This was our last of the New England 67 4000′ summits – ten years in the making and something of a metaphorical journey of our relationship together.   Shortly after Jeanne and I met, one of our conversations turned to our leisure activities – “Oh, you hike?” – and so, we wrote and continue to write our book.  Many miles, many journeys, engagement/marriage, and, of course peakbagging.

We’d planned to do the 3 summits in Baxter State park and had traveled to the area (a 5+ hour drive) to attempt all three during a week in July.  We’d been blessed with stunning weather – a strong high pressure system hovering over the north east brought clear skies and low humidity.    We’d finished Katahdin on thursday – Baxter/Hamlin peaks had really kicked our butts – a 12-hour hike, for the 16+ miles, including one mild-sprained ankle.   At the end of the day , we’d agreed to take friday as a rest day, and attempt North Brother on Saturday.

But as Friday broke, and we were reflecting on yesterday’s hike over our morning coffee, we decided to sprinkle a bit of spontaneity and go for North Brother.   We were feeling a bit toasted by Katahdin, but bagging North Brother would leave us the weekend to recover.    So we packed up our gear, assembled a bit of lunch, and off we went.

Unlike Katahdin, there were no parking restrictions at the North Brother/Marston Trailhead lot, so we weren’t too worried.   It was something of a late start – arriving at the trailhead at 10am, but there was only one other car in the lot – testament to the remoteness of the trail and summit (13 miles from the park gatehouse on a dirt road).

The plan was a simple out and back on the Marston trail.  9.2 miles round trip.   Almost immediately, we started to ascend – the footing was good, a mix of rocks and forest mulch, with several stream crossings.    We covered the 2 miles to Teardrop pond in about an hour and took a few minutes to admire the serenity of the pond, nestled in the shadow of the Brothers.  It was a quiet day and we’d not seen anyone on the trail.

From the pond, the trail climbed more steeply, in a few instances, crossing a few boulders, but nothing like Katahdin.  And in several places, there’d been some (much appreciated!) trail work, creating rock stairs in some steeper areas.   Soon, the steepness gave way to a relatively level section amongst fir trees at about 2.7 miles, through to the upper junction with the Mt. Coe trail at about 3.5 miles.  From here, the trail again climbed more steeply, leaving the scrub and ascending through a few open boulders similar to sections of Katahdin.

It was here we were passed by a group of 4 hikers on their way to the summit, which made us happy, because it meant there’d be someone on the summit to take our photo finishing our list of 67 (we’re still trying to master selfies).

The views from the summit were exceptional – we had easy/clear views of Katahdin, about 5 miles to the south east, and were trying to pick out the summits around Carrabassett valley about 90 miles to the south west.   It was just beautiful weather all around – certainly a stunning day to be in the mountains.

But soon enough, it was time to head down – back through the small rock field and the boulders, back to the junction and further downward. Perhaps a bit of euphoria, but the descent seemed far easier, involving less scrambling, than the ascent – either way, we were soon enough back at the car, roughly 5pm, for a 6hr 45min round trip time. Leaving us plenty of time, to stop in for dinner at the River Drivers restaurant and a celebratory drink to cap off our 67th summit!

67

And completion of the New England 67 summits over 4000′