This past Friday, I decided to go to Baxter State Park, home of Mt. Katahdin, the tallest point in Maine (about a mile above sea-level) and the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail, and Knife Edge Trail, supposedly the best non-technical climb east of the Rockies. The only problem was that I couldn't find anyone to go with me - all my other extern friends were either headed out of town or were unable to make the climb. So I thought I would have to do it alone, which made me a little hesitant to go. But after reading about it and seeing all the photos, I couldn't resist the urge. So I went. Woke up at 4am, took the 2 hour drive to the park, got there around 6am, and waited in line behind the other cars to get a parking spot at Roaring Brook and get a head start on the climb. Luckily, there was a group of guys who let me tag along with them.
This is our group starting the ascent. We first took Helon Taylor Trail up to Knife Edge.
Mt. Katahdin from about a quarter of the way up the Helon Taylor Trail.
View of the mountain range.
Getting closer to the top - about to begin the trek along Knife Edge Trail.
At the beginning of Knife Edge Trail. I rolled up my pants because I got really hot climbing. You may be asking, "Who wears khakis to hike up a mountain?" My other options for pants were my skinny jeans or my new corduroys, so the old khakis had to do it. I didn't wear shorts because I read that it got a lot colder on the summit and I didn't want to be caught freezing when I got up there. Plus, it was useful in keeping the black flies away.
View of Mt. Katahdin from the beginning of Knife Edge. I couldn't believe there was still snow on the mountains!
These were the types of rocks we had to climb and descend at some parts of the trail. It was really intense but incredibly fun.
A fellow hiker going across the Knife Edge Trail. The reason why it's called Knife Edge Trail is because it's literally like a knife's edge compared to other trails. Essentially, it's a narrow ridge of rocks that on both sides have steep drops down the mountain. When I say narrow, I don't mean a few feet wide - more like 10 or 20 feet - but still, it felt like there were a few moments where if I made the wrong step, I could have easily fallen to major injury or death. A few loose rocks and a couple of trip-ups made it a bit scarier. But if approached with care, the trail was definitely navigable. I really had to force myself not to think too hard or analyze what I was doing, because I think I would have froze up once I realized how steep of a drop it truly was. However, it was the craziest and best trail I've ever hiked, hands down. Also, note the black dot on the left side of the photo - black flies swarmed us during our climb. We were grateful whenever the wind blew not only to cool us down, but to chase the flies away.
Trying to capture the drop from the edge. Not sure if the picture gives it justice.
Gorgeous views.
Almost there... it was like this for a whole mile. Gingerly scaling the mountain.
Taking a rest and looking back at what we've accomplished so far.
I took this video while stopped for a second along the Knife Edge Trail. I was looking for a way to capture how awesome and crazy the trail was. Please ignore the swarming black flies, the heavy breathing and the slip around 0:14 when I thought, "Oh no, maybe this video thing wasn't such a good idea.."
Trying to portray how wide / narrow the trail was and the drop-off on both sides.
Finally! At the top!
Lunch with a scenic view at the top of Mt. Katahdin.
Making our way down. We walked along that trail you see in the middle of the photo, then took one of the rock slides down the mountain. It was called Saddle Loop Trail and it was basically a rock slide right down the mountain.
Chimney Pond - a very scenic pond with the mountains in the background.
Moose tracks along the way down! Didn't see any meese, though.
Needless to say, that was definitely the best and craziest hike I've ever done, and I would do it again in a heartbeat if I had the opportunity to. It was totally worth waking up at 4am, packing breakfast, lunch, and snacks, driving the 2 hours to Baxter State Park by myself, tolerating all the black flies, etc. etc. After 10 miles and 9.5 hours of hiking (including breaks for water, snacks, and lunch), I was completely exhausted but very happy with how I spent the day. I'm grateful the weather held up nicely as well. There were forecasts for thunderstorms in the afternoon, and it wasn't until after we had gotten down from the mountain did we hear thunder and felt the drizzle begin to accumulate. I couldn't imagine being on Knife Edge Trail and having thunder and rain come down - it would have been nightmarish.
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