Great Pond Mountain

This day was a day I was intending to go to western Maine and hike in Mahoosuc Notch, but I happened to get to bed a tad late the night before, and missed the early alarm that would allow for the long drive there and back.  I decided to check out something of a smaller scale that was closer to home.  I checked the hiking guide book for southern and western Maine, and Great Pond Mountain in Orland fit the bill.  It was only a few miles long, and about 35 minutes away.

Typically I like to hike taller mountains instead of shorter ones, but sometimes a short one can be rewarding.  Smaller effort and big views (if you pick a good mountain!)  The access to this hike is off Rt. 1 heading east from Bucksport.  Hatchery Road turns off to the left, and after a few miles, becomes gravel once past the hatchery itself.  There is an obvious parking area on the right for about 5 cars or so, and the trail leaves on the opposite side of the road.

The trail began in the woods, and I'll say one thing about this portion of it: trail crews, PLEASE cut or remove the little stubby stumps of small trees that you remove.  I tripped on way too many of these, and my toes want their revenge.  Other than that, it's a peaceful experience.

I turned right at the junction where there is a sign.  There is a ledge whose name I've forgotten off to the left, but a clear granite pathway goes to the right.

Higher up, the trail weaves in and out of forested areas, giving some shade on a toasty day like this one.

Soon, I got to a bald patch of granite that was quite extensive.  It reminded me of Mt. Waldo in Frankfort in some ways.  The first thing I noticed was that you can see the Penobscot Narrows Bridge that goes to Verona Island.  The light patch right below the bridge is Rt. 1, and now I believe it is Great Pond Mtn. that I see as I heading east out of Bucksport.

The top of the mountain has a small pile of rocks, and the views are less than spectacular.  The bald patch just below it it much more fun as you can see the surrounding area better.  Blue Hill is visible, as are the mountains of Mount Desert Island.  I took a detour along the southern rim of the mountain on a herdpath until there was no more path, and got to look a bit more east.  The view below is south-ish if I'm not mistaken.

On my return to the real trail, I saw a small rabbit hopping away into the woods.  It is because of this that I may return to this mountain.  I think this would be a delightful snowshoe in the winter, though the maintenance of the access road could be questionable.  Perhaps I will report back once the snow begins to fall this winter.

Google Earth Track and Elevation Profile

The map at the TH didn't seem to match what I was hiking, but with some guessing on Google Earth, I came up with a rough mileage of 2.2 round-trip.  Roughly 700 feet of elevation gain.  Not a long hike at all, but definitely a nice place to bring lunch and spend some time on the granite ledges.