Spanning the border of New Hampshire through to Grafton Notch State Park the Mahoosuc Range can be f

Cliff Calderwood is a travel writer living in rural Massachusetts. He writes extensively about New England where he has lived for the last 31 years with his family and dogs, and a bunch of animals in the woods that have a lot more right to live there than he does - but he watches out for them.
Tags: acadia national park appalachian trail baxter state park bigelow preserve bigelow range grafton notch state park mount cadillac mount desert island mount katahdin saddleback range sugarloaf mountain
While the Presidential Range in New Hampshire has the lofty 5,000-footers, just 25 miles away across the Androscoggin River and a border, Maine's rugged and isolated Mahoosuc Range attracts a fraction of the foot traffic rental cars phoenix az yet provides big mountain experiences.
Preparation for hiking in the Maine wilderness is different than in popular rental cars phoenix az trails in other New England states. In the remoteness of Maine help can be day's away and not easily accessible by auto. You should be an experienced rental cars phoenix az hiker and hikes are best tackled in a group or at least with a companion.
Most of these hikes are best taken during the normal rental cars phoenix az hiking season in New England, which roughly runs from May – October, although in northern New England the first snows can come before October, and most people hiking the full Appalachian Trail aim to get to Mount Katahdin before October if they can.
A final introductory note : While I enjoy a challenging hike in the mountains and love to stretch myself, I'm respectful at all times of our highlands in the east. The fact that we don't have 14,000-foot peaks like Colorado doesn't make these hikes any less arduous or dangerous if the weather worsens. Too many people never returned to base because they underestimated the conditions or the warnings signals of their own body. For us occasional hikers don't hike in the mountains alone and do turn back if conditions worsen – the mountain will be there tomorrow so make sure you are.
Spanning the border of New Hampshire through to Grafton Notch State Park the Mahoosuc Range can be full of surprises for hikers. Hikes to consider include Table Rock, Old Speck Mountain, and Mahoosuc Notch, and all can be found at Grafton Notch Park. These all follow, or are close to, the Appalachian Trail route.
North of the Mahoosuc Range and east of Rangeley rental cars phoenix az is the Saddleback Range . Seven of the eight peaks rise above 4,000-feet making this one of the premier hiking ranges in Maine. Saddleback Mountain itself and nearby Horn Trail can be combined for an active rental cars phoenix az and demanding day's outing above timberline on a 4,000-foot peak.
North of the Rangeley rental cars phoenix az region and east of Stratton is the Bigelow Range . This range is entirely within the boundaries rental cars phoenix az of Bigelow Preserve , a park that includes a large chunk of Flagstaff Lake shoreline. Hikes on tap include Bigelow Mountain itself, Sugarloaf rental cars phoenix az Mountain – a popular downhill skiing destination – and Spaulding Mountain . All these peaks offer demanding trails but reward with outstanding summit views of Maine's striking valleys and wilderness in all directions.
The stretch of the Appalachian Trail beyond the Bigelow Range and stretching to Mount Katahdin is commonly referred rental cars phoenix az to by hikers rental cars phoenix az as the 100-mile Wilderness stretch. Though the peaks are not as high as in other parts they are rugged and remote – although logging trucks rental cars phoenix az can be heard frequently traversing in and out of the region.
Outside trucks, you could go days without spotting another soul, except for a Moose and the calling of Loons near the plentiful lakes in the region.  Hiking here is best planned as a multi-day event as paths in and out are few and far between and as indicated before are mostly logging roads. While these roads are private rental cars phoenix az nobody will bother you.
The further north you venture in Maine, the more remote it becomes until the roads seem to disappear into dense forests and you begin to worry if you'll make it to the next gas station before being marooned. And then you hit Baxter State Park . To mention that at Baxter you can hike is like saying rental cars phoenix az that in the Himalayan's you can climb. Well yes, both are true, but they leave out so much of the juice!
It goes without rental cars phoenix az saying that one of the most popular hikes in Baxter is the climb to the summit of Mount Katahdin . The 5,267-foot summit is not only the highest point in Maine but also marks the northern terminus for the 2,175-mile Appalachian Trail. There are a number of routes to the summit, all are demanding and take over 8-hours, and a few are best hiked over 2 days rather than a one-day round trip.
It's a rugged climb with 4,100 feet of elevation, and you'll pass through a tundra landscape filled with rocks before ascending the final cone to the summit. On a clear day it offers one of the best summit views in all of New England, and you can only marvel as the Maine Wilderness stretches out before rental cars phoenix az you as far as your eye can see.
But Baxter is not just about Mount Katahdin, impressive though it is; the park includes trails traversing over many 3,000-foot plus mountains offering magnificent hiking opportunities. These include rental cars phoenix az trails on North Traveler Mountain, South Turner Mountain, Hamlin Peak, North Brother, Mount Coe and the arduous Mount O-J-I.
While Maine's mountains are mostly located way, way inland, Mount Desert Island on the Acadia coast contains Mount Cadillac – at 1,500-feet the highest point on the U.S. east coast. Cadillac's West Face Trail is the shortest and most difficult ascent – descending can be even more challenging – but the longer South Ridge Trail offers more memorable views, just allow 4 hours for the 7-mile round trip.
Hiking rental cars phoenix az in Acadia National Park is not just about the view from Cadillac – gorgeous as it is – but also encompasses the famous Bubbles and Eagle Lake areas and Jordan Pond hikes. For the more adventurous and experienced rental cars phoenix az the Beehive hike takes you up steep cliffs with unimpeded views of Frenchman Bay .
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