6/28/11 Mansell Mtn. and Great Pond

Mostly sunny but quite humid. We started from the pumping station and walked the Cold Brook Trail to the start of the Mansell. Here Kelley is trying to decide whether to jump up or find a way around ( she jumped).



After reaching the summit of Mansell we took the trail over to Great Notch and from there down the other side to the Long Pond Trail ( also called 'Great Pond' to distinguish it from the smaller Long Pond. The hike up to now had been dry ( except for water I carry for us to drink) but there is a spot ( and Kelley remembers it) where you can climb down to the Great Brook which is , here, beside and below the trail. She was happy to reach it.


This is one of our favorite lunch spots on this hike ( Kelley remembers and seeks this one out too)


The trail along the pond.




A nice hike. Kelley seemed to handle the climbing without discomfort. 3 1/4 hours.

6/27/11 Little Long Pond Area

Sun! Beautiful day. We were just going to do the carriage roads around Little long Pond after taking the short, pretty trail over to the pond. However we found a trail , 'West Side Of Little Long Pond' that we had not seen before. It ran between the pond and the carriage road until it met up with the Jordan Stream Trail ( there was also a trail going off to the right that we will check out another day). We followed the Jordan Stream to the carriage road and took those back to the pond and the little trail we had started on. Met several people which made Kelley happy, and also several horses which she didn't seem very interested in. A very nice hike 3 hours.

6/26/11 Walden Parke

Another gray day with rain predicted so we again stayed close to home. Walden Park is about 3 miles away. We did the loop trail but added a section of the old rail bed that abuts the park. We didn't get rained on but there were lots of bugs. A little over 2 hours

Kelley doesn't need a lot of water










This guy let us walk toward him more than expected before he took off



Once again waiting on me

6-25-11 Downtown Bangor

Another rainy day so I put the camera in a plastic bag and we headed downtown. I usually find something of interest and Kelley finds all kinds of new scents to check out and gets to greet people, another of her favorite things . She continues to seem better again today. We started out near the Penobscot and then wandered.

The first pictures show the waterfront and the foggy river






The rest are things we found on our walk

6/24/11 Northeast Penjajawoc Preserve and Veazie Rail Bed

Cold cloudy day with rain predicted so we got in an early hike close to home. We had only a few sprinkles but I forgot bug spray and there were a fair number of mosquitoes. We walked through the preserve to get to the old Veazie rail bed and walked some of that in both directions. Kelley was energetic and I think her leg problem is improving though she still has an awkward gait. We walked for 1 3/4 hours.

Don't know what this fuzzy bug is and he wouldn't lift his head for a face shot
.


Reflection in a pool Kelley was happy to get into



Part of a decaying tree

6/22/11 Bangor Forest

An easy day today. we went to nearby Bangor Forest and explored some of the side trails and the old rail bed. The first shot is coming down from one of the parking areas to a beaver pond that Kelley likes to swim in.



I'm told this is a Canadian ( or Eastern) Tiger Swallowtail

6/21/11 Boyd Path/Road and Hunters Brook

Boyd Path /Road is one of the abandoned trails we had sought out. It starts from Rte. 198 as a park service road that leads to their firing range and then, for a short distance, becomes a disused road which ends as you approach the trees. At this point you have to look for the trail among the trees but once found it's easy to follow until you reach the junction with the Pond Trail. Here it's very wet because of beaver activity but the trail does continue, with a little search, until it swings out onto the carriage road. It appears that the old trail is overlaid with the carriage road now. We walked to the end of Bubble Pond and then took the carriage road to the Hunters Brook rail and that back to the loop road and up the embankment to 198 and our car.


These small plants look like miniature pines but today I noticed buds that indicate it's not a pine.




Some of the beaver work


Bubble Pond


Which Kelley thought was just great.


A nice hike and Kelley seems to be moving better. 2 1/2 hours

6/19/11 Breakneck Road

A beautiful day-upper 60's, sunshine, and breezy to keep the bugs down. We started at the Hulls Cove end and walked to just past the ponds where we once again searched for the abandoned trail to McFarland. Kelley took the lead and really seemed to know where she was going -trotting ahead and making turns decisively and it looked like we could have been on an old trail. But then it began to look more iffy and soon were were just bushwhacking and we turned back. Kelley was able to find the route we had come up on.

Beaver Lodge


Wild Iris

On the way back we met a nice family with a friendly dog and Kelley played while we chatted about old trails. Further on we came to the short connector to the carriage road and Kelley wanted to take it. It's almost as if she knew it led to a pond where she got another swim.
Nice hike 2 1/2 hours

6/17/11 Sears Island

We started our walk along the west shore and followed that until we came to the jetty. Kelley wanted to go inland so we took the road back to the gate and then walked along the east shore for a ways before turning back. A very pleasant day. Kelley still has a bit of a limp but it seems better and she was not hesitant about walking. I took a lot of pictures so bear with me.

Barnacles


Snail











An old hollowed out stump





Kelley really enjoying swimming in the ocean












More stumps