5/23/13 City Forest

The rain continues - it's raining as I write and is predicted to do so for two more days. Yesterday we just did short walks around the neighborhood but got a break in the rain this morning and got in two hours at the forest without rain.

Others were also out and it made Kelley happy to have people ( and two dogs) to greet. There was also lots of water around. These are some of the things we saw.

5/21/13 Newport-Dover-Foxcroft Rail-Trail

A friend needed a ride to Pittsfield so we went to this nearby trail. It's 26.5 miles long so we have hiked from each end but never completed the whole thing. It's been rainy and it  continues- it rained the entire hike except for one period of ten or fifteen minutes- with temps in the lower 50's but little wind.

The trail starts in the woods

but soon borders Sebasticook Lake which Kelley promptly entered.

Most of the flowers were closed because of the rain but it was pleasant along the lake, even with the rain.

There are a few camps along the lake but none seemed occupied.

and some small ponds on the other side of the trail

A little over an hour into the hike the trail comes near the road and you can see and hear cars and there are a couple of old warehouses with junk behind them.

But you soon reenter the woods and the traffic sounds diminish

As we neared Corrina and could  see civilization again, we turned back and found  a covered picnic table in one of the unoccupied camps to have a dry lunch- not that either of us was dry at this point

An interestingly colored lichen

Almost back

A pretty good outing in spite of the rain. Kelley was happy with water everywhere and seemed content to just trot along with me.  3  1/2 hours

5/18/13 Lagrange Rail-Trail

Warmer than yesterday ( 50's) , sunny, and little wind- so pretty nice.
This is one of the old rail beds that have been converted to multi-use trails. They don't seem to be used much by hikers and we met no one today on the main trail. There were some people on ATV's on a side trail we were checking out. We mostly use the rail-trails in winter when the snowmobiles pack the snow for good footing and seldom meet snowmobiles.  We usually start at the Medford end which has more variation- bogs, ponds, and streams . The trail is 11 miles long so we have not walked it end to end in one hike. This end is more like a walk along a country road.

There were lots of flowering trees and bushes

 I think this is some kind of apple and there were a lot of these trees

An old piece of railroad equipment that I though , somehow, looked futuristic

I could not get close to these but they were different than the others

After an hour and a quarter we had found no water for Kelley to get into and turned back.  Down a short path we found  a camp with bog behind it ( and 'no trespassing' signs ). No one was about so down the hill through the brush and Kelley was very happy.

We then continued back toward where we had parked.

I had seen several dragonflies but none I could get close to- nor this one- but it's my first of the year so.....

Not an exciting hike but a nice 2  1/2 hour walk. Kelley would have liked more water but always seems to enjoy just being outside.

5/17/13 Stillwater River Trail

Cold (40's), gray, and windy. I have problems with my car ( it's worn out) and didn't want to drive far so we went to nearby Orono and a trail we had not done in a long time.  We started from the small parking lot on Bennoch Rd. and headed north.

Wild flowers right at the start

The trail is close to the river for it's entire length so Kelley was happy

Heading for the river

waiting for me to take a picture

 on we go

 Back in the river

We went down some side trails looking for the Fox Hole Trail. The third try got us on the right trail. There was a fairly large wet area along the way.

A small section of the trail crosses private property and the owners have allowed access.

More wildflowers

When we came to the turn off for the parking lot we continued on to the town for a short walk around. This ( not sure what it is) was posted on a disused door- everything is printed.

Flowers in someone's yard

We took the short trail back to parking and I found one more patch of flowers

A pleasant two hour walk in spite of the weather.

5/15/13 City Forest

Another beautiful day.  Last night I thought Kelley might be a little lame after our rocky hike on the shore yesterday so today was an easy hour and a half ( the walking part- we also did a fair amount of talking) . Kelley likes this hike and today there were people , dogs, and water .

 The beavers have built a large lodge

 and Kelley enjoyed their pond

5-14-13 Sears Island

A beautiful day and the tides were right so we headed for Sears Island. We walked along the shore to the Blue Trail, took that to the gravel road, that to a trial not on the map that took us to the main road. We walked back down the road to the jetty and back to the shore to complete our loop. Kelley was in the ocean and there was also fresh water coming down from the interior of the island for her to drink.There were two dogs playing on the shore and Kelley ran up to join them but the large St. Bernard barked and she became leery of it. It's owner assured us it was only wanting to play but Kelley wasn't convinced.

Now the embarrassing part. I am trying to switch to another computer and transferring files with a flash drive and  formatted one only to find I had erased all the pictures I took on this hike.

5/12/13 Kenduskeag Stream Trail

The rain continues. Yesterday we just walked around in it downtown and I kept my camera in a plastic bag. This morning it was gray and threatening but not actually raining so we to the Kenduskeag.  The trail starts a little over two miles from home and follows the stream for 1.7 miles to downtown Bangor.

The stream near the start.

Some of the leaves are still in the process of emerging

Kelley, of course, likes all the chances to get into the water

I think these are some kind of tree seeds - there were a lot of them

More of them

There are three bridges that cross the stream - after the second as you approach the downtown there is an office building with some gardens. Most of the flowers were closed- the weather? -but there was a nice rhododendron bush

The third bridge is a foot bridge

view of the stream from the bridge

A short wooded section and you are in the middle of town. We walked back a short ways on the street and then rejoined the trail to return to our starting point.

Some other things we saw

Following Kelley down to the water gave me lots of different views of the stream

Almost back to the car- and good timing as it started to rain again

but time for two more pictures

An enjoyable outing in spite of the gray skies- we got in an hour and three quarters without rain.