3 week to Katahdin?
A buddy of mine and I are looking to spend 2-3 weeks on the AT late this spring. We want to end in Katahdin, so where would we have to start to make that work?
good morning. you don't tell us how much hiking experience you have, so a guess... 3 weeks = 21 days, with say one day a week as a zero day = 18 days, say spend 3 days at Katahdin to enjoy the park and final climb = 15 actual linear hiking days, say 5 warm up days on difficult terrain at 8 miles a day, say 5 slightly more ambitious days at 10 miles per day, say 5 final days at 12 miles a day on relatively easy terrain = 150 miles total to Katahdin. that means start at the Kennebec river in Carratunk, for a total of 151 miles. More ambitious, push the start farther to Stratton, Maine, for a total of 180 miles. Pretty sweet section hike!
Lazarus
Yeah, I agree. Start in Stratton. Gives you two days to hike the Bigelows, three or four days to get to 100 Mile Wilderness, 10 days to get the BSP and a few days in the park and a few days just for good measure. If you are feeling really ambitious, you can start in Rangely and hit the majority of the 4ker's in Maine. That is a pretty rugged area though, and depending on your conditioning, you may not make it to BSP
I would suggest Long Falls Dam Road for a starr or Caratunk, depends on your condition. One major caveat is make reservations at Katahdin as soon as possible, don't depend on getting limited slots at the park that are reserved for thru hikers. Realize there is no long term parking in the park so logistically end at Katahdin id difficult unless someone is picking you up. Even that is difficult as there Is no cell phone coverage in the park.
When you say "late spring" keep in mind that the Hunt Trail to the top of Katahdin isn't open until anywhere between May 15 and the first week of June -- it varies from year to year depending on whether snow and ice remains on that trail.
Life Member: ATC, ALDHA, Superior Hiking Trail Association
Hiking Maine in Spring might have its own unique challenges. Perhaps a bit less this year than most due to lack of snowfall, but there could be plenty of ice, some snow, and high streams.
I wouldn't be going up there until the usual late May or early June time frame. The mountains of Maine have gotten a reasonable amount of snow. Maybe less then usual, but still a fair amount and northern Maine is the last area to thaw out. Maine is hard enough without the added burden of muddy trails and high water fords.
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We started at Andover and did Mt K in 21 days. Long slow days. Figure we averaged about 1 mph.
Sounds about right. I can only think of a few (mostly short) stretches in Maine where I could walk any faster than that. Eg.,Originally Posted by RockDoc
- ME Rte. 17 to ME Rte. 4
- Flagstaff Lake shore to Caratunk
- E. branch Pleasant River to Katahdin Stream campground in Baxter
jeez, now that you mention it, that's probably all of them of any length. Everything else is either up, or down
Thank you all for the reponses. Our intended start time is mid May and we're from the New England area and have hiked trails in Maine before as well as other small sections of the AT. Rangely and Stratton are our choices from what I gather, so we can decide between those
There is a marathon race being held one of the weekends in May along RT16 from Stratton to Kingfield. If you plan on getting lodging that weekend, you may be out of luck.
Enjoy your hike.
start at caratunk and finish at katadhin
Another way to break it down. A section hiker's view of the AT in Maine.
Gorham->Andover*: 4-5 days (*= East B Hill Rd.)
Andover* -> Rangeley: 3 days
Rangeley -> Stratton: 3-4 days
Stratton -> Caratunk: 3-4 days
Caratunk -> Monson: 3 days
Monson -> Abol Bridge: 7+ days
These estimates are for summertime hiking, with favorable weather and trail conditions. Personally I'd be a bit wary of backpacking any of this terrain before Memorial Day.
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