Day 161, ME Hwy. 4 (Rangeley) to Poplar Ridge Lean-to

We arrived at Plazza Rock Lean-to after the first 1.5 miles of the climb. Jason, Boomer, Single T, and Maple were there and packing their gear. They had elected yesterday to go into Rangeley just long enough to resupply, then continued hiking until they stopped here for the night.

If Tengo, Stick, and I had not stopped yesterday for a nero at The Farmhouse, this shelter would have been a nice place to camp. A stream flowed nearby and wooden platforms were provided for tents.

A unique privy was located a short distance from the shelter, which featured a sign that said “Your Move.” That’s not what made the privy unique, however.

This was a two-seater. A cribbage board was mounted between the seats, providing a double entendre meaning for the sign outside.

The trail continued up the mountain. The climb remained relatively easy.

Less than a mile from the shelter we passed a lovely pond called Ethel Pond. A mile farther was another one called Eddy Pond.

After three hours into the climb, we reached the mountain’s alpine zone. Signs were posted to remind us this was a fragile environment where camping was not allowed.

Before long, the trail poked above the treeline, and we were able to see far-off views of surrounding valleys and mountain ranges.

Clouds hung below us in the valley, but otherwise, the sky was mostly sunny. The temperature was warming into the 70s.

The trail went over a long section of mostly exposed granite. We could not have picked a more perfect day to go over this mountain.

Though the trail passed near a ski resort, we never saw any signs of it. It opened in 1960 and became the third-largest ski area in Maine.

The resort’s owner became involved in the 1980s in a protracted fight to expand the resort with more ski runs and a chairlift. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy and other conservation organizations successfully stopped those plans, and a large tract of land was sold in 2000 to permanently protect the trail.

The resort has been closed to skiing since 2015 after the current owners were unable to secure additional funding for expansion.

We lingered at the summit to enjoy the spectacular views, then pushed on.

The alpine zone above the treeline extended for more than 2.5 miles, so even while we walked we were able to continue enjoying the views.

Unfortunately, I may have been paying more attention to the views than the rocks on the trail. I slipped on one and once again fell hard on my elbow. I don’t know why this has happened to me three times, but I decided I need to work on my landing from these falls.

By the time I crossed the last of Saddleback’s three main peaks, Maple caught up to me, and she was soon joined by Jason, Single T, and Boomer.

The trail remained above the treeline as it went over another peak called The Horn, which was just more than 1.5 miles from Saddleback’s summit.

The descent back to the treeline continued over a solid base of granite. Walking on this was like walking on a sidewalk. It was a rough sidewalk, perhaps, but at least it was a hard surface without a lot of roots and loose rocks.

Reddington Stream was located at the bottom of The Horn, and nearby was a campsite of the same name. I stopped here for water and to eat lunch.

Leaving the campsite, one more climb was needed to complete the day. It was a steep and rocky ascent of Saddleback Junior. As I went up the trail, the sky began to become cloudy. It seemed the day’s beautiful weather was coming to an end.