Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Blueberry Mountain, ME |
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| Trails: |
White Cairn Trail, Blueberry Ledge Trail, Overlook Loop, Stone House Trail, Shell Pond Trail, Shell Pond Loop |
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| Date of Hike: |
Saturday, July 29, 2017 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Access is off of Rte. 113 onto Stone House Rd, take a right after going over the bridge. Follow it until the end where you will see a gate. The actual parking area only holds ~6 cars. But apparently the Rattlesnake Pool is very well known and when we came back there were over 30 cars lining this narrow gravel road. Most swimming not hiking. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
All water crossings bridged |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
White Cairn Trail up to the ledges was in great shape, there were some well built stone stairs. Other sections along the ledges had many cairns to enable easy route finding. Shell Pond Trails other than the piece over to Deer Hill Road were farm roads. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw lots of dogs today, one was even eating wild blueberries off the bushes herself. Great trails for dogs, lots of water in small crossings |
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| Bugs: |
Few not too bad today |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
This was our first foray into the Caribou/Speckled Mtn tab of our spreadsheet. Boy did it deliver, the total hike was about 8 miles including the road walks from the parking area to the trailheads. Blueberry Mtn is around 1700'. White Cairn is mild for the first 1/4 mile then starts climbing up slab rocks with awesome views over to the Baldfaces and more. We had a tough time making it to the summit because we kept stopping to pick and eat wild blueberries as did many others. Definitely do the Overlook Loop, great southern views, we had lunch there. Of course some of us went back to get the 1/10 of mile on the Blueberry Ledge Trail we missed. Stone House trail is steep in places but it doesn't last long. Make sure you stop at the Rattlesnake Pool and the Rattlesnake Gorge. The water at the pool is crystal clear and diveable being 12+' deep. That part of the hike was only ~3 miles. we continued on to get the Shell Pond trails, the beginning of the trail goes past the Stone House through the air strip and by a beautiful home with terrific views, they even brought the power underground all the way from the parking area so as not to mar the beauty of this place. |
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| Name: |
Frinda |
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| E-Mail: |
Fredwijnenriems@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2017-07-30 |
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| Link: |
https:// |
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Disclaimer: Reports are not verified - conditions may vary. Use at own risk. Always be prepared when hiking. Observe all signs. Trail conditions reports are not substitutes for weather reports or common sense. |
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