DOWNEAST OUTING CLUB

Activity schedule – January, February, March 2012

Unless otherwise specified, we meet at 10 a.m. All activities are subject to last minute changes, so watch for email updates and be sure to call the contact person before heading out. If you cannot reach the contact person, call Gloria H.

January 5: Bike path at the University of Maine in Orono. A little over five miles from the campus to Perkins Street in Old Town and back. Ski, snowshoe or hike depending on conditions. We can have lunch in the Memorial Union cafeteria

January 12: Snowshoe, ski or hike in the Castine area

January 19: Cross-country skiing or snowshoeing from Jessie R’s home in Castine, followed by a potluck lunch. Jessie will supply the chili, you bring salad or bread or dessert.

January 26: Ski, snowshoe or hike somewhere on Mount Desert Island.

February 2: Four-mile loop in Bangor City Forest, with lunch afterward at Uno’s.

February 9: Ski, snowshoe or hike in the Caribou Bog, Old Town.

February 16: Eagle Lake ski/showshoe, with three levels – three miles or four miles along lake shore, or six-mile circuit.

February 23: Great Pond Mountain Conservation Trust in Orland

March 1: Quarterly meeting at noon, St. Andrew Lutheran Church in Ellsworth.

March 2: TBA.

March 8: Walden Parke, part of Bangor Land Trust, woods trail and railroad bed.

March 15: cancelled  Bucksport snowshoe or hike.      New  hike . . . Dead River trail walk

March 22. TBA,

March 29: TBA,

Jan 13, 2011 to Jan 14, 2011

Snow is forecasted to linger into Thursday morning (the 13th) . Considering messy road conditions on Thursday morning, along with the need to clear driveways, etc., this week's outing has been moved to Friday, Jan. 14., 10:00 AM. Here are additional details:

This week's gathering is the Witch Hole pond loop xc skiing/
snowshoeing on MDI. Conditions should be magnificent. Starting at the
Eagle Lake parking lot, the loop around Witch Hole is about 5.5
miles, 6.5 including Paradise Hill. Shorter distances are also
possible. Lunch will be somewhere along the trail.

Meet at Eagle Lake parking lot on Rte. 233 at 10:00 am.

Contact Donald P to sign up, or if you have any
questions.

December 4th. Schedule Change

George and Gail have rescheduled their hike cancelled in October to December 4th.
This hike is on the Orono Land Trust property identified as "Colburn-Tech Park."

Meet at 10:00 am at the Orono downtown parking lot behind Margaritas and the Pub. There are no restrooms available on the hike so please allow yourself enough time to use the facilities at the town office nearby.

The walk should take approximately 2.5 hours. On the trip, watch out for the Big Old Tree, Pineapple Tree, Porcupine Tree, and Lightening Tree. In addition, we will pass a very old cemetery that actually has at least one Civil War veteran interred there. We will start
by following the Stillwater River Trail to the Tech Park, Down Teaberry Hill, and into the Colburn area. We will exit the trail at Winterhaven and continue along Bennoch Road back to the Parking Lot.

Some may wish to bring lunch but there are a few restaurants nearby for those who choose to eat out. Please call George and Gail if you plan to attend.

Nov. 12th hike and Dec. 17th Hike Swap

The Nov. 12th hike and Dec. 17th hikes have been swapped.

The Nov. 12th will be in Castine hike lead by Dave A.

Dave's hike was previously scheduled for Dec. 17th.
Details of Dave's Castine hike will be sent out via email shortly.

While your in Castine be sure to allow time in your day to check out the Lincoln Exhibit
it's a world-class traveling exhibit featuring reproduction artifacts from the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum in Springfield, Ill

http://www.castinepatriot.com/archives/2009/102209_stories/cp_lincoln_exhibit_102209.html

Details of Sals Nov hike TBA

Parkman Mountain & Bald Peak

This week's hike has a NPS rating of moderate (approx. 700 feet elevation
gain). We will hike up Parkman Mountain via the Parkman Mountain Trail and
over to Bald Peak (an additional 0.5 miles rt) for those wishing to include two
peaks. After lunch we will descend Parkman Mountain on the north side until
we hit the Carriage Road. We will follow this for the return hike.
Total distance: approx. 4.0 miles.

Please note: Meet at the Norumbega Mountain parking area on route 198.

Gloria H. if you plan to attend.

July 9th Hike Location Change

Due to the poor trail condition and abundance of mosquitoes and black flies at Lead Mtn, the hike for Thursday July 9th has been changed to Peaked and Little Peaked Mountains in Clifton (aka Chick and Little Chick Hills).
This is a strenuous hike with about a 700 foot gain to Little Peaked Mtn, a 700 foot descent to the col and another 800 foot gain to Peaked Mtn. On a good day both mountains offer views of five lakes, the Penobscot River, the mountains of MDI, and Mount Katahdin.
An alternative hike, for those wishing to get the views but not wanting to climb both mountains, is to follow the jeep road (1.3 miles) to the top of Peaked Mountain. This is a moderate hike with loose rock and an elevation gain of about 800 feet.
Both groups can meet at the top of Peaked Mtn for lunch and sight seeing. We can all hike back down to the parking area together.
Be sure to contact Gloria H if you plant to attend.

Schedule Change

Please revise your hiking schedule to show the following changes . . .

• New Date Sept 11 Old Date Sept 25 - Explore the Geology of Mt. Desert with Dr. Hal Borns
• New Date Sept 25 Old Date Sept 11 - Great Pond Wildlands in Orland

The 3rd Qtr Schedule posted on this blog will refelect the changes as of 8/14/08