Saturday morning 7/18, a group of 4 of us from a Meetup group met up at the trailhead on Thirteenth Lake off of Beach Road to backpack into Peaked Mountain Pond. The weather had been looking iffy and it had been raining on and off all morning which caused a few potential members to drop out of the trip.
After having introductions in the parking lot, Jason and I hit the trail a little after 10am while Greg and Bill paddled along Thirteenth Lake in their Hornbecks. A mile or so down the trail we met back up with them as they were getting the canoes ready to be carried the remaining 2 miles to the pond. Jason and I were already pretty sweaty from the heat and humidity so the light mist that was falling felt good. We took a break while Bill and Greg got situated before we all continued up the trail.
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| Greg paddling on Thirteenth Lake |
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| Misty morning on Thirteenth Lake |
We followed the trail along Peaked Mountain Brook as it started climbing. The creek was very pretty and there were some nice waterfalls along the way. The heat and humidity was pretty brutal and I was starting to get pretty tired out from the climb but right as I was about to stop for a break the trail flattened out and I was able to catch my breath. The rest of the trail to the pond was fairly flat with just some rolling ups and downs. By the time we got to the pond we were all ready for a swim. Lexie was the first to get her feet wet.
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| Lexie took a dip as soon as we got to Peaked Mountain Pond |
Bill, Jason, and I continued hiking the short distance to the campsite while Greg got in his boat to paddle there. We all met up and sat around for a few before setting up camp. There was a bit of a breeze at the campsite and when we were just sitting around relaxing, the temperature was pretty tolerable. The sky even started to clear up and any threat of rain disappeared. Jason had forgotten his tent poles so our team building exercise was to jury rig his tent up. I think we did a pretty good job!
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| Jason untangling my rope for his tent |
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| The guys inspecting our work getting Jason's tent to stand without poles |
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| Our campsite on Peaked Mountain Pond |
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| Peaked Mountain from our campsite |
After getting everything situated and having some lunch (and waking Greg up from his nap), Jason, Greg, and I headed up the trail to Peaked Mountain. Bill stayed behind with Lexie since she is getting a bit too old for steep climbs. The half mile trail to the summit is pretty steep and it took us about a half hour to reach the top. Once there, the guys decided they were going to jump down to some lower rocks even though they weren't sure if they would be able to figure out how to get back up. I stayed up high in case I had to pull them back up (we did figure out how to get them back up safely). We stayed on the summit for about an hour just relaxing and enjoying the views of the surrounding mountains and of Bill paddling down on the pond. The black flies decided to swarm around me and they left me bleeding in a few spots.
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| Peaked Mountain summit marker |
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| Gorgeous views back towards Thirteenth Lake and Gore Mountain |
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| Me enjoying the views of Peaked Mountain Pond |
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| Gorgeous views back towards Thirteenth Lake and Gore Mountain |
After we had sufficiently taken in all the views, we heading back down to the campsite. Bill had already gotten the fire going and was starting to cook his dinner. Greg, Jason, and I were very warm and sweaty from our hike so we all went to take a dip in the pond. Jason and Greg jumped right in but I was a bit more hesitant. After taking a few steps in, I thought I saw a leach so I went running back out. Not knowing where the leach went, I slowly started to head back in, being careful not to step off the rocks into the super mushy mud. I got myself in enough to get rinsed off and had fun watching the salamanders swim around. I didn't think the water was cold and refreshing enough but it was better than nothing.
After our rinse, we cooked up dinner and enjoyed talking around the campfire and watching the satellites fly by overhead. The temperature had cooled down nicely where it was cool enough that you didn't need a jacket. After enjoying some adult beverages, we all went to bed at a decent hour.
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| Bill, Greg, and Lexie hanging out around the campfire |
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| Dusk on Peaked Mountain Pond |
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| Me and the pond at dusk |
When I woke up the next morning, Bill and Greg were already up. After breakfast, Greg went for a swim around the pond and Bill went for a paddle. I hung out at camp taking some pictures and started to pack up my gear. A while later, Jason woke up and packed all his stuff up too before making his breakfast.
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| Morning view from the fire ring |
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| Greg taking a swim around the pond |
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| Bill and Lexie out for a paddle |
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| I thought this oil slick thing (most likely caused by decaying plants) sorta looked like a bear's face |
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| Getting packed up and ready to hit the trail |
After everyone was packed up, we were ready to hit the trail. Greg was going to take one more paddle before the hike out so Bill, Jason, and I hit the trail knowing that Greg would catch up eventually. Along the way back, we stopped to take some pictures of the views.
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| Marshy area |
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| Red eft |
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| Peaked Mountain across another marshy area |
Greg caught back up with us at one of the stream crossing before the major downhill section. We all agreed that going downhill in the heat and humidity was much better than going uphill, but that didn't mean we weren't still sweating our butts off. When we made it back to Thirteenth Lake, Bill and Greg again went to paddle the remaining section while Jason and I hiked the last mile back to the trailhead. Lexie followed me and Jason about halfway before realizing Bill wasn't with us and jumping back into his canoe when he stopped on shore.
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| Waterfall on Peaked Mountain Brook |
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| Much sunnier day on Thirteenth Lake |
After we all made it back to the trailhead and dropped our gear off at our cars, we all went for a dip in the lake. It was very refreshing and felt good to wash all the sweat and dirt off. After floating around for a bit we decided we would have lunch at the Garnet Hill Lodge. After finally rounding everybody back up ;) we headed up to the lodge. The views were beautiful and the breeze felt great. We all enjoyed our sandwiches and a few cold ones (including 2 free ones!). My chicken pesto sandwich was incredible. After lunch, we all said our goodbyes and parted ways to head home. I ended up following Bill for awhile until he pulled off into a Stewart's to get a hot dog for Lexie (I assume).
On my way home, I decided to drive down Jessup River Road to see if I could make it all the way to the Pillsbury Mountain trailhead since I'm planning on backpacking the West Canada Lakes Loop in September. I made it in my Pontiac Vibe without any issues whatsoever. It looked like there had recently been some work done on the section from Sled Harbor to the trailhead. There were areas with fresh gravel and other areas that look like they may have been recently graded. It was a fun drive and a nice little excursion to end my adventurous weekend.
This was my third trip with this Meetup group and I enjoyed it as much as I had the last two. The company is always great and I really enjoy meeting everyone. These short weekend trips work perfectly for me too. I look forward to more trips like this in the future!
The rest of my pictures
