View Full Version : My Potentially Epic Journey
Sierra Echo
09-13-2010, 06:43
I have developed a fascination with Katahdin and the Knifes Edge.
I was thinking maybe next Spring I would take a long weekend and drive to Maine and hike both of them. My question is this. I'm about 5'8 in my hiking boots. Is there anywhere on those trails that I might have problems being too short to hoist myself up? I have no wish to make any wild jumps and roll off the mountain! I plan on taking the AT trail to the summit.
I only plan on walking the knifes edge cause the pics scare the crap out of me! LOL
The Old Fhart
09-13-2010, 07:05
My daughter hiked the Knife Edge with me when she was 8 years old. If you take it slow and are careful there will be no problems. The Cathedral Trail does have big steps so that wouldn't be the best way back down for you.
there was one place last year coming down pamola into the notch that i was really glad i had a tall guy with me that went down first and then helped me with my foot placement. but i'm 5'5"..
that being said, i wouldn't personally hike the knife edge alone. take a friend.
peakbagger
09-13-2010, 07:47
Doing the knifes edge is more a mental effort than a physical effort for most. There is one particularly tough spot at the Chimney about 5 minutes from Pamola that requires a good grip as you are essentially pullng your self up a near vertical section. (if you are going down, it means you are lowering youself down over with no visible place for your feet to land, even though they are there you cant see if from above). As mentioned, children age 8 do it without assistance but some adults have a tough time. Of most significance is that there are many sections where even if you are following the marked route, the cliff faces that you are traversing drops away below you feet for as far as you can see. In some sections, this is on both sides of the trail. There are plenty of handholds and places to put your feet, but for some folks the feeling of vulnerability is too much for them.
On issue is that you mentioned coming up in the spring. The trails or trailheads on the east side of the mountain are not open until June 1st some years due to snow and mud. Just about when they open, the black flies emerge in force and hang around some years until early July. Unless you like wearing a bug suit and love mud, consider delaying you trip until mid July at the earliest.
As for routes, a good option is Chimney Pond trail from Roaring brook to Chimney Pond, then Cathedral trail up to the summit. If you liked Cathedral trail and the exposure on the ledges on top of the Cathedrals didnt bother you, and if the weather is looking good (no wind and good visibility), then consider taking the Knifes Edge down. Once you get done with the Knifes Edge, the Helon Taylor trail down is the least effort compared to Dudley Trail. One thing to note is that there is no reliable water source on this route once you leave the Chimney Pond area or get way down on the Helon Taylor trail. A lot of folks dont carry enough and have issues because of it. There are some springs up on the summit plateau but they require losing some elevation and adding miles to the the day. By the way if the weather is not so nice on the summit, head down to Saddle trail and take it down.
My daughter hiked the Knife Edge with me when she was 8 years old. If you take it slow and are careful there will be no problems. The Cathedral Trail does have big steps so that wouldn't be the best way back down for you.
Ugly trail to go down. Never done it, never will.
there was one place last year coming down pamola into the notch that i was really glad i had a tall guy with me that went down first and then helped me with my foot placement. but i'm 5'5"..
that being said, i wouldn't personally hike the knife edge alone. take a friend.
One spot that is creepy agree. First time in a season, even when you know where the foot goes, is creepy.
Not sure it is worth driving from GA for, but it is fun. You will like it.
warraghiyagey
09-13-2010, 09:43
there was one place last year coming down pamola into the notch that i was really glad i had a tall guy with me that went down first and then helped me with my foot placement. but i'm 5'5"..
that being said, i wouldn't personally hike the knife edge alone. take a friend.
Just grab your butt and push. . . :)
I'm 5'6". No problems with anything on the AT...or out here in the West for that matter. Sometimes I wish I had the extra leg room...but I still get to the top of the mountains..if not as easy as my 6'+ friends. :) (This includes the alpine climbing I am starting to get into).
I have developed a fascination with Katahdin and the Knifes Edge.
I was thinking maybe next Spring I would take a long weekend and drive to Maine and hike both of them. My question is this. I'm about 5'8 in my hiking boots. Is there anywhere on those trails that I might have problems being too short to hoist myself up? I have no wish to make any wild jumps and roll off the mountain! I plan on taking the AT trail to the summit.
I only plan on walking the knifes edge cause the pics scare the crap out of me! LOL
No. No specific height requirements or technical climbing expertise needed, just patience and being sure of your footing and holds.
Katahdin's Knifes's Edge is awesome, but it's not as narrow as some make it sound. I'm glad I did it at the end of my AT thru-hike. My two brothers came up to experience me finishing the AT. We left their car at The Birches summited Katahdin and then continued on down Knife's Edge where we hitched back to their car. It was especially memorable for my youngest brother because he had been to Baxter SP twice before to hike Knife's Edge but on both occassions it was closed due to icy condition, which is something you should be aware of if you plan on hiking The Edge during the shoulder seasons. What a wonderful way to put an exclamation pt on the end of a thru-hike!
Like Mudhead stated, I'm not so sure I would travel all the way from GA to ME just to do this hike. I would plan on doing some other hiking/traveling/sightseeing if I was to go that far from home.
BTW, if you really start researching this kind of narrow crest hiking you'll find it in MANY more places than just on Katahdin's Knife's Edge.
One more thing. We got the hitch back to the car by a man(forget his name, I don't have access to my AT trail journal right now where I recorded his name) who had just that day hiked Knife's Edge for his 100 time. Most fitting!
Sierra Echo
09-13-2010, 17:03
Thanks for the advice everyone! I especially liked the tidbit where I should just hold my butt and push! LOL (i know what he meant!)
peakbagger, you are right about the month. I was using Georgia weather as a guideline. At work I got to thinking that would not be correct. When I got home I looked up the forecast for Baxter State Park and its 30 degrees cooler. As for mud, I'm no girly girl and it really doesnt bother me. I'm not particuarly crazy about black flies either. Do they bite like the ones down here?
Dogwood, I have no problems finding other places along the way to get in trouble. There is another place on the AT in maine that sounds like moose-something and it has a lot of big boulders too. I want to go there as well. My picking a far of destination is nothing new. I drove to Toronto, Canada just to see the Hockey Hall of Fame. I even got my picture taken with the Stanley Cup! :cool:
Crest hiking does interest me, but we just don't have those kinds of mountains down here. I would imagine there would be some in the Rockies, but I don't know if that would be closer then Maine?
Mudhead, do you have pics of the creepy spot? There really arent that many pics of the harder places on that trail. Taking those pics would be my job!
kanga, I bet our legs are the same lenght. I just have a long torso. :(
Mags, I hope you're taking pics of your alphine climbs, I would love to see them!
Old Fhart, I bet your daughter had a blast. I wish my dad had done that kinda stuff with me!
Ma- hoooos- ache(if you are not careful!) Notch! Combine a hike of that with Knife's Edge, Mt Katahdin summit, and maybe Grafton Notch(Trail -Loop), and or the Bigelows and you'll have a hiking adventure in ME anyone would find interesting!
Drive up to Mt Washington on the way back to GA.
The Old Fhart
09-13-2010, 18:35
Sierra Echo-"There is another place on the AT in maine that sounds like moose-something and it has a lot of big boulders too."That would be Mahoosuc Notch about 6 miles north of the NH-ME state line.
Ugly trail to go down. Never done it, never will.
One spot that is creepy agree. First time in a season, even when you know where the foot goes, is creepy.
Mudhead, do you have pics of the creepy spot? There really arent that many pics of the harder places on that trail. Taking those pics would be my job!
Probably what MH is talking about here, remember it well.
http://home.midmaine.com/%7Epikagnome/knife8.jpg
What is that, the entrance to Mordor?
Danielsen
09-14-2010, 10:45
One does not simply walk into mordor. Rather, one backpacks.
ChinMusic
09-14-2010, 11:17
Katahdin's Knifes's Edge is awesome, but it's not as narrow as some make it sound.
Is Knife's Edge similar to some of the final climb to Cloud's Rest (Yosemite)?
I don't want to hike Big K until I'm at the end of a thru. I don't want to "spoil it".
Knife's Edge is narrower on the crest with STEEP drop offs on both sides. Not really the same at Clouds Rest. CR is more akin to a view pt, IMO. Don't worry. Doing one wil not spoil the other. Two great hiking destinations across opposite ends of the the continent ChinMusic. You picked those spots well! Enjoy your time.
ChinMusic
09-14-2010, 14:11
Doing one wil not spoil the other. Two great hiking destinations across opposite ends of the the continent ChinMusic. You picked those spots well! Enjoy your time.
I've done Cloud's Rest, just last month. There was one spot that was fairly narrow (wouldn't want to slip right there) but in general it was wider than it appeared from a distance. I was wondering if Knife's Edge was similar.
Re spoilage: I don't even want to do the Whites before a thru.
Think of Knife's Edge as being much longer than that brief narrow spot up to Cloud's Rest.
Sierra Echo
09-14-2010, 16:40
Probably what MH is talking about here, remember it well.
http://home.midmaine.com/%7Epikagnome/knife8.jpg
That looks very easy to slide down. I would have to do it on my butt!
I've done Cloud's Rest, just last month. There was one spot that was fairly narrow (wouldn't want to slip right there) but in general it was wider than it appeared from a distance. I was wondering if Knife's Edge was similar......
I haven't done Cloud's Rest. But most of the Knife Edge on Katahdin is wider than it looks from the photos. I've never heard of anyone being hurt from falling off the narrow sections of the Knife Edge on Katahdin. People who get hurt do so by falling along the trail, not off the trail.
Sections of the trail are in fact steep. People commonly get hurt by walking down steep sections face first. When they trip there is nothing to grab on to. Just air. It's like climbing down a ladder face first.
I always advise hikers to turn around and climb down steep sections facing the rocks. There are numerous hand and footholds. By facing the trail, you can see the handholds. Having someone tell you where to place your feet helps, but is not essential. Just feel and peer around and you will find a place for your feet.
For most of the knife edge, one would have to really try to fall off on one side or the other. The one sheer drop that I remember, has a wall of rock on one side that I held on to.
I think of the Knife Edge as sort of "fun scary." A bit like a carnival ride. Follow the "rules" and you will be okay. Even if you don't follow my rules you will probably be okay. It's just that I don't like going down ladders face first. I've heard too many stories of hikers falling and breaking arms and other bones.
Weary