Katahdin 360

Four years ago, a bikepacking route in Maine was posted to Bikepacking.com and I was immediately intrigued. Maine has a mythical status in my mind and having never been there at the time, I wanted to experience a true Maine adventure. Whenever I mentioned the route to friends, their response was usually “looks so cool!” and then they looked at the drive time and said “PASS.”

Then one of my bike friends moved to Maine.

And I finally visited Maine – first a long weekend in Portland; then a week in Harpswell; and now, a long weekend in Baxter State Park and Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument.

This was my year.

day 1 – BSP

We basecamped at the New England Outdoor Center – Penobscot, reserving a 4-person canvas tent for the week so we could have a place to start close to the park, hot showers when we returned, and a place for our cars to be during our trip. Also, their Twin Pines campus has two restaurants (River Drivers and Knife’s Edge) making it easy to get a bite and back to camp fairly quickly.

Day One is usually a more relaxed morning as we savor our morning coffee and load the bikes for the first time. We finally headed out around 10:30 a.m. under partly sunny, humid conditions. Almost immediately, my rear rack disassembled itself from the weight. Thankfully, it was a quick fix, and we were back in business in less than 5 minutes.

A few miles later we’re in Baxter, checking in with the rangers at the gate. Ranger Aiden was suitably impressed to see two women on well-loaded fat bikes and instructed us to return our pass to the north gate so they know we made it through the park.

Baxter State Park is true Maine wilderness despite the established hiking trails, the tote road through the park, forest service campgrounds, and plenty of public pit toilets. Seriously – I wish every state took public toilet opportunities as seriously as Maine does in BSP. We marveled at the beauty surrounding us and started our “Moose Watch.”

We stopped to take a photo and it started to rain. Not terribly hard, but enough that we decided to put on our rain jackets.

It never stopped raining for the rest of the day and into the night. Something like an inch+ of rain fell. At one point, we pulled over and put a midlayer under the rain jackets to stay warm. Always fun to try to change and add layers when it’s pouring rain out.

But the rain kept a lot of people (and animals) away – so we pedaled our way though the park.

Thoroughly soaked through, we arrived at the Matagamon Gate and surrendered our pass to the Ranger, who was asking if we were on e-bikes. No e-bikes here – just analog human-powered transportation! A woman took our photo to send to her husband who is on the Great Divide Route right now.

A few miles later, we roll into Matagamon Wilderness Campground for the night. Months ago, we had called to reserve a tent site, but as the weather forecast solidified before we headed up, I made the executive decision to see if we could book a cabin or other indoor accommodations. We were able to reserve the yurt, which ended up being perfect for us.

Soaked, caked in muddy dirt, and starting to get chilled, we headed to the coin-op showers to rinse off and warm up a bit. We left our stuff on the porch and got a hot meal from the restaurant, Mama Bear’s Kitchen, before going back to the yurt to crank the heat and try to get our clothing to dry out.

Day 2 – KW&WNM

After a nice sleep in a warm bed in a yurt, we opted for breakfast at the kitchen again and discuss our plans for the day’s route. The owner asked about our route and gave us some Pro Tips that only a local would know. We got a late start (11am) but with only 30ish miles to go, we weren’t especially worried about time.

Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument is a relatively new national park, established in 2016. As such, there aren’t many front-country amenities and roads can mean anything from a wide smooth trucking road to overgrown two-track.

As with any day two, the legs are a touch stiffer and hills a bit slower – especially with 4″ tires and heavy loads. We enjoyed the solitude and lack of civilization, pedaling along dirt roads to two track to slick, mossy singletrack. We crossed the suspension bridge and found a spot to stop for lunch.

After lunch was a huge hike a bike up a long logging road two track. None of our photos show the actual steepness of the inclines, which challenged our upper body strength pushing our loaded bikes over rocky, uneven terrain.

By the time we get to the top, Ashley’s energy is waning. My water is getting low so we found a campground on the map 6 miles from our intended spot for the night that has direct access to the river so we can filter water.

WILDLIFE ENCOUNTER: We’ve been on “Moose Watch” the whole time – every time we see a logged lane or a swampy area, we scan for moose. No luck. So we’re happily motoring along on a wide, open logging road when we hear a branch crack, leaves shake, and something dark drop. We immediately stop and look at each other. Bear or Moose? What do we do if it’s a moose? Bear spray works on moose, right? Ashley takes out the bear spray and we stand there for a few minutes assessing the situation before deciding to high-tail it down the road. Nothing chased us but we had a good spike in our heart rate for a moment.

Once we get there though, we decide to just call it for the day. the Lunksoos Campground was beautiful, clean, and there was only one other camper – Mo The Gravel Cyclist. We chatted with Mo and he gave us some pro tips for the next day’s route to avoid some impassable roads. Mo is retired and spends his time out camping and riding his super-sick Cutthroat with Lauf fork. Mo asked us if we were on e-bikes.

We filter water, make dinner, and call it a night.

Day 3 – Home Again

It’s chilly when we get up so we make some coffee and oatmeal for breakfast while wearing puffies and warm beanies and gloves. We filter more water and as we’re packing up, Ranger Steve stops by to let us know the site we were on is reserved for the next few nights. We assure him we’re on our way and he gives us more insights to help make our final day very enjoyable. He also asks if we are on e-bikes (this is becoming a trend and while I have no issue with e-bikes, it’s wild that people assume a bike is an e-bike anymore).

We head out on a wonderful snowmobile trail before turning onto logging roads. We stop for lunch on the side of the road with a beautiful view of Katahdin. The logging road starts to be more two-track and then devolves further into an overgrown mess of rocks, moss, and thick leaves.

The final push was definitely a workout, as we’re tired from the previous day’s hike a bike and the uncertain terrain added a layer of challenge in just finding the right line of least resistance. Eventually we get to just overgrown two-track again, and blast through the knee-high foliage on our wide tires with a small gravity assist.

Suddenly, we pop out of the woods into a swamp and lo, Mount Katahdin in all her glory.

A few more miles to get back to the gatehouse at Baxter State Park and then a few miles on the road to get back to camp for a well-earned dinner.

final thoughts

As I write this, I am still amazed and astounded at the adventures I’ve had with just one or two other girl friends in the wilderness. This trip in particular was spectacular, in that I’ve now seen all facets of Maine – and I love them all. I haven’t been on my bike since an overnight in July (oops, forgot to write about that one) and yet, I felt strong, capable, and fully present in the moment. thanks strength training!

and also – FAT BIKEPACKING IS AMAZING. omg, I did not know how much I’ve been missing by not doing lower total miles in rustic locations on my fat bike. I am fully addicted to when I can go fatbikepacking again. Maybe it’s just my bomb-ass Surly Wednesday, but I had a B L A S T!!

I also am reminded that bringing a spare kit is crucial. Everything I was wearing on Saturday was soaked through and we did not have the means to get everything completely dry. If I didn’t have a second set of riding shorts, shirt, and a sunhoodie, days 2 and 3 would have been fighting hypothermia and hoping my clothing dried out. It wasn’t that warm this past weekend – only in the low-60s and breezy.

My parting advice? Plan the trip and just do it. Don’t wait for when you have the right gear or the right bags or the coolest route. If you’re psyched about something, make it happen! Find a friend, talk to locals, and have an incredible, S Tier time.

see you out there!