Isla au Haut, Maine

“why didn't this go to the top of the board when I posted?”

“I get it, I posted from the trip page link, not trail talk page...”

“I just want to do the Isle de Haut part, not the Baxter State Park on this trip. So count me in for that. I don't want to sea kayak, but I can occupy myself while everyone else does that.”

“Actually, if we can forego the sea kayaking, that would be great - that adds about $80 to the cost of the trip and we have a whole island to explore.”

“Lyndy, I'm so glad you're coming back! :)
Looking forward to seeing you again.”

“I've got to work and I want to go!!!!! Life is so unfair. :(
[throwing hissy fit]”

“I havent kayaked before so I have no clue what I am getting into here. I trust you wont get me wet as I really hate being cleaned..... :}

OK getting serious for a moment... How much swimming ability is recommended or are vests enough?”

“Twigeater, it will be great to see you again. And to meet up with all the rest of the Trail Talkers from the previous trip. And it will be great to meet Trail Talkers that I haven't met yet, too. Well I guess it will be outstanding just to be in Maine too. I think that I have cabin fever!”

“I agree, I'd like to save on the cost of kayaking, that adds quite a bit. Also, if someone were to roll it, it'd be some cold....”

“Alrighty then, sea kayaking is out!

We'll go with the three nights at BSP and three or four nights at Isle au Haut. Isle au Haut is a flat rate, and we can stay for up to five nights since we're going after September 15.”

“The other thing is...if we don't book Capt Bill, but go with the mail boat instead, people can leave when they need to AND I won't need to collect money for him. Everyone can pay their own parking and ferry fee when they come.

We'd have to backpack (egads!) the five miles to the campground. I'm sure we can figure out how to get a lobster feed in.”

“it aint the lobster Id worry about its the really big pot.... :}”

“you all have e-mail...”

“thanks!! got it, twigeater!”

“Hey, LyndyS, I think you should come to Baxter, I'm going but not doing Katadin or the Knife Edge, I'm gonna do something else. Not sure yet, but I'm sure I'll find something.

BTW, I know a lot are gonna freak out on this, but what am I gonna eat while you guys eat lobsta?...I don't like lobsta or shrimp(making funny face), but I do like clams, scallops, and haddock.”

“Okay Skeetah, you can share some of my tofu.

*giggle*”

“Hey I have no emails! What is going on? Just because I want to spend the week at the coast doesn't mean that you can leave me out of the secret email lists. yous guys. So I can't hike to Knife's Edge. So I didn't make it to Katadyn. Yes I couldn't climb up over the overhanging rocks to get to the second waterfall. But I promise, I will train harder. I will bring a full medicine chest this time. I promise, just let me go, okay?”

“yum, I like tofu AND lobster.
I like lobster better though. :)”

“I clicked on e-mail participants - are you guys not getting my e-mails? I know Artex got one, and I get two each time.”

“Nope, I have not had an email from Twigeater in a long time.


Skeetah Bait, did you know that you can take the Avril Levigne song for Skater Boy, and change the words to make it a song for Skeetah Bait (of course a monkeyboy would need to sing it and change a few more words).”

“How about now? I sent you your own special e-mail. :)”

“I just read your previous post Lyndy, that was too funny.

You forgot to add that you carried a huge pack a million miles over rough terrain, crossed raging rivers and stared down moose as big as houses. More importantly, you went on a trip with 9 lunatics and returned alive!

You did fine on the last trip and you'll do fine on this one!”

“Now wait a minute....Lyndy, I don't get it?? Guess I don't know that song?? You makin fun of me, suckah??? I'll get you and you little dog too....eh, eh, eh...no just kiddin. Really though Lyndy, we can do another trial like South Turner or something and wave at everybody else from there....

Like Twigeater said your likely you made it out alive....LOL”

“Uh... me making fun of somebody? Never happened!

It's a cool song, my kids love it. Avril Levigne sings "skater" like she is saying "skeetah" and that is why I thought of you. Those Canadian accents, you know?

I don't know, I really don't want to drive all over creation. Can't we have one Baxter trip and a separate coast trip with a spell at Isla de Haut? Pretty please? ooohh I'm whining, gotta cut that out!”

“And yes Twigeater, I did now get your email, thanks!”

“Well there were some lunatics, but I don't remember counting 9 of them. Hmmmmm, there was the wet boots cooking over the campfire lunatic, and the stove that could launch rockets lunatic, and the "no, well maybe, okay just one more glass of wine, well if you insist, well okay I'll try some of that wine" lunatic, and then there were the cooking over suitcase stoves enough food for all of us good kind of lunatics, oh and let us not forget the great detective whodunnit "who, me snoring?" lunatics.”

“I wanna hear Skeetah Bait say, "haddock"!

I haven't been reading this thread.

You bums going back to Baxter?

I wanna go over the top of that one!”

“So I should really look into an August BSP trip, eh?”

“Not with out ME!”

“Well, I don't want to make you change things just for me, but I would love to come up for a late AUgust trip with my family, and also come up for a Sept Isla de Haut.”

“Actually I can't book anything else in August - I've got two trips that month with kids. Even though one's car camping, it means I have to pack all the gear and grub for everyone for both weekends. I thought I didn't need time off for them but one is my grandgirl's first backpacking trip and I think we should get there during daylight hours. :)”

“Well that should be a lot of fun, Twigeater. So we'll stick with the one trip in Sept. but really I would like to just go to the coast for this one. I don't want to be away from my family for a whole week.”

“Okay, whoever is supplying the lobster for us, bring one for Skeetah Bait also. I'll make sure it is taken care of...

Pennsy and I were talking about the Baxter peak summit, and it looks like we wanna go up over the Cathedral trail, to the top, then across Knife edge, then down Helon Taylor. Any takers? You'll need to limber out the legs, alot of big steps there and hand over hand. It's not a technical klimb, but you will need all fours. This is not the most popular way up, but it will be fun and challenging for those that like this sort of stuff.”

“You can buy as many lobster as you want monkeyboy. :)

When I did the Knife Edge, we went up Cathedral, down Dudley. I love rock scrambling!”

“I know some of you didn't get the e-mails I sent from the trip page, so here it is.

I'm sending in for reservations April 1, so I'll need $25 from each of you who are sure you want to go.
This covers the camping reservations for 3 nights at BSP and up to five nights at Isle au Haut assuming there are 10 participants. And assuming we get what we want.

Make checks payable to me. My address is:

Melissa Winchenbach
PO Box 5364
Augusta, ME 04330

Thanks!

I posted an update to the trips page, I think it's right.

HIKE MAINE!”

“Twigeater, Skeetah Bait says you are one sick puppy!!!! LOL Up Cathedral, across the Knife edge and down Dudley!!!!! I am impressed.

Actually, you went down Dudley? They don't recommend that for descent, do they? Or do they? How was it for coming down, anyways? I have never done that one.”

“I'm gonna go check my emails now. I know I got mail from you Twigster.

Monkeyboy - I've already got a day 1 game plan for the July trip from Chimeny Pond. Up Dudley, then up the Knife Edge to Baxter, down Saddle, then up Cathedral and back down Saddle again. Yahoooo!!

Ok, so this is the September trip thread. I'm just giddy about Baxter!”

“Don't be impressed, I WAS sick, one very sick puppy, lol! My hiking partner had done that route when he was 12, and he told me it was the "classic route" AND that his dad had done the Knife Edge on his butt. This was the trip that I discovered that I'm not afraid of heights, rather I get vertigo. I became a rock hugger, lol, but it was a number 1 day in June and absolutely gorgeous.

Surprisingly that was a very good day for me and a great hike. Since I had no clue what the knife edge was like, other than my plan was to cross it on my butt (yeah right!) I had no anxiety along the way. I really only had trouble on the knife edge when we stopped to chat (that's when I hugged the rocks - I think I made a lasting impression on a few of them) or when my hiking partner said "you gutta be #&%!$tin' me!" when we had to climb over some impossible thing. I tried to stay far enough ahead of him so he wouldn't stress me out and I kept saying, "will you SHUT up!" Plus I had let two 13 year olds hike off ahead of us early in the hike and kept expecting to find their lifeless bodies in a heap on some rockpile below. People told us afterwards that they practically ran acroos the trail.

I wanted to live the rest of my life in the notch between Chimney and Pamola peaks, but forced myself up to Pamola peak. The Dudley trail was a piece of cake after that - I was so relieved to be off the knife edge that was all I thought about.

I don't know which route is recommended, but there were people who did the opposite of us - up Dudley and down Cathedral - cause they heard that was the way to do it. I know my brother-in-law says he'll never come down Cathedral. I met some people on their way down Dudley last year, and the girl said she was tired of "hyperxtending her body" and wanted to get off. That stuff doesn't bother me.

You guys go do the knife edge and I'll be off on the north side with peace, quiet, and beauty. three very good companions. :)
If Skeetah's willing to go up Saddle, we can hike over the north peaks trail or the northwest basin trail. If you guys go up Dudley or Helon Taylor, we can all meet up and hike down Saddle together.”

“Twigeater, the check is in the mail. Count us in for September. Glad this isn't in August. August in Maine is humid!!!”

“Pennsy, you got good knees to consider that hike... hmmmm... maybe I'd tackle that if I stayed at Chimney Pond.”

“WAHOO!
I just received the Isle au Haut confirmation. Three lean-tos beginning Monday, September 15 through Saturday September 20.

Now for BSP...”

“yayyyyy!!!!!!”

“We're in for Sept 14-15 in BSP.

I couldn't get the 13th without separating the group, unless we wanted the Roaring Brook bunkhouse for all three nights - but that's $9/night rather than $4/night.
So I'll look for something outside the park. I'm gonna call the paper company and find out which gravel pits we can camp in, and Hidden Springs to see how much it is to stay there. There's also the Sunday Pond cabin, that would be about $10 each.

I'll keep ya posted!”

“Yahoooo....been thinking 'bout this...specially at work :)”

“I have been told by so many people that this is the one hike I don't want to miss..Can't wait to see beautiful Maine,and all my TT'er friend of course..You have mail twigeater.. :~ )”

“Hey twig, Did you get around to the final arrangements for the rest of the trip? Just curious.”

“I just got back from two weeks vacation today (awesome trip! report is in the works) and finalizing this trip is next on my agenda.

PS - I accidentally deleted an e-mail from someone from texas who wanted to come on this trip. I'm really sorry, but could you please e-mail me again?”

“Hoping Texas will see this...”

“I have been tossing this trip around trying to figure out the cheapest and easiest way to get to this hike.I'm coming from Nashville ,Tn.9/12.Anybody got any ideas.Help would be much appreciated.. :~ )”

“Did you get my e-mail trekkngirl? Hope it was helpful!”