katahdin

what kind of experience is required to hike to the summit? would a novice be ok if he went with an experienced hiker? assume exposure isn't a problem for said novice..

Katahdin, it depends

I assume that you are talking of summer, right? In winter it is very close to mountaineering.

It is not so much an issue of experience as of endurance. Base to summit elevation gains are around 4,000 feet, with 4 to 6 miles each way. It is easier if you stay at Chimney Pond, but getting reservations there is difficult as it is very popular.

Do a search on "katahdin" and you'll pull up a number of threads. These are applicable to your question:

http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=292
http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=279
http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=174
http://forums.alpinezone.com/viewtopic.php?t=18

Hope this helps!

When you say novice do you mean never hiked before or do you mean some all afternoon rail trail walks, maybe state parks in MA or CT & have hikes in Berkshires, or similar?

Driving up to Roaring brook (get there real early in the AM if not staying in the park) & going up Saddle may be easiest but that is still harder than at least 50% of the NH 4K. No way would I bring a novice through the Chimney & Knife's Edge but if you start hiking in late April in CT & MA area, knock out a few hikes in NH in June & July, August would be a great time.

Few people would make a list of top three hiking experiences in the East & not have Katahdin on the list. Only gripe anyone has is that they have lots of rules in order to keep it pristine, they work though. Work up to it & be in shape, you'll enjoy it more.

Katahdin is probably the most spectacular hike in the East, and in summer it is about as difficult to ascend as the larger NH peaks like Washington and Lafayette. In winter, is is an expedition, requiring a long trek in from the gates and the weather and exposure on most of the routes makes it a dangerous undertaking. It is the most impressive mountain of all the northern Appalachians to behold due to its massive areas above treeline and the way it abruptly rises from the coastal plain. While it lacks the #1 ranking of Washington, the place offers an experience more reminiscent of a trip to the high Sierras than a five hour trip from Boston. You will NEVER forget the first real glimpse of Katahdin as you head out of Millinocket past the geberal store as it rises behind an overpass like some sort of gigantic gothic fortress. Same with the first time you reach Pamola Peak, and stare at the abyss before you and the seemingly impossible knife-edge ridge that stands between you and the summit. For novices, the whole BSP experience can be somewhat overwhelming, but on a positive note it is one heck of a test to see if this person is going to like hiking.

In summer, the Mountain is pretty easy to climb bu the Saddle route, and you can then head up Hamlin Peak and drop down to the chimney pond area with two 4000 footers in the bag. That said, one does not come to BSP easily.................and a trip to Katahdin offers you sights that cannot be found anywhere else in the East. So if you and your partners are fit.........reasonably experienced with trails, and in good physical condition, you owe it to your eyes to see this mountain in all its glory.

Here is the best way to do this event:

First, book into the Best Western( it may be a Comfort Inn now) across from McDonalds the night before. Hit the sack early, and get up at 4 am.

why 4 AM??

With the limited parking, the drive to the gate can get somewhat..........unpleasant. :argue: Unless you are driving a Viper with a tankerload of Nitrous, you WILL be passed by all manner of vehicles as they race to the gate in order to secure a spot. Not cool at all..............especially if you get there and the lots are full. it is better to wake at 4, leave at 4:45, and get there at 5:30 or so and have a good shot at Roaring Brook. RB is an irritating drive over rutted dirt roads that will leave your car covered in dirt. Once there...........hit the Helon Taylor Trail, and work your way up tp Pamola. Nothing severe here( think Boot Spur trail on Washington...........of the ascent of Lafayette) as long as you pack enough water. ( dryness of streams is pretty severe in summer, and the taylor trail on a hot day is very fristrating to novices since it seems to take forever to reach Pamola). At Pamola the fun starts.......as you drop 100 feet or so into a cleft and then climb a pretty hairy set of ledges to the first peak on the knife edge at 4850 feet called Chimney Peak. Next it is about 45 minutes of rock hopping and short ledge scrambles over the knife edge at it heads up over 5200 feet and bangs a right to head over a boulder field to the main summit. As long as the weather is fine, the knife edge is a blast. You aren't going to fall off unless you are really looking for trouble as in wandering off trail on the Chimney Pond side. The southerly side of the ridge is not as steep, and has great views down to the countless lakes and ponds that dot the area.

The summit will be PACKED. Plan on company, and if you are lucky you may see someone finish the AT. The descent from the top is a relaxing trip over nicely built trails that will bring you to a place called the Saddle. You have two options to get down. The Cathedral Trail comes first, and it is a nasty trail to descend. Nothing technical, but the countless hopping down over boulders( some of which are loose) is very tedious and this makes tired legs huge targets for ankle injuries. Second is the Saddle trail.........which I find pretty easy as long as you watch your footing. Walk down to the saddle area, look to the right, and you will see the trail drop abruptly towards the chimney pond area. if your party is feeling tired, head down here. The first drop will take a half hour due to ledgy areas on the slide and large boulders as you enter the forested lower slopes. Once there, the going gets less treacherous as you dip in increments towards chimney pond and enter an interesting wasteland of dead trees and scrubby undergrowth. Once at chimney pond..........the going is easy. You can pretty much stick it in cruise control and blast back to the car in 90 minutes of less.

Now........if you are NOT tired at the Saddle head up to Hamlin Peak. it is a pretty easy walk up and you get a wonderful spring near the top that will fill your bottles with freezing water. Hamlin offers awesome views of the knife edge and the main peaks, and a fun descent to chimney pond via the Hamlin Ridge trail. The ridge down takes a half hour, then you hit a mossy stretch as you angle over to chimney pond.............and from there you head back via the Chimney Pond trail. Count on a solid 8 to 10 hours, with 5 of those in open terrain above treeline. You will definitely have your fill of hiking for the day, and for the after hiking ritual of massive ingestion of food :beer: , there is a great sub shop just down the street from the hotel.

You really don't need experience to go here, as long as you expect to be tired at the end and you watch your footing above treeline. If your partner is experienced you should be fine, and are going to be in for one of the most memorable events of your life. One warning is the weather. Do NOT go here in bad weather. If you get hurt up high, odds of limping down in a storm are not very good. Cliffs drop off the routes all the way from Pamola to Baxter Peak, making a quick descent to chimney pond impossible. Also, the remoteness of the area from hospitals makes a severe emergency on the mountain a matter of life and death. Overall though, it is not that difficult to ascend, and for views and atmosphere, Katahdin offers a hiking bang for the buck that is very hard to beat!

Just as a side point ... we just cancelled a 3-day ski-in-camp-summit-ski-out trip to Katahdin for this weekend because of the weather forecast for Sunday (summit day): highs of 0, lows of -17, winds, and snow showers.

In this kind of weather in the winter they will close the summit ... they'll come around on snowmobiles and tell everyone (because they know where everyone is) they cannot ascend above treeline.

Just an interesting tidbit...

Sorry to hear of the foiled Frodo trip. Makes me glad I declined committing due to general uncertainty.

cancelled a winter trip to BSP just because you won't be able to summit? wow. aren't the reservations non-refundable in winter the same as the regular season?

So much beauty in winter, it's a shame not to go.

Hey twigeater! Welcome back! You really have to start posting here more than once every few months.... :wink:

Thanks Greg - I'll stop in more often. I do enjoy the site!

We're working on rescheduling if possible. However, yes, I was perfectly fine with cancelling. The alternative was driving 6 hours to pay for a hotel, then skiing up a road to stay at a campground and just ski around. I saw that as a lot of work for not a lot of special (I can ski a road anywhere) in brutal cold.

It's a personal opinion, of course, and varies. I do hope we'll get up there, but there's always next year.

If you hike Katadhin in the summer just be careful and remember to bring lots of water. Above the timber line it below the plateu before the Knife Edge is a upward hike that is almost dessert like terrain. Just be careful, you don't want to be shaky up on the Kinfe Ridge. Also keep an eye out for some magnificent falls.

don't want to be shaky up on the Knife Edge
keep an eye out for some magnificent falls

Tell me I'm not the only one who finds that really funny ...
8)

MichaelJ said:

don't want to be shaky up on the Knife Edge
keep an eye out for some magnificent falls

Tell me I'm not the only one who finds that really funny ...
8)

Click to expand...

:lol:

Kinda like:

"brick oven pizza covered with old skiing stuff"

yeah sorry bad sentence structure on my part lol

Eaglescout1985 said:

yeah sorry bad sentence structure on my part lol

Click to expand...

Just teasin' Eagle. Welcome to the boards!

thanks lol

Okay, Flatlander, this is my experience hiking Katahdin, coming from someone who will give their best shot at almost anything. My first time I did this, I had only hiked maybe about a half dozen times with my then boyfriend, now husband, UK. I wouldn't say I'm in perfect shape, but I work out occasionally, bike, downhill ski, swim, whatever I can to stay active since I have a job I sit all day.

Now, I definately wouldn't want to scare or make anyone not want to do it, but really ought to think about working up to it. The first time my husband and I went up Chimney Pond, then Cathedral Trail(my mistake, not his). Chimney Pond isn't a bad hike at all, very nice actually. But now your talking to a scaredy cat of heights here. The Catheral Trail was way too much for me the first time. It was tiring and scary for me, kicked my butt, and unfortunately didn't make it all the way to the top this time(ran out of time/daylight). Came down the Saddle and Chimney Pond trail, I was absolutely exhausted from it. Again your talking to a somewhat inexperieced hiker, at the time.

Second time we went up Chimney Pond and Saddle Trail and made it to the top(Katahdin). I was determined I was gonna make it this time. Still kicked my butt, but was very glad I made it, it was absolutely amazing up there. We didn't go across the Knife Edge cause I got a little vertigo and 'member I'm a scaredy cat?(heights) I'm soo glad my husband loves me We went back down the Saddle Trail and Chimney Pond Trail, that was the best route for me. I still have a hard time with the Saddle Trail too, just cause of the height thing. other than that if your not afraid of heights, then this would be the route I'd go. It's quite the work out, that's for sure. You know we're supposed to go again this summer and base camp at Chimney Pond. The only way I'm going up is through the Saddle Trail and back. I'm actually psyched to give it another shot.

Good luck, I think you should try it. My suggestion would be to make sure you start really early, I mean at sunrise from Roaring Brook, up Chimney Pond, and then Saddle, if you want to make it to the top and back before sunset. It's an all day hike, that's for sure. Well that's the way we did it and made it back just about sunset. That's my take on it anyway.

Skier75, if you make it back this summer, please consider returning to Chimney Pond via Hamlin Ridge. I’m not big on heights myself and I encountered nothing scary up there. It’s a terrific fair weather route but probably not worth it if there are no views or if the wind is blowing too hard. On a clear day there are views into rugged North Basin on the left, Chimney pond on the right and nothing but woods and ponds straight ahead. It’s a spectacular open ridge almost all the way down. By the time you get back in the trees, you’re almost back to Chimney Pond. Maybe it was just the fine weather, but it was the highlight of my Baxter trip.

Hamlin peak is also one of the New England 67 4,000 footers. I'll be hiking Katahdin again this summer to bag this peak since I missed it the last couple of times I've been up there.