Gorham Mountain

Hiking buddy: The pup; Phoebe

Weather: 45 and sunny!

Mountain: Gorham Mountain (Acadia National Park)
Elevation: 525 ft
Ascent: Gorham Mountain Trail
Descent: Gorham Mountain Trail, Cadillac Cliffs Trail, and a walk along Ocean Drive back to the car!
Miles of trail: 3.1

Total miles this year: 19.0

I had been watching the weather report for this weekend obsessively all week. Good news! Saturday's weather report was looking promising. Warm (for March) and sunny! Wouldn't you know it, amidst the snow, sleet and rain was a clear and sunny day, just as was promised. Go weatherman!

Phoebe and I set out to take a stab at Gorham Mountain; one of my favorites. Of course, I say that about most peaks on the island. But, truly, I love Gorham Mountain. It's not too hard, not too easy, and there are some amazing sights along the way. During the summer months, you can catch a frog in the stream. There are caves to walk through, over and around. An exposed rock face that overlooks the ocean, Sand Beach and Ocean Drive. A breathtaking glimpse of "The Hive", which, by the way, is looking wonderfully dry! Gorham Mountain trail goes up, down, this way and that; never a dull moment. And, if you listen carefully, you can hear the waves crashing on the beach, children squealing with delight, and a distant thundering at a famous hole. 

I decided to park the car by Sand Beach and hike the Gorham Mountain trail north to south, with a nice walk back along Ocean Drive afterwards. I wasn't exactly sure what condition Phoebe and I would find the trail in. Like I said, we've had a blizzard, rain, sleet and warm temps this week. The perfect ingredients for... a mess. 

Well, folks, we experienced it all; puddles, running water, snow drifts, sheets of ice, and... mud. Lots of mud. 

The higher up we hiked, the deeper the snow we encountered. Piece of cake for light-weight Phoebe. Not so much for me. I lost my balance a couple times. 

I love hiking down the south side of the trail; that is where the exposed rock face opens up to the ocean. What a view to hike towards. 

Sand Beach

The trail was fairly dry on this end, and wouldn't you know, it was the one place where I took a digger. The driest patch... I fall. I'm going to be sore for a few days. It's a good thing that the sound of the leash bouncing along the rocks scares Phoebe to a halt every time without fail. I was able to collect myself (and my pride!) and take a breather before grabbing her; she would eventually take off otherwise. Phoebe likes to get a little ahead of herself (and me!) on the downhill climb. I was getting ready to (gracefully) jump off a five foot boulder when she decided to jolt ahead... and down I went. Luckily, perhaps, I landed squarely on my behind, and only suffered a few scrapes to my right hand. Unfortunately for me, I was using a new pack, which I hadn't put any bandaids in yet. Oops.

I strapped the crampons back on my boots, brushed the dirt off, and onward we went. 

Okay, so here comes one of my not-so-bright ideas (although, when all is said and done, it WAS worth it). The south side of the trail splits into two; you can continue along the Gorham Mountain trail, or you can venture onto the Cadillac Cliffs trail. I thoroughly enjoy the Cadillac Cliffs trail. Any trail, for that matter, with the word "cliff" attached calls my name. It's an adventurous route! Along the various rocks and ledges you scramble away. Was it smart to take a "cliff" trail with snow and ice in abundance? Probably not. Did I listen to my conscience telling me, "no, don't do it!" Absolutely not. Down the Cadillac Cliffs trail we went. 

It was a bit dicey at first. Phoebe does not have the words "wait" and "stop" in her vocabulary. Must work on that. We had a nice crawling-on-all-fours moment together. 

One of my favorite sights is what I call the "tower" of Gorham Mountain; a natural stack of rock slabs, towering high over the trail. I will admit, the first time I hiked down this trail and saw the blue blaze painted on one of the slabs... I thought for sure we had to climb up! That moment was my first lesson on trail markings; the blazes not only let you know that you are still on the trail, they also point in the direction you are supposed to take. To make this long story even longer, the blaze in this spot is parallel to the ground, NOT perpendicular, therefore, you do not climb up, but around. 

Taking a turn around the corner, you'll see a little cave off to the right. Normally it is just a little wet and slimy, but today it was ALL ice. 

Doesn't that look like a little Alien colony? 

The Cadillac Cliffs trail goes up, down and around some more. There's a short natural tunnel to walk through, its floor was an entire sheet of ice. Poor Phoebe, she went slipping and sliding. We carefully walked around the corner and I just saw ice... Ice covering the ground and boulders, ice "streaming" down the ledges onto the trail. Ice, ice, ice. I guess it's not quite spring yet!

Phoebe and I finished the descent with no more mishaps. Phoebe was happy to reach dry pavement and civilization. She tried to knock down a couple fellow hikers. I was glad to take the crampons off. 

We turned onto Ocean Drive and started walking back to the car. There were a LOT of people out and about. I asked the first couple I saw with a pack if they had any bandaids; I was still slightly gushing blood from my right hand. No luck. But, they asked me an important question that not many people actually know the answer to: "We noticed cars driving down the road here, how do they do that? Isn't the park closed this time of year?" Well, the park IS partially closed for the winter, but rangers keep Ocean Drive (up to Otter Creek) open to the public. All other entrances to the park are gated off. In fact, the park services keep Ocean Drive paved for walkers, bikers (daring!) and runners (right lane) and groomed for snowmobiles and skiers (left lane). 

So, there you have it, you don't even need a pass to get in!

It was lovely and freeing to be out in light-weight gear, to smell the ocean air, hear birds chirping and woodpeckers hammering away. Spring is finally on its way. Let the hiking season begin!