April 27, 2018
THREE MONTHS. Three months we waited to return to where our souls feel complete, not knowing exactly how much of the snow that had quickly driven us out of there was remaining on the ground; not knowing the condition of the 2 mile trail leading to camp. It was the longest three months EVER!! 😂 I'd talked to some residents in the area and they said that sometimes the snow lasts until June! We were hesitant to make the long drive and run the risk of conditions being poor. Maine, I've heard, has five seasons - Winter, Spring/Thaw, Mud, Summer, Fall. Maybe even six seasons if you count the dreaded "bug season". Many roads and trails are closed during Mud Season to preserve their integrity. Traveling in mud can cause large ruts that dry as such which typically lead to terrible road conditions.
All things considered, it got to the point that we were willing to drive there and back same-day if need be. We'd tackled a longer ride (900 miles) in one day to pick up Tyson from Western New York many years ago, so we knew it was feasible. The land was beckoning sweetly to our souls, and we had to answer it's call. We were powerless to resist at this point.
We left early and arrived to the trail leading in to camp around 10:30 a.m. There was still a little snow on the trail, and thankfully the mud wasn't terrible.
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| The beginning of the 2 mile trail leading in to camp |
As we crawled the truck down the trail, our minds were racing with thoughts of the camp's condition. We left in such a hurry last time that we couldn't button anything up for the winter like I'd wanted to. We quite literally abandoned ship. We are always concerned for robbers but figured that, being 2 miles from the town's dirt road, no one would make the long arduous trek in the snow to our camp. Probably we'd have to worry more about that in the warmer months where the hike would be easier, and accessible by off-road vehicle. We have to figure out a secure way to store valuable items (chainsaw, tools, etc) so we don't have to pack them every time.
While our minds were racing, our eyes were roving, seeking out any millimeter of movement from the forest. We've yet to experience any wildlife other than seeing a few deer and the coyote footprints, and hearing the coyotes calls, in addition to seeing some grouse along our driveway. We assume there would be bear and moose around, but the neighbors have said they haven't seen much bear activity, even though that doesn't mean anything when you consider the wide expanse of the wilderness in Central Maine. We'll keep our eyes and ears open, thank you!
Wait a minute... What's that on the trail ahead? Something of the likes that we've never seen before...
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| wat? |
Holy smokes! It's moose scat! Look at the size of the pile!
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| Moose poop pictured with my size 7 1/2 foot |
If you look at the picture below, you can see it contains hay-like materials. One way that you can identify the type of animal is by dissecting the poop. ...yes, dissecting poop. What you see in the scat is what the animal consumes but wasn't able to digest, and each animal consumes pretty specific food sources. Don't touch it with bare hands, obviously, and try to stay downwind, but poke at it with a stick to see inside. If you are equipped with latex gloves, or if you have a way to wash your hands immediately, you can pick it up and squeeze it - if it's soft and slightly warm, you know the animal was recently nearby. If you're interested, here is a link that describes the different types of scat you may find in Maine - ( https://www.northwoodsguides.com/animal_scat_notes.php) I've actually read that in a survival situation you can use moose scat as a very effective fire starter! We looked around but didn't find any prints. Onward ho!
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| Close up of moose poop |
Finally we make it to camp and thankfully everything looks just as we hurriedly left it all those weeks ago. Now that the snow is gone, we can see how much scrap wood the former owner left behind that's been ruined from the snow. We're going to have a lot of burning to do. There is an old rickety ladder and so many 2x4s with nails protruding upwards like dangerous booby-trap daggers waiting to stab their first victim. We work on moving them so Tyson doesn't injure himself. Willow is supervising from the discarded ladder - notice how it's held together by a rope below her front paws? In the background of the picture below, there is [what used to be] a pile of aluminum roofing 😍 and some junk particle boards still covered with the remnants of snow.
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After surveying the small cleared area and how it was sopping wet, we notice that the aluminum roofing and particle board are actually lying IN the ditch that seems to have been created for water diversion. Because all of those items are now in the ditch, the water/melt has backed up and is flooding the grassy area. See the little pond formed in the picture below? It shouldn't be standing water - for many reasons.
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| Willow does not approve |
Taking a break, Willow went in to the camper to have a cat nap while R, Tyson, and I took a little walk through our woods.
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| Willow having a bit of a bath before her cat nap |
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| Black and White Birch |
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| The driveway heading in to camp |
The next morning, I snapped this shot of Willow sleeping in between me and R 😻. She slept in my sleeping bag most of the night, as she usually does when we're camping. Usually at home she is a very independent girl and only comes to me at night for 10 minutes of snuggles a few times a week, so I soak up this kitty love.
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| Me and Willow |
On this day, our main goal was to find a property marker and try to get a better feel of where our boundary lines are. The land had been surveyed once in the 80's. It turns out, it's typical for each new land owner to go around the property and re-tag the trees. We were able to re-mark a good portion of the east property line from the water to the trail. Our land crosses over the trail, but we were running out of daylight and marking tape so opted to continue on this venture another day. I love these land exploring days because we get to see the beautiful sights typically hidden within the undisturbed forest.
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| See the old pink ribbons and red paint swatches on the center trees? |
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| Can you spot the fluorescent yellow ribbons tied around the trees? I see about 4. |
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| So much going on in this picture |
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| Fallen giant |
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| Near the stream; one of the largest trees we've found |
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| The property marker closest to the stream |
The three of us hoofed it back to camp. Willow was holding down the fort. I hung some wind chimes that N had gotten for me the previous Christmas.
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| Willow inside the camper |
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| Windchimes from "N" ♥ |
R & I were working our way around the shell of a cabin, picking up discarded wood, when R found a 2x4 leaning up against the cabin and noticed something peculiar about it. We took a closer look and realized that the 2x4 had porcupine quills embedded into it! Once again - a sight neither of us has ever seen before! The quills are actually squishy and filled with air. One tip - the tip that embeds itself into whatever it connects with - has a fish-hooked end. The other side has a very sharp point. You could feel the barb as you gently pulled a quill out of the wood, but yet they stuck well enough to the wood that they did not move a fraction when we relocated the wood to take a better picture. Not sure what happened here - contrary to some beliefs, porcupines do not "throw" their quills. They must come in to contact with something to release the defense mechanism. I pray to all the gods that Tyson never encounters a porcupine... We've read that you can cut off the tip of the quill to release the air pressure, which could potentially make it easier to remove, but other resources say not necessarily. However, if left untreated, the body can eventually ABSORB the quills, which can then damage internal organs! I received a referral recently for a good vet, and I should dig that name and number out to keep hand - just in case.
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| 2x4 embedded with porcupine quills |
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| 2x4 embedded with porcupine quills |
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| 2x4 embedded with porcupine quills |
After we recovered from the awe of nature, Willow came out of the camper to relax and explore some more with us as we farted around. We hung an american flag at the end of our driveway.
It was SUCH a WONDERFUL weekend. Our souls feel incredibly rejuvenated since returning to our land, and feel the pull to never leave once we get there. After night fell, we realized we didn't hear the coyotes as we had in the winter months. I suppose that's because they're no longer hunting in a pack, and are able to return to their solitary lives since the arrival of spring and all of it's bounty.
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| Driveway to the right, trail in the center; our land is bisected by the trail, and begins at the eastern edge of our driveway |
