Cadillac; North Ridge Trail

Hiking buddy: Marina

Weather: mid 60s and humid! 

Mountain: Cadillac (Acadia National Park)
Elevation: 1,530ft
Ascent: North Ridge Trail
Descent: Gorge Path and Park Loop Road
Miles of trail: 5.1

Total miles this year: 94.9

Almost to one hundred miles! Woot, woot!

The boss has me working later in the day today, so I took this perfect opportunity to hike Cadillac early this morning to watch the sunrise... and I was able to ring Marina into the plan. 

Hiking the North Ridge Trail of Cadillac is one of my favorites, and it absolutely has to be done to watch the sunrise. No other time of day works for this trail, in my honest opinion.

I picked up my hiking buddy around 3:30 this morning... yikes. We were on the trail by 3:45am, with our headlamp and flashlight out front and ready. The trails are so peaceful this time of day. The owls are hooting their goodbyes to the night, the birds are chirping in anticipation of morning, and there is not another soul on the trail. 

It took a few moments for my legs to wake up, funny how they don't like being used so early in the morning. And, very quickly, I shed my layers. It's going to be a hot and humid day today, folks. The breeze was warm, refreshing, instead of the cold chill the wind usually offers during sunrise hikes. 

The North Ridge Trail covers about 2.2 miles. A trail that has a good mix of tree cover and bare, open rock faces. You'll dive into the woods and pop out soon enough to a spectacular view. Something kind of like this:

 

That shot alone makes the early wake up call completely worth it. The trail can be quite steep at times, but there are sections that level off and offer your poor legs and lungs a little break. Each step brings a new perspective on the scene pictured above. There are few things I love more than seeing those islands and downtown Bar Harbor highlighted by the morning rise. 

I made the comment yesterday to my uncle that I usually point and chuckle at the cars driving up for the sunrise and call them "lazies". He quickly reminded me that not too long ago, I was one of those people driving to the top, instead of hiking. I was probably pointing and chuckling at the hikers calling them "crazies". Ha. Oh, where life takes you. It can be so surprising at times. 

Allllmost to the top at this point. The sun was just starting to poke its way above the horizon. 

Marina and I did a good job of booking it up this trail. I don't think I have ever hiked it in less than an hour, especially so early in the morning. Once we made it to the summit trail, we started walking down towards the sunrise. There were a ton of people huddled under blankets and jackets, sitting, watching God's masterpiece of a sunrise. I felt a little out of place with my tank top and sweaty limbs! 

We decided to head down the mountain via the Gorge Path. The Gorge path starts off of the summit path, heading down the east side of the mountain. It's a very steep trail, but offers wonderful panoramic views of the sunrise. 

We got a little creative...

I wish every morning could start like this. 

My favorite morning jam ("Good Morning" by Mandisa) always pops into mind during a sunrise hike up Cadillac:

"It's a good morning!
Wake up to a brand new day
This morning,
I'm stepping, stepping on my way
Good morning,
You give me strength,
You give me just what I need
And I can feel the hope that's rising in me.
It's a good morning"

One more shot before we headed down into the trees of the Gorge Path...

The gorge was quiet this morning... and buggy! Phew. My arms and hands got an exercise in. As usual, I enjoyed listening to the running water of the brook as my boots stomped the granite stepping stones on my way down. We came out on the Park Loop Road and had to backtrack about a mile to the car. Completely worth it.

What a beautiful morning. It's going to be a good day. Get out and hike!

Cadillac; South Ridge Trail

Hiking buddy: Alex

Weather: high 60s, slightly cloudy

Mountain: Cadillac (Acadia National Park)
Elevation: 1,530ft
Ascent: South Ridge Trail
Descent: South Ridge Trail and Eagle's Crag
Miles of trail: 7.1

Total miles this year: 78

It was the perfect day for a nice, long hike in the park! What better trail to do than the longest mountain trail in Acadia? The trail also happens to be on the tallest mountain on the island, the tallest on the eastern seaboard, to be exact. 

I love Cadillac Mountain. 

Honestly, the best way to hike Cadillac is to start out in the wee hours of the morning and catch the sunrise from the summit before heading back down. Blueberry Pancakes at Jordan's in downtown Bar Harbor is a must to replenish your energy after the hike. 

However, we did not hike for the sunrise today. We started after church when the sun finally decided to peek its way through the clouds and warm up the air. There was a lot of foot traffic out there!

The South Ridge Trail of Cadillac is probably the easiest trail to the summit. It has a nice gradual incline over the course of about 3.5 miles. The journey starts as the trail winds through the coniferous forest, with planks (planks!), dirt paths, stone steps, and a lot of muck! After about a mile and a half, the trail breaks out of the trees and onto the open granite shoulder of the mountain.

The view of just how much farther you have to hike can be a little intimidating...

I often get completely distracted by the view opening up behind me, enough so that I tend to trip over things and run into branches and such as I turn my head to peek a glance.

Eventually, the trail will drop down to what is known as "The Featherbed". Did some googling, and the technical term for it is a glacial cirque, a small mountain pond left by a glacier. It's a nice little spot to take a breather, with a cute little bench to rest on.

Just beyond The Featherbed, is a steep, uphill scramble back out of the trees. It's a large chunk of elevation gain in a very short distance. 

Looking back down at "The Featherbed"

From this point, there is just over a mile left of trail until the summit. Be sure to pay attention to the cairns, don't lose the trail! 

If you're looking for a summit sign, don't spend too much time looking. My friends and I spent a whole hiking season trying to find one. The true summit is just after crossing an old fire road, before reaching the concessions store and parking lot. Just off to the left after the trail opens up to the gravel road leading to the store will be a large boulder with a circular copper survey benchmark inlaid in the granite. I believe the official highest elevation for the peak at that point is 1,532ft. 

We stole a quick glance around at the summit before making our trek down, Alex couldn't be late for work!

On our way down the mountain, we decided to take the Eagle's Crag trail, which only added about 0.1 miles to the total distance. The trail offers a nice view of Frenchman's Bay, Champlain, Beehive, Otter Creek/Point and The Cranberry Isles. But, its view is just a teaser compared to the sites to be seen from farther up the trail.

We made it back with not another minute to spare. Also, I only wore one pair of socks today, do you know what that means? This girl has blisters on her heels. Ouch! 

It was a beautiful day to be in the woods!

The Gorge Path

Hiking buddies: Alex and Arnie

Weather: Mid 60s

Trail out: The Gorge Path, north end
Trail back: Reverse back to car
Miles of trail: 3.0

Total miles this year: 65

It's been a crazy couple of weeks... I will update you on a couple hikes that I have done. Here is the first!

One evening after work, a couple friends and I headed out on The Gorge Path. I had never hiked this trail before, and let me tell you, it is one sweet trail! There are absolutely NO views to hike towards as a goal, unless you take one of the trails about a mile and a half in that will take you up either Dorr Mountain or Cadillac, which do both offer fabulous views of the island and surrounding waters.

The Gorge Path winds through a forest until you come to the run-off stream that runs down the gorge between the two mountains. A unique trail that offers scrambling obstacles with the sweet sounds of rushing water.

There's nothing I love more than to be out in nature, listening to its music, and enjoying good company of wonderful hiking buddies. This is a trail to get lost in; lost in thoughts (hopefully positive) and lost in time.

Unfortunately, we were under a time constraint... We made it to the intersection with the trail that runs perpendicular to the gorge, where you can go up to the summit of either mountain. I've made note to go back and try this trail out in its entirety! Perhaps a solo hike in the future...