Weather: 70s, sunny, clear
Wildlife: Thousands of huge dragonflies at the summit, four spruce grouse (which Joyce says was more rare than seeing moose), one bull moose along Hwy 16 between Rangeley and Stratton.
This was one of my more memorable days--maybe because it was a break from paddling or because I hadn't hiked in years or because of the day or place. But I think it was because of the dragonflies.
We used our free day to hike up the 3212' Cranberry Peak in the Bigelow Range for a gorgeous 360 degree view, including looking down on Flagstaff Lake. It took us 7 hours round trip, including many blueberry-picking breaks and lunch at the summit. We passed through piney woods, sphagnum-covered, lichen-popping rocks, scrambled up roots and boulders, criss-crossed bald granite and quartz outcrops, ending up above the tree line where thousands of dragonflies flittered around us. It was a beautiful day. We passed only two other hikers (separate soloists) on their way down. Joyce was thrilled to have, almost quite literally, stumbled upon a male spruce grouse smack in the middle of the trail. When she stopped short and "sshhed" me, I was expecting some big animal, but she assured me this was a really big deal to a birder. Further down the trail, we came upon a hen and two grown chicks. More pictures.
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| Blueberry picking on Cranberry Peak |
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| A view of Flagstaff Lake |
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| Joyce and I at the Summit |
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| Spruce Grouse! |
When we returned to the car, we looked for a place to swim and cool down in Flagstaff Lake (which we did at, I think the boat landing, on the south shore just east of Stratton. At least it had a sandy bottom and seemed accessible.) Dried off and heading north on Hwy 27 to look at the 200 year old red pines and the historic Benedict Arnold site at the Cathedral Pines Campground. They let us drive through the (large) campground, which was orderly and fairly full. Surprising, there were a few sites still open on a Saturday night. I may have considered camping there if I'd known that.
Asked around for a dinner recommendation and ended up at the Trail's End Steakhouse. Joyce made a few phone calls and found out that her 30-year old daughter had eloped the day before, making a good trip even more memorable. We celebrated by ordering burgers and toasting Maggie with, of course, a beer.
