Katahdin Mt. Maine: Hike advice

MR. evil · Jun 24, 2009

A fiend of mine is heading up to Maine next week on vacation with some friends. While there they plan on hiking Mt. Katadin, and as far as I know none of them have any serious hiking experience. Does anyone here with any experience hiking Katadin have any advice?

Here is the route they are hiking:
Helon Taylor trail to the top of Pamola peak, then cross the knife edge trail to Baxter peak, then come down the saddle trail and finish up on chimney pond
trail to get back to the starting point ( start to finish is just shy of
10 miles).

My friend told me that he heard this hike will take 8 hours. Realistically how long will it take?

Also, any advice of what type of gear / supplies he should have would be greatly appreciated. He is going out tonight to get some hiking boots, and another co-worker is going to lending him a hiking pack.

thetrailboss · Jun 24, 2009

They don't have any serious hiking experience? What have they hiked?

Katahdin is a serious undertaking. That route is one of the more difficult ones up. FWIW the Baxter State Park rangers question hikers before going up, if the conditions aren't good, and they can close the mountain. If they have no hiking experience, I'd suggest doing another mountain. If they have some experience, but don't like heights or very difficult terrain, and they are committed to doing Katahdin, then go up Saddle.

billski · Jun 24, 2009

TB is spot-on. This is not a first-timers adventure. If he doesn't have hiking boots, he probably doesn't have enough experience either.

The rangers could shut them out of doing it too. What I understand Saddle is still closed due to snow on the lower. If you get up there in the clouds and visibility is a few feet, you could easily fall 1000 feet. It happens too often up there. It does not sound like a lot of planning has been done here.

The more I write, the more scared I get thinking about it. I worry that folks trying to rush a trip like this in a short window of time are going to underestimate their abilities.

I hiked across the knife edge in the clouds and rain, and even with the Ranger's approval it and after waiting two days. It was freaking scary and we both had a decade of hiking miles behind us. Visbility was 10 feet. No $#1T.

8 hours? If the guy is getting his first boots, doesn't have the broken in and has little experience, plan on 12. You need to plan time for the unexpected. On the trail by 6.

Gear? All the ordinary hiking prudence (If he doesn't know what that is, well.....) plus winter and rain gear. It is wild up there. Yeah, you'll see beautiful sunny day TRs, but those are far and few between. And lastly, the good judgment to know when to turn back.

Sorry to burst your friends bubble.

billski · Jun 24, 2009

This reminds me of the fact that most people's first hike IS Mt. Washington. :sad:

thetrailboss · Jun 24, 2009

Just read this again. He doesn't own hiking boots? He will need to at least break them in before doing any serious hiking. This is starting to sound like a disaster in the making.

My advice: take a shorter hike on one of the many trails in Baxter, or just hike to Chimney Pond and back. That will probably be more than enough.

bigbog · Jun 24, 2009

When up in the area....

Ditto billski's opinions....he shouldn't feel pressured to "do it" to the top...just go to his limit of enjoying the experience. There are small[er] mountains around, although a much different landscape than that of NH , VT, or western MA. ...but the terrain isn't the object that'll limit his hiking opportunity... Trailboss's other trails, along with Billski, MichaelJ, fixedgrip...info = good ideas..

$.01

billski · Jun 24, 2009

The view from Chimney Pond Camp is breathtaking, certainly worthy of a day hike in and of itself.

Just trolling the BSP web site, they have a good readiness quiz. Funny but very good

http://www.baxterstateparkauthority.com/hiking/hikingquiz.html

skibum9995 · Jun 24, 2009

I'd recommend going into Chimney Pond and up the Saddle, but as billski said it may still be closed. I've hiked Helon Taylor twice and been to the summit from all the other routes, except Abol Slide, and HT is by far my least favorite. The Knife Edge is an awesome trail, but can be extremely dangerous. Book time for a round trip using HT and Knife Edge is 6:15, so as long as your friend has some level of fitness 8 hours isn't unreasonable, but I'd allow for 10.

Make sure he plans on getting to the park early as the trailheads have quotas that fill quickly on the weekends. He'll want to make sure he brings more food and water than he thinks he'll need and also a headlamp incase he doesn't make it back down before dark. It's a fine line between bring enough stuff to be prepared, and bringing too much stuff that just adds unnecessary pack weight which will add to fatigue and slow him down. Thats where experience comes in, knowing what you'll need, and what to leave in the car. He should be ready to turn back short of the summit if the weather gets nasty, the mountain isn't going anywhere, come back later. On a perfect day, Katahdin is hard to beat.

wa-loaf · Jun 24, 2009

What everyone else said and I would too go up to Chimney Pond first to get a feel for things and the weather. If you get up there and the weather is sucks, it's still a cool place to hang and you can go over and explore the Pamola Caves. Hope he can break those boots in before he heads up ...

thetrailboss · Jun 24, 2009

A "fiend" of yours? If that is the case, let him hike then! :wink:

Beetlenut · Jun 24, 2009

Oh man, I can't wait to read this trip report! This has rescue written all over it! Your friend should just hike up to Chimney Pond. By that time he should have quarter-sized blisters on both heels, and will enjoy soaking his feet in the pond while gazing up at the Knife's Edge and realizing how insane this idea was. Like Wa-loaf said, Pamola Caves are a nice side hike out of Chimney Pond, and I'm sure the hike back out from the pond will be all he can handle with those blisters. Tell him to bring a another pair of broken-in shoes with some type of shank in the sole. Mole skin and Whiskey will help with the pain on the hike out!

flybymike · Jun 25, 2009

Ditto pretty much what everyone else said here. I hike Katahdin at least once each season and have been doing so for several years. There are NO easy ways up that mountain - period! I find the least difficult way for first timers in reasonable shape is to hike into Chimney with an overnight pack (having made reservations for a lean to at BSP Office in Millinocket). Spend the night. Get up early next morning and go up either Cathedral or Saddle with a day pack leaving your other gear outside the rangers hut. (I prefer Cathedral but it does involve quite a bit of hand over hand rock climbing). Enjoy the view from the summit if it is clear of clouds and/or fog. Return to Chimney via Saddle, pick up your overnight pack and hike back out to Roaring Brook parking area.

The route your friends planned to take will take around 11 hours for folks in reasonable shape and without hanging out too long on the summit. It's a tough hike for anyone and if there is any sign of thunderstorms avoid it completely. Getting caught in the open above tree line in a thunderstorm is not fun and several people have died up there doing that.

Apart from all that, Katahdin is aptly named for what it's name really means in the Abanaki language "greatest mountain". It has gained a lot of respect and admiration from anyone who's ever climbed it. I guess that's one of the reasons I'm drawn to it year after year.

wa-loaf · Jun 25, 2009

flybymike said:
Return to Chimney via Saddle, pick up your overnight pack and hike back out to Roaring Brook parking area.

Why backtrack? One of the best parts of being there is going over the knifes edge. If the weather is good they should head over and come down Pamola.

flybymike said:
The route your friends planned to take will take around 11 hours for folks in reasonable shape and without hanging out too long on the summit.

I've done the reverse of that trip and I think 9-10 hrs is reasonable for folks in shape. They should see if they can get a lean-to at Roaring Brook. They can get a much earlier start that way.

billski · Jun 25, 2009

I really hate discouraging anyone from doing Katahdin. For me, it is a borderline religious experience. It tests your physical and mental abilities and requires good planning. when you are done, you are physically and mentally shot. I was amazed at how stressed out we were going across knife edge the first time. One minute we were helping each other, the next scared to death, the next angrily shouting at each other.

I'd like to see your friend get more experience doing other high peaks first. That way he'll get adjusted to long steep hikes, long days, get comfortable with his equipment, learn what is and is not needed. Then you can go up to Knife edge. One move in the wrong direction can mean certain injury.

Every capable person should not be denied an attempt at Katahdin. It left me with a memories that will last a lifetime. However, being prepared is not an option on Katahdin.

mrzilliox · Jun 25, 2009

unless they are camping in Baxter - with reservations all set - they are going to have a tough time getting in. July 4th weekend and all. I've heard stories of parking lots filled by 5am on summer weekends.

I've only summited Katahdin on a beautiful August day, so I can't comment on bad weather up there. can't imagine the knife edge with slippery rocks and gusting winds, particularly to someone with little hiking experience.

There are plenty of other beautiful spots in BSP to enjoy. Some might even say the view OF Katahdin (particularly from Sandy Stream Pond) is more attractive than the view FROM Katahdin.

good luck

billski · Jun 25, 2009

mrzilliox said:
Some might even say the view OF Katahdin (particularly from Sandy Stream Pond) is more attractive than the view FROM Katahdin.

good luck

Great points. I found the view of the mountain from Chimney Pond was the most breathtaking, dramatic and inspiring of all the places The pond is the most perfectly sited foreground to a magnificent mountain.

Watching the clouds dance around the mountain was way more enjoyable than being in the clouds!

kingdom-tele · Jun 25, 2009

Its just walking -leave early, drink water, eat occasionally, take your time, and if you have to, just turn around and head back down - seriously, everyone seems to be making this more than what it is, and you don't need hiking boots to hike

I've seen all sort up on that mountain, and they all seemed to be doing just fine

hardest part will be getting into the trailhead to park, get there early

flybymike · Jun 25, 2009

Not at all trying to be alarmist here. Each of us has to hike our own hike and part of that is planning. If I were a first timer on Kathadin and knowing what I know from having done in many different ways, I'd take the 'least difficult' way up and down for my first experience, backtracking or not. Sure this might leave me wanting more and there is always a next time and a little more experience under my belt to know what I'm getting into. And yes, the knife edge is certainly something I'd recommend to any hiker to do at least once in your lifetime. What an awesome experience to stand on a two foot wide ledge and look straight down two thousand feet. But not on a first trip up the mountain unless you are in A+ shape and have a good deal of recent hiking/rock scrambling experience. I've heard completing AT thru hikers talk about how tough a mountain Katahdin is. Some say its the toughest 5 miles of the AT and definitely would be if carrying a full pack.. and that's on the Hunt Trail without the Knife Edge. I was on the mountain (in the summer of 03 I think) when a teenager died that day. On a perfect summers day he'd become disoriented (dehydrated probably) and wandered off the trail. A search party with dogs found his body later that night. That's just one story. I have friends who survived lightening up there but were knocked unconscious by it for several mintues. Enjoy that mountain but do take it seriously.

thetrailboss · Jun 25, 2009

kingdom-tele said:
Its just walking -leave early, drink water, eat occasionally, take your time, and if you have to, just turn around and head back down - seriously, everyone seems to be making this more than what it is, and you don't need hiking boots to hike

Not just walking my friend. It is a technical hike in probably one of the most remote mountains in New England with very long approaches and very difficult terrain. This is not a stroll up Burke Mountain or the Willoughby Peaks.

kingdom-tele · Jun 25, 2009

I realize Katahdin isn't burke, but the same principles apply, and I agree with Mike's post wholeheartedly, but jesus guys, its not like hiking is some olympic endeavor, we were climbing katahdin for high school trips, and the subsequent 10 hikes around the southern baxter park peaks were all just that, hikes and experiences, did I make to all the peaks, no, but because of respect for the mountains and weather and trail conditions, and my preperation, or lack there of, everyone chimes in to say this poor guy is likely going die or need rescue, have half the people even been up there?, its comical the folks that make it to the top, or even attempt it, but thats what its about - the liklihood of this guy jumping of the knife's edge is pretty low

its sad to hear the stories of people perishing in the mountains, but thats why we go, because things are different up there, the energy put into it, the power they possess, have a little respect and common sense, I'll leave it at that

Katahdin Mt. Maine: Hike advice

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