ACC Maine Hiking Camp - Day 5

Burnt Mountain

September 18, 2014

Seven of us; Na, Debbie, Lynne, Cedric, Don, and Judith had a relaxing morning and drove down to Sugarloaf for a 09:30 start time. We hiked through the time-share village until we found the trail cutting off of the cross-country ski area. This trail started with a very Adirondack feel with lots of rocks, roots, and mud. It was hard to keep the group together at first, but as we ascended things started to click a little better. The forest was fairly ugly as it was swathed with ski trail cuts. At 3000' though, the landscape changed entirely as the bare summit cone revealed itself. The cold wind began to be felt and we layered up for a kilometer of easy scrambling up the boulders and ledges all the way to the top. We hunkered down in the shelter of the huge cairn to have some lunch and enjoy the views of the Sugarloaf-Abraham ridge, as well as the Bigelow range which was obscured a bit in the clouds. Judith brought cookies for all which was nice and very tasty to boot. It was time to go and we made our way back along the rock through the wind until back in the shelter of the trees where we dressed down prior to the hike back through the ski hill mess. At a pretty pool in the stream, a swim was briefly contemplated, but discarded due to the cold air and water. We met an enthusiastic couple who were heading upwards, and we chatted with them for a little while. A very civilized finish time of four hours brought us back to the cars and a relaxing afternoon followed.

The gang coming up the cross-country ski trail.

A pretty swimming hole along the way.

Ascending through the messy forest.

Summit awaits!

Scrambling up the alpine area of the summit.

Looking back at Sugarloaf.

Lunch on the top.

The messy descent.

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