In the deep darkness and silence of early morning, I drove through the wilderness on a gravel road. All of a sudden, my headlights illuminated the gangly legs of a moose.
It was a massive creature, so large that its top half disappeared into the gloom. As I rolled to a stop, my vehicle’s front tires crested a bump, lifting the lights to reveal the moose’s rack of antlers. Seemingly unconcerned, it ambled off into the woods.
Not a bad start to a day of outdoor exploration.
Just about a mile farther, I reached Haskell Gate, the northernmost entrance to Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument. There I jumped on a mountain bike, centered a headlamp on my forehead and followed old woods roads to the East Branch of the Penobscot River to see the sunrise.
Early morning sun lights the fall foliage (left) along the shore of Haskell Deadwater on the East Branch of the Penobscot River. North Turner Mountain and Katahdin dominate the view (top right) from the end of Lookout Trail, which threads through a colorful stand of birch and maple trees (bottom right). Credit: Courtesy of Aislinn Sarnacki
Open to biking and hiking, Messer Pond Road threads through a beautiful forest, past bogs and over wooden bridges, to visit campsites and viewpoints along the East Branch. My first stop was the campsite at Stair Falls, which is a series of steplike rapids.
I then sped to Haskell Hut, a rustic cabin on the banks of the river. There I met a camper who was drinking coffee as he watched the world wake.
“You just missed the pink sky,” he informed me.
“I know,” I grumbled, having spotted it through the trees while biking.
Leaving him to his morning reverie, I continued to Haskell Deadwater. There I watched the sun rise above the trees, setting the fall foliage ablaze and stirring fog from the glasslike surface of the water.
In early October, the area was experiencing peak fall colors. To my delight, the monument was filled with a variety of tree species, including plenty of deciduous trees. Maples wore crimson and orange, while birch and beech trees displayed yellow and gold. Tall spruce and pine trees broke up the fiery colors with cool greens. Cedars added texture.
My fourth stop was Haskell Rock, a 20-foot-high pillar of sedimentary rock that protrudes from the river. Examined closely, the rock looks something like concrete, but it’s entirely natural. Adding to the majesty of the scene, the rock is located within a series of frothy rapids.
Back on the woods road, I came to an intersection and turned right, heading away from the river. At a second intersection, I turned right again, with a destination of Big Messer Pond and a 1,950-foot peak called Lookout.
Big piles of moose poop littered the road. Birds flitted through the trees. Chipmunks and squirrels dashed through the fallen leaves. Mushrooms grew everywhere — wide artist conks, deep orange lobster mushrooms, a cluster of white bear’s head tooth.
A short footpath, marked with blue blazes, led into the banks of Big Messer Pond, where I accidentally spooked two groups of ducks.
I actually biked past the trailhead for the Lookout Trail because the sign had gone missing from the sign post. Just past the trail, I ran into a mapmaker for the Appalachian Mountain Club. (Not a bad person to run into when looking for a trailhead.) Together we located the trail, where I left my bike behind to hike up the mountain.
The trail started on an old woods road, which was easy to follow but overgrown in some places. Tall trees with fiery foliage bordered it on both sides. About halfway up the 2.4-mile route, I told the mapmaker that he could continue hiking while I stopped to take a snack break. I could tell that his natural pace exceeded my own, plus I wanted to look for birds and other wildlife.
The last stretch of trail narrowed as it wound through a colorful forest of birch and maple trees. In the understory, golden ferns and hobblebush leaves stained maroon, red, pink and peach added to the kaleidoscope of colors.
Atop the mountain, I reunited with the mapmaker, who was enjoying a picnic lunch while sitting on one of the many bands of exposed granite. The terrain up there was especially lovely, with humps of bedrock interspersed with stunted evergreens, clumps of reindeer lichen and bushes such as sheep laurel.
Though I’d seen photos from the top of Lookout before, the view exceeded my expectations. North Turner Mountain appeared near at hand — as though I could reach out and touch it. Behind it peeked the long bumpy ridge of Katahdin. Then the view continued west, to lesser mountains such as Lunksoos and Deasey.
With many miles to cover that day, the mapmaker left. I remained for a half-hour or so, just taking in the views from Lookout. A hairy woodpecker kept me company.
When I had set out that day, I had decided on a turnaround time of noon so I could make it back for dinner at Mt. Chase Lodge. If you’ve ever eaten there, you’ll know why that was a priority for me.
I made quick work of descending the mountain and hopping on my bike. Then my curious nature got the best of me. Consulting the detailed trail map that I carried, which was made by the Maine company Map Adventures, I decided to turn onto the K Comp Road and loop back to the East Branch on the International Appalachian Trail.
It wasn’t the easiest biking. I ran into several mud pits. But I wanted to see Grand Pitch, a roaring waterfall that was well worth the extra miles.
Even with the impromptu detour, I made it back to my vehicle by 4 p.m., after about 23 miles of biking and hiking. For me, that was a long day. But I discovered that the best way to embrace the fall foliage is to be engulfed by it for 10 hours straight — to see it from a mountain top, reflected in the still water of a remote pond.
