View Full Version : car break-ins in western Maine
matt harris
08-08-2006, 22:26
Hi
I just returned from section hiking the Bigalow section of western Maine, parked car on Rt 27 and got dropped off at the Kenebec.
5 days later I found my Nisaan broken into with a rock thru a side window and everything (including my clothes) were gone. Camera, GPS, clothing, spare camping gear and my food stash all gone.
I had heard about problems at Rt 4 near Rangley, but not on 27 near Stratten.
This happened sometime during the week of August 1-5
I filed a police report with the Maine state troopers.
Anyone out there has similar problems or know about other car break-ins at AT crossings in Maine?
Mean people suck.
Sorry about your horrible experience. It happened to me too, but never on the AT.
Chances are good that it will never happen again.
Search WB for 'break-ins.' There are a couple of threads with very good advice about lessening the odds.
Yogi's car was broken into near Rangely in '99. They smashed in one window. Good thing neither of us caught them in the act. If that had happened there would have been two broken windows. One that the perp smashed with a rock and the second smashed in with the perps head!
Footslogger
08-08-2006, 23:40
We were shuttled to Rangeley on July 2nd. When we got to the parking lot at Rt 4 there was a hiker who just walked out of the woods and found 2 of his tires slashed and flat. Now one flat can be dealt with but the A$$hole who did this really wanted to make it nearly impossible for the driver/hiker to repair the damage without assistance. What kind of sicko does stuff like that ?? Sure would be nice, just once, to catch them in the act !!
'Slogger
TJ aka Teej
08-09-2006, 12:58
This happened sometime during the week of August 1-5
I filed a police report with the Maine state troopers.
Hi Matt, welcome to Whiteblaze.
Thanks for letting us know what happened to you and where you were parked. Vandalism and theft happens at trailheads in Maine. The bad guys know if your car is there at night that you won't be back soon, kids looking for beer coolers, and there's a certain element that'll trash your car because of your bumper sticker choice. At Abol Bridge in February my unlocked, empty truck, with open and empty cooler on the seat had both the passenger and driver's side windows smashed during the 5 hours I was off on a day hike. Its the risk we take leaving cars at trailheads.
max patch
08-09-2006, 13:55
15 to 20 (plus or minus) years ago cars were actually set on fire for a while that were parked near the northern terminus of the Long Trail.
Tankerhoosen
08-30-2006, 01:56
So I was planning to hike in the bigelows this weekend, should I be going elsewhere?
-Tankerhoosen
LostInSpace
08-30-2006, 02:10
Anyone ever consider putting one of those motion sensor cameras that hunters use for wildlife in their vehicle?
TJ aka Teej
08-30-2006, 08:49
So I was planning to hike in the bigelows this weekend, should I be going elsewhere?
-Tankerhoosen
Welcome, Tankerhoosen!:welcome
Hiking in the Bigelows is worth the small - very small - chance your car might be damaged or broken into.
Have fun!
So I was planning to hike in the bigelows this weekend, should I be going elsewhere?
-Tankerhoosen
You can also leave your car in town and get shuttled. Or take the blue blaze trail and walk out of town. You have other choices.
Hi
I just returned from section hiking the Bigalow section of western Maine, parked car on Rt 27 and got dropped off at the Kenebec.
5 days later I found my Nisaan broken into with a rock thru a side window and everything (including my clothes) were gone. Camera, GPS, clothing, spare camping gear and my food stash all gone.
I had heard about problems at Rt 4 near Rangley, but not on 27 near Stratten.
This happened sometime during the week of August 1-5
I filed a police report with the Maine state troopers.
Anyone out there has similar problems or know about other car break-ins at AT crossings in Maine?
I suspect the motive is more vandalism, than thievery. There's an ugly mood circulalating around these days, a hatred of people with different goals and interests.
I think of it as the Rush Limbaugh syndrome. Some one regularly eats lunch at one of our town land trust parking lots and deliberately dumps his trash on the ground. Someone of the same ilk regularly dumps beer and soda cans at the head of my driveway, I presume because my name is most prominently associated with the land trust and conservation. (Maine is a returnable container pioneer, I welcome the extra quarter every few days)
Last month the local ATV club deliberately sabotaged a joint trail rebuilding grant, costing the land trust nearly $10,000. ATV damage was why we needed the grant. The grant was for a joint hiking and motorized trail. Their withdrawal meant we were no longer eligible.
The club has never officially explained to us why they withdrew. Members say it was because they had "learned" that we planned to kick them off once the trail was rebuilt. Aside from the fact that we were legally committed to keeping the joint trail open for at least five years and in our minds the commitment was "forever," I had never heard the idea of eliminating ATV use mentioned by anyone active in the land trust.
I suspect the real reason was a sense of resentment. They thought we looked down on them because we liked to walk in the woods and they needed $12,000 machines. If so, they were right about that.
Sorry for the off subject rant, but I strongly suspect it's the same public mood that is responsible for trailhead vandalism, a hatred of those who think and act differently than the perpetrators.
Weary
Back in the 80's there were frequent break-ins and vandalism at the Grafton Notch trailhead. Notable at the time was that only vehicles with out-of-state plates were targeted. Mainers were left alone. :-?
Vandalism at trailheads in Maine and elsewhere is an ongoing problem from year to year. Some of these people? get caught and some do not, it depends on how bad the epedemic is at the location whether or not the local deputies get involved and stake the area out. Leave no valuables in your vehicle and hope for the best if you must park at trailheads. Most trailheads in Maine are remote and therefore insecure even along a major highway. I must confess, I've never been hit in 25 years.
Tankerhoosen
09-04-2006, 00:26
Well I went to the Bigelows this weekend, no vandalism that I saw!
matt harris
09-07-2006, 23:03
I want to make it clear that what happened to me was not vandalism. A rock was used to smash a small rear side window to unlock my vehicle, the center console and glove box was ransacked, and all my clothes, extra food, extra camp gear and a gps under my seat were taken. All was covered with a blanket. I suspect whoever perpetrated this saw the NY plates and thought it would be an easy hit.
There was no money or credit cards in my vehicle.
In 30 years of hiking the Whites, Adirondaks, Catskills, Blue Ridge and the Green mountains I have never been broken into.
I have since replaced much of what was lost, but some items I will never find, you know that little thing you once found in a remote camp store out west.....
Another thing you can't get back is peace of mind the next time you leave your car at a trailhead.