Today would not be a day with an early moose hunt – we slept relatively late (which means later than 6:30!) This is to be our last day at Moosehead Lake so we wanted to make the most of it. There were lots of options but the only one that really appealed to us was to take on one of the tallest heights in the area: Big Moose Mountain. It is the sight of the first mountain based fire tower built in 1905. (History lesson complete.)
We had our typical fortification – fried egg on toast with sausages – before heading out for the challenge of the week. This would be the most ambitious hike yet: only 4.2 miles long but the elevation gain would be more than 1800 feet. But my hiking motto is “when in doubt, go up!” so off we went. The first mile or so was pretty tame with only a slight incline and a few rocks. At about 1.3 miles, there is an abandoned ranger station and then the climbing begins. It wasn’t like the sheer rock scramble on Mt Kineo on Wednesday, but instead was more like the worlds longest stone stair case. At times we were convinced that the trail would never end. But eventually we made it to the top and the views were spectacular.
We took our time on the trek back down – elapsed time 3.5 hours with about 2:45 in actual hiking time. It was invigorating and humbling at the same time. We finished about 1:30 so it was lunchtime! Back into Greenville for more crepes – today was the Roma for me (mozzarella, tomatoes, olives, spinach, and pesto) and the club for Frank (tomatoes, ham, spinach, turkey, russian dressing) – outstanding yet again! Then we popped into a few shops for the obligatory touristy items that had moose or Moosehead Lake emblazoned on them. The clouds were looming dark and threatening again so we headed back to the flat to do some laundry and wait out the rain.
Which never materialized. We got the washing done and played some cards but the clouds brushed past with nary a drop unleashed. Then back to Kelly’s Landing (really the only decent restaurant in town) for their Friday Fish Fry including GF haddock and sweet potato fries for me! One last moose stalking trip to sit patiently by the Shirley DOT station at dusk (a rumored favorite of the lumpy brown creatures) but alas we were disappointed again. The drive home was glorious and we ended the day with wine and ice cream while we packed.
Numbers for today:
- Minutes waiting for moose to appear: 23 (ADD takes it’s toll!)
- Hikers we met on the trail today: 12
- Pieces of fish Frank had on the “all you can eat” fish fry: 4
- Percent of people NOT wearing masks at the restaurant: 50 (so sad)
- Moose sighted: 0
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