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Oct 12, 2019: Norumbega Mountain


Participants:  TC Ron Chase, John Brower, Brent Elwell, Julia “Troad” Richmond, Dave Boyle, President Eggman DeCoster

My scheduled Fall Supper Trip was a bike ride on the Carriage Trails.  The problem, we had rain, fog, and wind and no one wanted to bike but me.  Someone mentioned a short hike instead.  Another wannabee hiker suggested Norumbega Mountain.  We had a plan.  By the time we arrived at the trailhead for Goat Trail, the rain had diminished to mist.  The steep aptly named Goat Trail was a bit slippery but the most remarkable aspect of the climb was that President Eggy established a new hiking fashion standard wearing his cap inside out.  Views at the summit were minimal but the stormy conditions had their own peculiar appeal. 

Descending gradually south on Norumbega Mountain Trail to the southern terminus of Lower Hadlock Pond, instead of completing the intended 3 mile loop, we decided to extend the trip by continuing around the far side of the pond.  In retrospect, I’m still not sure the cause.  Perhaps the provocative conversations initiated by Brent and Eggy distracted us.  Regardless, six experienced hikers carrying maps somehow managed to miss the Norumbega Connector Trail instead returning to the south end of Lower Hadlock Pond; completing an unanticipated circumnavigation of the entire picturesque body of water.  Free mileage was the cry!  Instead of a 3 mile loop, we completed a 5 mile double loop.  I got my bike ride in as I talked Eggster, John and Nancy into a cycle around Eagle Lake after.  For the rest of the story, visit my blog at http://www.rchase.bangordailynews.com/

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Nov 9, 2019: Mount Chocorua

Participants:  TC Ron Chase, Suzanne Cole

For the first scheduled club Fall/Winter trip, I posted a Leader’s Choice.  Suzanne was the first to respond suggesting among other options, Mount Chocorua in NH.  Since I had been thinking about a climb on Chocorua all fall, that was an easy choice for me.  Unfortunately, Gary was laid up with shingles and several others who wanted to do a local hike were left behind. Stormy the day before, we encountered snow and ice after about a mile.  While we never had deep snow, there was a carpet of white stuff at higher elevations but below tree line.  A close call as we had some icy sections, we decided not to use micro spikes on the ascent. 

It was a good decision because the spectacular summit cone was essentially ice and snow free.  The 3,475 foot alpine summit provides some of the most exceptional views in the White Mountains.  Light winds and clear sunny skies provided a wonderful opportunity to linger at the summit soaking in the views.  Once below tree line, we donned our spikes for the descent.  Part way back, we took a spur trail to impressive Champney Falls.  I somehow bungled my photos of the falls.  Otherwise, the day was a 10!  

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Oct 5, 2019: Little Jackson and Tumbledown Mountains

Participants:  TC Ron Chase, John Brower, Brent Elwell

We had a cool sunny day for the planned hike on Little Jackson Mountain near Weld.  John, Brent and I met in front of an ancient cemetery on Byron Road and then rambled down the rough, poorly maintained Morgan Road to the trailhead.  The initial 2.5 mile ascent was unremarkable.  After scaling a boulder-strewn pitch and arriving on exposed ledges, we were greeted with a surprise.  The forecast for light breezes was badly flawed.  Instead, we had gusty winds out of the northwest that required parkas, mitts and stocking caps.  Thankfully, Brent carried an extra stocking cap.  Given the size of his pack, he probably had extra everything. 

After a respite in a stone windbreak at the summit, we decided to descend an unofficial trail that drops off the southwest slope of Little Jackson to Tumbledown Pond.  The views of the pond and the three peaks of Tumbledown below were phenomenal.  Just before reaching the pond, we took another unofficial trail over infrequently climbed North Peak, at 3,090 feet the high point on Tumbledown.  From there, we continued over West and East Peaks and descended to the pond, where scores of hikers had gathered.  We finished the day by traversing over Parker Ridge and trekking down Parker Ridge Trail completing one of the most exceptional mountain hikes in Maine.   For the rest of the story, see my column in the Brunswick Times Record:  https://www.pressherald.com/2019/11/08/ron-chase-the-second-best-hike-in-maine/

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Oct 19, 2019: Farmington River, New Boston Section, 4.4ft

Participants: TC Jean Miller, Tom and Patti Rutka, John Brower, Al Perrie, Ed Quierolo

You normally want to bring your oldest gear on the New Boston whitewater release weekend. It is rocky. Paddling this section is much like playing a game of pinball with your boat. But the river gods were kind and gave us a great rain storm on Thursday so we had a nice level. In addition, we had sunny skies, beautiful fall colors and a great group. There are 3 sections of river to run on release weekend. The upper (Class 2), the middle (class 3-4), the bottom (class 2). We ran them all. The top section was great for admiring the beauty of the day. We passed through the race course on our way to the middle and saw a fleeting glimpse of Clay Cole.

Things heat up in the next section, the pinball game begins. There is a relatively new line through the Decoration Rock section. The old line on river right has a large strainer on it marked with a blue rectangle hanging from a tree. Everyone styled their way through the left side. The next feature to be reckoned with was Washing Machine, or Corkscrew, no one knows the real name. It wasn’t always pretty, but everyone got their line done. The last big feature is The Bears Den section. It needed a scout to find a way through the maze. Someone got bitten by the bear here, but no worries, it ended ok. Great trip!!

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Sept 21-22, 2019: West River

Participants:  TC Jean Miller, Suzanne & Gary Cole, Ron & Nancy Chase, Bill Stafford, Paul Bicknell, Charles Sweet, Andria Reising, Al Perrie

With warm and sunny weather, the West River weekend was as good as it could be.  We had a riverside lean-to with many PPCS members nearby. There were sightings of the families of Evan Eichorn, Ryan Galway, and Mike Faske. The West Fest is known for its crowds, but we did our best to avoid them.  Skipping the shuttle, we carried our boats down the Ball Mt dam face. There was some grumbling, but I personally love the carry down the Ball Mt. dam, it’s just so pretty. At 9 a.m. the river was still ramping up, so the first run was only 525 cfs.  There was no one on the river and it was beautiful. Suzanne and Gary put fresh eyes on the river and found waves to surf that no one ever considered.

The take out was our lean-to and with a quick lunch we were back on the river and ran it at 1480 cfs with quite a few more people.  On one of the shuttles, the trip leader had a little trouble with the police, but a smile and a promise set things right. After two runs, the paddlers were ready for a shopping expedition. People went home with new boats, helmets, spray skirts and air bags. Both Ron and Bill were very lucky to find helmets to fit.  Sunday morning was a repeat of Saturday morning, another beautiful day of paddling. Bill and Jean successfully ran the NECKRA sponsored Wild West River Stampede Race Sunday afternoon. On a sadder note, Ron was quite upset that one of his gift crème horns appeared to have been stolen. Everyone present denies it. It is rumored that this will be the subject of his new mystery novel.