Hiking the abandoned AT Route

[weary]

Here's an interesting account about finding the original AT route in Maine.

http://www.trailspace.com/news/2007/...-part-one.html

[Gaiter]

interesting, i'm looking forward to the next part

[woodsy]

Good reading. What happened to .......

The AT was originally conceived by Benton MacKaye in 1921 as a network of planned wilderness communities connected by a mountain trail.

the planned wilderness communities?

[rafe]

Are there any serious AT hikers who haven't walked a stretch of "old" trail? It's happened to me several times... on Standing Indian Mtn., near Falls Village CT, the old Sherbourne Trail (VT), and near Monson, to name a few off the top of my head. Some of these walks were intentional, some were accidental. On the Falls Village walk, I could clearly make out the painted-over blazes.

I'm also interested in the issue that Woodsy brings up. I suspect MacKaye was inspired by the AMC hut system, and my reading of his bio indicates he was a "social engineer." But if MacKaye was the dreamer, Avery was the "doer" and apparently Avery wasn't interested in that part of the dream.

[The Old Fhart]

You can read (or download) "An Appalachian Trail: A Project in Regional Planning" by Benton MacKaye that describes his plan and ideas that formed the basis for the A.T.. Somethings obviously changed.

[woodsy]

Thanks TOF for that link, more interesting reading.
I pulled this out of the 1st page which gives one reason for planned wilderness communities.
Most sanitariums now established are perfectly useless to those afflicted with mental disease - the most terrible, usually, of any disease. Many of these sufferers could be cured. But not merely by "treatment." They need acres not medicine. Thousands of acres of this mountain land should be devoted to them with whole communities planned and equipped for their cure.

On another note, got on an old piece of AT going south at West Carry Pond
recently. Came back onto the new within a Quarter to Half mile . It had no markings/blazes but I just knew it would come out somewhere, lol.

[warraghiyagey]

Gotta love that Woodsy. He can find a trail where there isn't one. Just feels the energy.

[weary]

Good reading. What happened to ....... the planned wilderness communities?

Volunteers quickly emerged to build a trail. No one volunteered to build a wilderness community. Mckaye pretty much abandoned the wilderness camps portion of his idea by the end of his long life.The Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust, however, is working on McKayes vision for a realm of protected lands surrounding his wild trail.

Our long range goal calls for at least a mile of protected land on each side of the trail, thus ensuring that a sense of wildness will remain. Whether we succeed really depends on whether the hiking community wants us to. None of us can do very much. But all of us together could achieve a second miracle, at least for the Maine section of the trail. The first miracle was that McKaye's vision for a permanent continuous footpath has actually been achieved, something that few really thought possible in the late 40s and 50s as many miles of the volunteer trail succumbed the pressures of development.

Weary

[woodsy]

Weary,
Question about the original AT north of Lone mtn., south of Spaulding.
Is the interesection of the AT and Mt Abraham trail also where the original AT went down to Caribou Pond? I can't remember who told me this bit of info and whether or not it is true.

[Roots]

Ah man! You left me hanging! That's going to be good! Can't wait to read the rest!

[The Old Fhart]

Woodsy-"Question about the original AT north of Lone mtn., south of Spaulding. ...Is the interesection of the AT and Mt Abraham trail also where the original AT went down to Caribou Pond?"

Excerpts from the 1936 ME A.T. guidebook, “Bigelow Village to East Madrid Road”

This section of the trail traverses two of the finest mountains along the entire trail route. From Bigelow village…the trail ascends gradually to…Mt. Sugarloaf… Beyond the trail descends…and then crosses Spaulding Mtn. From Spaulding the trail descends to the sag at the base of Mt. Abraham…then climbs the long bare rock ridge to…a lookout tower. …From a rocky summit south of the fire tower the trail descends steeply…to the plateau at the west base of the mountain. …from the plateau between Abrahan an Farmer Mtns. The trail follows the old tote-road down to the old abandoned Barnjum Depot Camps on Perham Stream. A ¼ mile beyond, a road, passable by automobile, is followed west and south to its crossing…of the now abandoned Barnjum branch of the Sandy River and Rangley Lakes RR, app. ½ mile north of East Madrid.

This section was opened in 1933-5 by Game Warden Helon N. Taylor of Eustis Me.,…There was no prior trail to Mt. Sugarloaf and Mt. Abraham …

This point, on October 1, 1935 is the southeastern limit of the continuous marked Appalachian Trail south from Katahdin in Maine.

The 1942 Guidebook mentions there was a faint side trail 1.12 miles south of Bigelow village and RT-27 that leads 6 miles to Caribou Pond. It also mentions vistas at 7 miles south of RT-27 from the A.T. of Caribou Pond to the west. There is no indication the trail went near Caribou Pond. The trail was relocated to bypass Abraham on the side of Spaulding and went down to Orbeton Stream pretty much as it does today. I believe this was the last piece of the A.T. to be completed in 1937, but I wasn't there to verify that.

[weary]

Weary,
Question about the original AT north of Lone mtn., south of Spaulding.
Is the interesection of the AT and Mt Abraham trail also where the original AT went down to Caribou Pond? I can't remember who told me this bit of info and whether or not it is true.

Probably no one alive today knows for sure, but I suspect that Old Fhart has given us the best information currently available.

Weary

[woodsy]

I can't remember who told me this bit of info and whether or not it is true.

TOF, There is no indication the trail went near Caribou Pond.

Thanks for clearing this up....another AT myth bites the dust.

[emerald]

I believe the Firewarden's Trail to Bigelow Col and the blueblaze to Sugarloaf from the current A.T. formed parts of the former route, correct?

[The Old Fhart]

Shades of Gray-"I believe the Firewarden's Trail to Bigelow Col and the blueblaze to Sugarloaf from the current A.T. formed parts of the former route, correct?"

Not quite. The A.T. headed south from Bigelow col up the West Peak then to Horn's Pond. From there the trail took a left (instead of going toward Cranberry Peak) and descended 3.3 miles to the lower end of the Firewarden's trail. The section of the old A.T. from Horn's pond to the lower end of the Firewarden's trail was named the Horns Pond trail.

I'm not sure exactly when the Horn's Pond trail was discontinued but I had used it once in summer about 1982 and once in winter about 1984 and, although it no longer existed as an official trail, it was still pretty obvious at that time. I had also hiked the Firewarden's trail to do a loop hike over the Bigelow and the Horns at the same time. The Firewarden's trail has some very steep sections.

[woodsy]

I'm not sure exactly when the Horn's Pond trail was discontinued but I had used it once in summer about 1982 and once in winter about 1984 and, although it no longer existed as an official trail, it was still pretty obvious at that time

The Horn's Pond Trail is alive and well still. It junctions with The Firewarden's Trail about one mile in from Stratton Brook Pond. It originally connected with the Firewarden's trail very near the pond. I found and came down this original trail from Horn's pond a couple times. It was shorter than the relo'd trail. Old bog bridges still visible in wet areas. This was back in the mid 80's. Wonder if it could still be followed today? The original trail branched off the relo'd trail about one mile south of Horns Pond just after a stream crossing heading down.
The Horns Pond trail is the best approach to Horns Pond IMO, Blue Blaze it!

[Footslogger]

On our recent section hike we were told by a local about the old/original section of the AT that passed right through Stratton and up the ridge toward Horns Pond.

'Slogger

[Maineiac]

For those who may have attended the conference in NJ this past summer, they would have heard that the Safford Notch Trail, just East of Avery Peak, is one of the original AT sections. This was of course before they built Long Falls Dam and created Flagstaff Lake.

Maineiac

[Midway Sam]

Most sanitariums now established are perfectly useless to those afflicted with mental disease - the most terrible, usually, of any disease. Many of these sufferers could be cured. But not merely by "treatment." They need acres not medicine. Thousands of acres of this mountain land should be devoted to them with whole communities planned and equipped for their cure.

And since this never came to fruition, whiteblaze.net was created as a "virtual sanitarium" for those afflicted with mental disease.

[Alligator]

And since this never came to fruition, whiteblaze.net was created as a "virtual sanitarium" for those afflicted with mental disease.

Must not post...must not post..must not post.please bring my meds...must not post...need meds...must not post...how come there's a mouse on my pull chain