Jim's Fall 2017 Hike: Jim's Fall Hike

Here is the journal of Jim's next two days:

Sat., Sept. 9 - After a delightful blueberry pancake breakfast at our lovely inn, I walked out of our B&B and crossed the river into downtown Lewiston. With a population of 36,000 Lewiston is the second largest city in the state. But this being a Saturday, the streets were virtually deserted at 8:30. Within a mile I was walking past one of the most beautiful churches I have ever seen, the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul. Wikipedia has a great picture of this magnificent structure and a fascinating write-up of its history. It was built to serve the religious needs of the Catholic French Canadian immigrants that came to work in the Auburn and Lewiston mills in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries. It is the second largest church in New England and on the National Register of Historic Places. Interestingly, it still offers some services in French, in part to serve the needs of French-speaking immigrants from Central Africa. We considered attending mass here this afternoon, but it would have been in French, so we passed.

Today’s hike was almost entirely on the same road, a major east-west state highway. For the first three or four miles in Lewiston it was a very commercial four-lane thoroughfare, providing this pedestrian with plenty of sidewalks and busy intersections with traffic lights. Then the road narrowed down to two lanes and the area was a mix of commercial and residential neighborhoods. I passed three Subways this morning (the first one downtown was closed all day) and purchased a sandwich for lunch at one of them.

Once again today I enjoyed great weather for hiking, with temperatures rising gradually from the low 50s early morning to low 70s in the afternoon. As the day progressed, the scenery improved, becoming more rural in character. I passed beautiful Sabattus Pond in the town of the same name. It was here that I came upon a mile-long stretch of active road construction. Several of the neon-vested laborers greeted me as I passed and noted what a great day it was for a walk. At 12:30 I found a decent spot for lunch, a shaded knoll just off the road where I could sit, air out my feet, and enjoy my tuna fish salad sandwich.

I observed quite a large number of road-side apple trees loaded with fruit. I tried several but found them too thick-skinned and tart for my taste. As I observed earlier this week, the open areas just off the road were full of blooming wildflowers. White, yellow, and pink were the most common colors. I could identify only a few of them: buttercup, Queen Anne’s lace, thistle, and various types of asters. I need to remember to bring along my Audubon Guide to Wildflowers so I can identify the names of more of them.

The vistas opened up this afternoon, providing views of fields and distant hills. In contrast to mountainous northern Maine, this is a very flat section of the state with elevations varying by no more than 150 feet all day. After 16 miles I finally left the highway and walked a very quiet country road for another mile. At 2:00 pm, five and a half hours after I started out this morning, my ever-reliable driver, “Uber Jane”, arrived. It was a 35 minute drive back to our B&B. After I cleaned up and rested, we drove to a nearby church for Saturday afternoon mass, followed by dinner at a brew pub just down the street from where we are staying.

Miles Today - 17 Total Cumulative Miles - 67.5

Sun., Sept. 10 - Today's fabulous breakfast was caramelized apple french toast!
Returning to yesterday’s terminal point, I set off for a relatively short day of hiking, the last one this week before we return home. In contrast to yesterday, I was on rural roads this morning, with little traffic passing me. It was so quiet I could hear the acorns dropping off the oak trees. The scenery included several ponds and wetlands. A large dog took issue with my passing his property and came toward me, but the owner retrieved him before he got very close. Several roosters greeted me with their distinctive call. Lots of homes here are available for purchase, attesting to a slow real estate market in Maine. I passed several that had apparently been abandoned years ago, judging from the vegetation growing up around them. Near the end of the morning I walked on an overpass over the Maine Turnpike and a half hour later came into the town of Gardiner on the west side of the Kennebec River. After a few minutes I was walking the bridge over that river and meeting Jane in the much smaller town of Randolph. Here we are just 7 miles south of the state capital of Augusta and 50 miles north of Portland. More significantly, we are 120 miles from home. A week from today we will return to Randolph to begin another five-day hike.

Miles Today - 10 Total Cumulative Miles -77.5

Jane's Voice: My reward today was a stop on the way home for lunch at one of my favorite restaurants - Bay Haven in Cornish Maine! I indulged in twin lobsters and Jim had a huge plate of fried clams! This was MY BEST day of this hike!