend.  The top of the trail was forested (the Mountain View Correctional Center actually sits on the hill's summit). 

 This was a nice walk through an upland forest with around 330 feet of gradual elevation gain.

Ticks

I hiked after work yesterday at the Northeast Penjajawoc Preserve in Bangor.   I've hiked (and blogged about hiking) there multiple times so instead I'd like to share information about ticks (I had a tick on my boot and spotted two others on grass during the hike).

I hate ticks and take precautions to avoid them (permitherin, avoiding hikes in tall grass and stylishly tucking my pants legs into my socks).  Despite this I recently found a tick embedded in me.   

The tick had likely been there less than six hours.  Given that medical professionals tend not to treat for Lyme unless the tick was embedded for 24 or more hours, I researched alternative treatments and learned that Johns Hopkins recently found certain homeopathic substances may be effective against Lyme.   Interestingly one of the substances - Japanese Knotweed - also happens to be a highly invasive plant in Maine.   

I'm not a big believer in homeopathic medicine but trust research from Johns Hopkins and wanted to share this finding for those of you interested in post exposure prophylactic treatment of Lyme.   

Bangor City Forest

With both rain and work in the forecast this upcoming weekend, I decided to hike in the Bangor City Forest last night to take advantage of the nice weather.  

I did not see another person during my hour long three mile hike.  The 680 acre forest is a large urban park in its own right, but combined with several contiguous land trust preserves and state lands creates several thousand acres of readily accessible wildlife habitat that is home to bear, deer, coyotes and other animals.  

I was fortunate to have worn a raincoat and headnet as mosquitos were abundant (the mosquitos may have contributed to the lack of visitors).