YC , thanks for the headsup , I've not gotten time to review that blog much yet but it seems to be entries from his unpublished journal for any particular date. All Thoreau's observations are obtuse enough to make them thought provoking.
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Happy National Pfeffernusse Day! ⚪🇩🇪😋
lobster lake to chesuncook
- Thread starter forest runes
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Did this trip come off? I may have a new senior dog and in May thought about just heading for a few days on Lobster to see how the dog does in a boat and camping.
Yes YC it did, we went up with wool clothing & appropriate gear for that time of year & I believe it hit 80 every day, the river was boney but passable & all in all a stellar trip , other than the group I was with, not a soul except two seasoned trippers from south carolina who had been to every far flung place I've ever heard of so we had our pick of beautiful sites.
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I know a couple of you mentioned aspects of the trip that I have some recent experience in, so I thought I would chime in here in the hopes it is helpful to anyone else doing the trip.
The Road: We drove the road in September 2015 all the way into Chesuncook Village. It was rough, but passable...we all had high-clearance compact SUV's (RAV4's) and had no problems. Even a standard passenger car could have done it. Parking is available at Graveyard Point, and the access there is nice.
Boom House: While I think Pine Stream is the superior site, if your group has more than 2 tents it probably won't work. Boom House isn't as scenic, but it is big with plenty of nice lawn to set up many tents. I happen to like it a lot. I found Canvas Dam to be too rooty...we camped on the beach, which was nice. The trail from Boom House, however, is not easily followed. The same logging that sprouted the road into the village also allowed the logging that destroyed the path. Now the path comes out in the middle of an old forest cut, and it takes some tricky navigation to make it to the village. It may be quicker to simply paddle around the corner to the village.
The Fudge and Root Beer: The guy who made the home-made fudge and root beer (Jack) passed away a few years ago, so that is why it is no longer there. I do think you can occasionally get homemade fudge and root beer from the Surprenants at Chesuncook Lake House (who incidentally can also arrange a shutte between Lobster and the village).
And as already mentioned, Chesuncook can be murder in a stiff wind. It is the only lake I have surfed 3-4 foot waves paddling tandem with a buddy as the tops of the waves were being blown off by the wind. It was a big relief to eddy out behind Graveyard Point. That last trip, I finally made it out to Gero Island...very nice campsites there.
-rs
The Road: We drove the road in September 2015 all the way into Chesuncook Village. It was rough, but passable...we all had high-clearance compact SUV's (RAV4's) and had no problems. Even a standard passenger car could have done it. Parking is available at Graveyard Point, and the access there is nice.
Boom House: While I think Pine Stream is the superior site, if your group has more than 2 tents it probably won't work. Boom House isn't as scenic, but it is big with plenty of nice lawn to set up many tents. I happen to like it a lot. I found Canvas Dam to be too rooty...we camped on the beach, which was nice. The trail from Boom House, however, is not easily followed. The same logging that sprouted the road into the village also allowed the logging that destroyed the path. Now the path comes out in the middle of an old forest cut, and it takes some tricky navigation to make it to the village. It may be quicker to simply paddle around the corner to the village.
The Fudge and Root Beer: The guy who made the home-made fudge and root beer (Jack) passed away a few years ago, so that is why it is no longer there. I do think you can occasionally get homemade fudge and root beer from the Surprenants at Chesuncook Lake House (who incidentally can also arrange a shutte between Lobster and the village).
And as already mentioned, Chesuncook can be murder in a stiff wind. It is the only lake I have surfed 3-4 foot waves paddling tandem with a buddy as the tops of the waves were being blown off by the wind. It was a big relief to eddy out behind Graveyard Point. That last trip, I finally made it out to Gero Island...very nice campsites there.
-rs
Sorry if this is slightly off topic, but it's in the geographical area ...
Has anyone tried to make a portage from Chesuncook near Sandy Point to the Pine Stream bridge? It looks like one could do that, 3-4 miles along woods roads in areas recently cut. Scouting from Google Earth is often a recipe for wishful thinking, but if that portage worked it would enable a short loop trip down Pine Stream to the West Branch and then around the point and down the lake.
Has anyone tried to make a portage from Chesuncook near Sandy Point to the Pine Stream bridge? It looks like one could do that, 3-4 miles along woods roads in areas recently cut. Scouting from Google Earth is often a recipe for wishful thinking, but if that portage worked it would enable a short loop trip down Pine Stream to the West Branch and then around the point and down the lake.
I haven't heard of anyone doing that . I suspect that the bridge does not allow easy access and that there are many beaver dams and dri ki. Now you have me thinking about scouting that.. Its only about three hours from home.
The delorme shows hand carry boat access at the bridge. Maybe people put in to fish in that deadwater that extends a few miles downstream. Below that, it looks like there's a ~10 ft waterfall, and then it's a small stream and I'm sure the beaver dams and other obstacles are frequent. Still, it looks navigable to a determined paddler. I doubt it's crowded.
The carry would be a pain. There's a spit of sand south of the mouth of Quaker Brook, and from there maybe 250 yards to a road. There might be a trail on the ground, or it could be a bushwhack. That kind of thing always looks easier from the air. Then 3.5 miles of road walking.
The carry would be a pain. There's a spit of sand south of the mouth of Quaker Brook, and from there maybe 250 yards to a road. There might be a trail on the ground, or it could be a bushwhack. That kind of thing always looks easier from the air. Then 3.5 miles of road walking.
I sometimes find De Lormes to be optimistic. Do you have this years? From experience I know that when logging roads cease to be used the bridges are taken out. Google Earth does not update that frequently even at my house ( southern Maine.. the pic is 7 years old)
Crowded? I haven't seen crowds on the West Branch at anytime..much less the bottom of Pine Stream. That little waterfall might have an interesting portage ( or not) downstream its really bony. You do mean deternined liner?
My newer DeLorme is 2011. Time flies, I should get a fresh one.
Part of the carry would be on Pine Stream Rd, which should be pretty well worn by people going to Chesuncook to look for those fabled Circle K burritos. The eastern part is definitely a branch line, but Google Earth has two fairly recent images of the area (8/23/2013 and 4/28/2016), and in both of those it looks fairly clear, if soggy. The part that would worry me is finding the road from the lake. There are some landmarks to go by, but given that the water level on that lake varies so much, the contour of the shoreline might be not helpful.
It probably would be a lot of lining, especially in summer, but it still sounds fun. Close by, but off the beaten track.
My De Lormes arent that up to date either. Back in 2005 or something I got an expensive laminated one.. So I kept it for years. I wanted to go from the Forks to Greenville and intended to follow the Shirley Road. Nice and packed road not too bumpy and about an hour in. The bridge had been taken out as they were done logging.. Faced with a ten foot drop and boulders blocking the road I retreated. What I thought would be a two hour drive was four by the time I finished going via Abbot.
Those darn circles and bars migrate
Got a deal. I will do burritos for you at Pine Stream Campsite. They are so much better than the Circle K ones in Chesuncook.
Those darn circles and bars migrate
Got a deal. I will do burritos for you at Pine Stream Campsite. They are so much better than the Circle K ones in Chesuncook.
Sign me up! Assuming I make it around that waterfall.
I've only lived in Maine for 13 years, so I am still in the process of figuring this place out, but the DeLorme is definitely a key ingredient. Whenever you're reading directions to a put-in or trailhead, you know the person writing them is looking at his Maine Atlas. If the place is pretty much where you would expect it to be from looking at the atlas, the directions are terse. If there's something non-obvious, like a minor logging road not in there, a pond that doesn't really connect with the stream it looks like it touches, etc, then the directions are detailed. If you want to hide something in Maine, you put it a corner near where four plates come together -- it would be too much trouble for anyone to go looking for it.
I've only lived in Maine for 13 years, so I am still in the process of figuring this place out, but the DeLorme is definitely a key ingredient. Whenever you're reading directions to a put-in or trailhead, you know the person writing them is looking at his Maine Atlas. If the place is pretty much where you would expect it to be from looking at the atlas, the directions are terse. If there's something non-obvious, like a minor logging road not in there, a pond that doesn't really connect with the stream it looks like it touches, etc, then the directions are detailed. If you want to hide something in Maine, you put it a corner near where four plates come together -- it would be too much trouble for anyone to go looking for it.
Lots of people have trouble finding directions and places in Maine.. Even after 17 years I never come across a Mainer without a De Lorme.. Trailheads are not often signed and obvious.Logging roads sprout in the winter tween publications . When I get asked for directions if the questioner asks" Do you know how to get to so and so" I answer "Yes."
After looking at their confusion I tell them turn left at the corner where they took the barn down last year sometimes. If they have a Mass plate that is.
Which reminds me I wonder how often Garmin will do field checks of the roads in northern Maine. The current placement of gates and bridges is critical.
After looking at their confusion I tell them turn left at the corner where they took the barn down last year sometimes. If they have a Mass plate that is.
Which reminds me I wonder how often Garmin will do field checks of the roads in northern Maine. The current placement of gates and bridges is critical.
Goonstroke: For what it is worth, maybe ten years ago when I first met the Surprenants who own Chesuncook Lake House, they told me that they would sometimes drop their sons off at the Pine Stream bridge you describe, along with a canoe (or was it a couple kayaks? I don't remember), and the boys would paddle and scrape their way downstream to the West Branch and thence around the point and home again. I can't help you on info on getting to the road...as you say, things seem a lot more doable on Google Earth than they turn out to be once you get there.
-rs
-rs
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