Sunday, August 14, 2011

Up Mount Champlain

I took a hike up Mount Champlain this morning. We started early, which I think is crucial here at crowded Acadia. That's the Bowl above, a pond at the foot of the mountain, with Mt. Champlain looming beyond.

And the Bowl from above, on the mountain's shoulder. You can see the fog settling in over the Atlantic.

And looking up toward the summit from the same point.

Tendrils of fog creep up the valleys from the ocean.

I love the cairns that mark the trails in Acadia.

My niece, sister, and brother make their way up the trail.

My niece and siblings at the summit.

And Mary having a celebratory granola bar. This is a little "mountain" just 1048 feet tall (320 m), and not especially steep by Acadia standards. It was still a vigorous hike to the top. These beautiful little mountains are my favorite thing about Mount Desert Island -- you can hike up above the tree line with spectacular views of the ocean and perfect blue lakes, blueberries all around, and get back down in time for lunch.

1 comment:

Jason said...

Welcome to Maine! We only live an hour and a half away but spent a week in Acadia this time last year (with family from out of state). I know what you mean when you say it's really crowded. I spent one day doing some activities on the west side of MDI to avoid the worst of the crowds. There's some great stuff over there. Hiked Acadia Mountain trail (fairly steep) and paddled Echo Lake. It still pays to get there early, though. Enjoy! (Here I am on summit of Acadia Mountain with Somes Sound in the background: http://goo.gl/mLpP6 )