| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Bald Mountain (Mt. Chase), ME |
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 | Trails: |
Waterfall Trail, Bald Mountain Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Wednesday, August 6, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Road is in good shape to he trailhead |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All easily hoppable |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trail is very obscure and difficult to follow, see comments |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Good for dogs |
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 | Bugs: |
Minimal |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
What a fun adventure! Bald Mountain in Mount Chase has one of the more obscure routes up it that is described in the Maine Mountain Guide. For those who are experienced trail finders, following the trail with help from the guidebook and scraps of old flagging tape is a fun puzzle, but most hikers will want to be following a GPS track. The description in the guidebook is relatively accurate, except that the second cairn that is mentioned doesn't exist anymore, and the best views are from the first ledge, not from the summit.
I started by biking from our family's camp on Lower Shin Pond to the Mount Chase/Bald Mountain trailhead. It was a ~8.5 mile bike ride, and I followed the route of the IAT along logging roads for most of the way.
From the trailhead, the route up Bald Mountain starts on the Waterfall Trail. This trail climbs steeply beside a series of seasonal cascades which are usually dry in the summer. The Bald Mountain Trail starts at a junction with the Waterfall Trail between two of the falls, and starts climbing northeast. Due to it being a relatively new trail, and seeing very little use, there is not a well established foot bed, which makes the trail quite tricky to follow. There are also scraps of old flagging tape for assistance on the first part of the trail, but these are not present the entire way to the summit.
The trail climbs, alternating between flatter and steeper sections, before reaching a short ledge scramble. At the top of this ledge is the best view on the mountain. There are excellent views south and west, with Katahdin prominently featured front and center. Above this ledge, the trail passes along semi-open ledges before reaching a second viewpoint. Katahdin is also visible from this viewpoint, and there is an interesting close-up view of Mount Chase. The unmarked summit is just beyond this second view.
The guidebook states that, "an obscure trail continues east ... but its condition and destination were unknown as of 2022." I took that as a challenge, and of course I had to attempt to find the destination of this mysterious trail! The trail beyond the summit is even more obscure than the one ascdeing from the south. There is no flagging tape or markers of any kind for assistance, and only the most confident of route finders would want to consider following this trail without a GPS track. It was almost certainly the most obscure trail that I've ever followed successfully without assistance, and I spent a lot of time searching for the next hint of a trail. There was one spot in an open hardwood forest that I almost gave up, before finally finding the trail again.
The trail descends the northeast side of the mountain at moderate grades without too many landmarks until it reaches a waterfall and beautiful reflecting pool on Houston Brook. I found this to be a great spot to sit for a while and take a break from route finding. Shortly after crossing the brook, the trail ascends to meet the McManus Tote Road, just under a mile from the summit. The only hint of a trailhead here is a strip of torn washcloth tied to a bush.
Instead of going back up and over the mountain, I made a loop by walking down the McManus Tote Road until it intersected with Mountain Road, which I followed back to the trailhead. I then biked back to Shin Pond, mostly following the route it took in the morning.
Except for the navigational challenges, Bald is a great little hike that could definitely use some more traffic. The trails are well set-up so that you could hike both Bald and Chase or a larger party could split up with some hiking Bald while the more ambitious hike Chase. |
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 | Name: |
Sam Shirley |
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 | E-Mail: |
newenglandskier13@aol.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-08-07 |
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 | Link: |
 https://api-v5.alltrails.com/explore/recording/activity-august-7-2025-78b9136?p=-1&sh=qriocr&utm_medium=map_share&utm_source=alltrails_virality |
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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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