M-2016-9-26
Start: Allagash
Falls Campsite
End:
Allagash Outfitters Campsite beside St. John River
On the
Way:
Allagash River, Round Pond, Allagash Village
Miles: Only
13…but I wasn’t pushing it. 27 mi to Ft.
Kent!
Weather: Clear and warm all day!
Map: 13
Yeah, I didn’t make it through Allagash Village today, and
seeing the state if the St. John River, the last river to go, it’s looking like
a 27 mile day would be a loooong day indeed, full of careful river-reading and
lining in increasingly cold water. So
I’ll either manage to squeak through the gravel bars and feel great or make it
partway, grumble, climb out of the boat and slosh along. I can either take the 27 miles tomorrow, or
make it partially and roll into Fort Kent in the morning. No big deal, but either way, lots of shallow
river paddling in the near future. Just
got to grin and bear it.
However, spending the night in Allagash does mean that my
greasy spoon breakfast fantasy cravings might be fulfilled! Allagash is home to the famous Two River
Lunch, which both books crow about considerably. The only problem is that it’s cash-only, and
the Allagash Wilderness Waterway cleaned me out of cash, and there’s no ATM in
this tiny town. All I’ve got is a
Canadian $10, so I’ll have to ask nicely if they’ll accept it. Might work, considering we’re 10 mi from the
border. [Turns out they took it
happily!]
This campsite is the standard US definition of a “campsite”
these days: a parking spot for an RV, a fire ring, and a lot of mown
grass. I’m grateful that the nice gramma
at the outfitters let me stay here for free, but there’s not a tree to sit
under, let along two for a hammock. No
matter: a night on the ground will do my back good. I set up the tarp lean-to style in front of
the fire barrel to catch some heat, gathered up the mown grass to make a cushy
hay pallet, put my sleeping pad and hammock on top to keep the hay in place,
and rolled out the sleeping bag. It’s
pretty cozy. The only issue is that I
think I have my bag oriented with my head downhill… Rookie mistake. Eit.
 |
| A fancier version of my high-tech hearth. Via Pinterest. |
Facing the last few dinners means I can pull out the flavor
stops. Tonight I splurged and put both a
soup packet AND half a bouillon cube in my noodle soup, along with the
remaining beans. Pretty
scrumptious. Then I folded my last wheat
tortilla over a sliced-up wild apple with honey and sizzled it on the fire for
a bit. It tasted like a carnival.
Soon, Fort Kent! My
pizza awaits! (Also, can you tell that
I’m reaching the end when I all can think about are warmth and food?)
Things Learned:
+ The E-bivvy experiment kept me warmer, but it left my
sleeping bag wet and gross and clammy in the AM. Definitely not a long-term solution.
Trail
Magic:
+ Saw my campsite palls again today! Helped them haul their gear down to the base
of Allagash Falls. The Falls were pretty
extraordinary, and would be a fabulous swimming hole in the summer. I’m amazed that the kayaker who went over
survived. I told my pals “happy
paddling,” and the engineer gave me his card for future networking.
+ Soooo close!
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