M-2016-9-19
Start:
Campsite on Big Wood Pond, across from Jackman
End:
Little Brassua Pond campsite, which is utterly lovely
On the
Way: Big Wood Pond, Jackman, Moose River, Long
Pond, Demo Road, Little Brassua Lake
Miles: 23.8
(Milepost: ~542)
Weather: Cloudy in AM, Now mostly clear but with a
warm breeze. Really warm for the
day I pick up my cold weather gear, Harumph.
But no complaints.
Map: 10
Great way to get back on the Trail after my near-Zero
Day! Paddled back into Jackman to pick
up my package and replace my disintegrating river socks. (Gotta love General Stores around here—they
have all you need to survive the cold on-hand, like socks and gloves and
pizza.) I sent off some postcards,
addressed my post-box for home, and grabbed a cholesterol-laden breakfast
sandwich, then hit the Moose River by ~0900. It was a pretty full day,
including another (but not the last!) Long Lake, and a doubt-inducing 3-mile
portage along dirt roads and rather dubious wood trails. I was back in mile-jamming mode, though, and
it felt good. I was planning on getting
further, but this little gem of a campsite beckoned me to stay rather than try
and cram in another 6 miles and skid into camp in the dark.
And I’m so glad to be here: pebble beach, deep warm lake
water where I took my first lake bath in a while, nice warm breeze to keep the
bugs away, and a fire hearth built up just right to keep a fire protected from
the wind and the heat reflected onto a handy little rock seat on the edge of
the ring. And lots of downed pine to
burn. Ung, that smell. Easily the best part.
I’m wearing my fleecey pants, just received in the mail
today. They’ll get smelly as soon as
they get plunged into my vile sleeping bag, I reasoned, so why not start the
stank accumulation early here by the fire?
Besides my new cozy PJs, my drop box had a puffy fleece jacket, fleece
and neoprene gloves, a neck gaiter, and some new food. Cous cous forever! I think I’m more than set until Ft.
Kent. I’m going to try and make a go of
it and see if I can last without any more grocery missions.
 |
| The famous Demo Road Gauge. They say it's scratchy-but-safe to run when the water's between 2-3 feet. Here, the water's barely touching the rock. Yuuuup. Story of my summer. |
On the Demo Road portage, I ran into 3 middle-aged gents
and 2 kayaks and a canoe in the back of their pickup. They helped me find the NFCT confidence
marker that I needed to convince myself that I hadn’t missed the turn-off. They were fine fellows—three pals out farting
around on the lakes. It’s so reassuring
to run into people out on agenda-less trips.
They offered me a beer, called me “kiddo,” and said, by way of putting
me at ease, I suppose, that they had grandkids who were my age. They also offered advice at getting around
the Eagle and Chamberlain Lakes [which I promptly forgot, but got through those
lakes just fine, anyway…] They were quite fun: I hope when I’m their ages I’ll
have found a cadre of adventuresome pals to bum around Maine with. One asked if I was on a “solo mission.” I said sure, why not, but the wittier reply
would have been that that was a fancy way of saying “floating around on the
lakes by yourself and being way more antisocial than these jovial dudes.”
Things Learned:
+ I didn’t put the tarp up last night, figuring the
conifers would be enough cover, and so had to scramble at ~0100 to throw it up
and avoid getting rained on. Serves me
right for my flagrant hubris.
+ I am so not used to coffee. A few cups of that weak diner-strength stuff
at 1300 kept me up all night…
+ Little Brassua Lake was practically undeveloped. It’s gorgeous: I should come back some day.
 |
| Completely lovely spot next to Little Brassua Lake. Put up an extra line to hold against the wind. Plus the campsite had a makeshift table build, a nice stone hearth, and abundant, fragrant pinecones to burn! Mmm, pine... |
+ Operation Dry Bean Soak was indeed a success, but I need
to remember to crunch the bottle a bit before putting in more dry beans in the
future. As I discovered when I opened
the bottle to make my soup this evening, I’ve been carrying around a veritable
pressure bomb all day.
Trail Magic:
+ Saw 2 Bald Eagles on Long Pond!
+ Fun Old Guys giving me a lift and spotting my markers.
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