difficulty 1 – Colby Outing Club

A Wonderful Walk in Wintery Woods

February 24, 2015February 24, 2015 Margaret Staller Trip Reports Anna, day trips, difficulty 1, Gregory, hiking, Hirundo, snowshoeing

Trip Date: February 22, 2015

Trip Location: Old Town, Maine

Trip Type: Snowshoeing

Trip Difficulty: 1.3

Sunday was a beautiful day for snowshoeing in the Hirundo Wildlife Refuge. Last night’s snow sparkled on the undisturbed trail. Our little group was the first to mark the untouched winter landscape. The white drifts were fluffy and deep, like plowing through powdered sugar.

Unfortunately we saw no real live wildlife at the refuge, but we did see many tracks. Fun fact: chipmunk tracks are incredibly cute strings of dots from tree to tree.

The untouched trail leading off into the majestic distance.

For a sense of snow….

Here we see our fearless trip leader surveying the plan of attack into the depths of the snow-bound forest while the troops stand idle in the background.

The snow was so pretty, still sticking to all the branches.

We discovered a delightful shelter about a mile down the trail and stopped for a quick bite to eat. It was quite cozy. Much fun was had!

Farther on we came to the overlook point. I didn’t even take a picture because it was so underwhelming. A circle around a log that is two feet higher in elevation than the rest of the trail is not an overlook in my opinion. Whoopee!

Lunch was made all the better by having Nutella to put on our oreos. It almost made us forget how cold our butts were sitting in the snow.

We also found a sign that said YOU ARE HERE tacked to a tree. And in fact that’s exactly where we were. How did it know? [insert philosophical thought here] This is also happens to be an excellent picture of everyone on the trip.

All in all it was a fabulous adventure into the wilds of snowy Maine. And what a day for it too! It was almost above freezing as the sun peeked out from behind the clouds.

We Laugh in the Face of Wind

February 15, 2015February 15, 2015 Margaret Staller Uncategorized Anna, Arboretum, day trips, difficulty 1, Gregory, hiking, Lydia, snowshoeing

It may be cold and windy, and we may have had to postpone to next Sunday the planned trip to the Hirundo Wildlife Refuge in Old Town, but some of us still wanted to be outside. So Sunday morning, at 11 AM, Anna, Lydia, and Gregory strapped snowshoes to our feet and headed into the Arboretum.

We snowshoed over hills and through valleys. The wind alternately blew in our faces and didn’t blow at all. We took main trails, side trails, dead-end trails, and loop trails. We spotted familiar landmarks and went through totally new areas. But despite everything the weather could throw at us, we still had an amazing time.

Sadly, no pictures were taken so we can’t liven up the blog with those, but this is what the conditions were like:

Trail Difficulty: 1.2

Weather Difficulty: 3.7

Trails, Birds, and Snowshoes, oh my!

January 27, 2015January 27, 2015 Margaret Staller Uncategorized day trips, difficulty 1, Early Bird, Lydia, MST, Oakland, Sara L, snowshoeing

Location: Oakland, ME

Date: January 25, 2015

Trip Difficulty (1-5): 1.3

Trip Length: Half-day trip

On the bright, sunny morning of January 25, six enterprising Colby students embarked on a casual jaunt along the Messalonskee Stream Trail toward Oakland in search of an amazing brunch. We enjoyed snowshoeing at a leisurely pace through the newly fallen snow.

Eventually, the trail briefly came right up to the stream.

We then walked through a beautiful snowy forest, paralleling Messalonskee Stream, until we arrived at the 5-way intersection in downtown Oakland. The Early Bird Restaurant was just a short walk from there.

We went right in and ordered our brunches. Our waitress was Gerry, who, according to Sara, who has had her before, is excellent. Our walk had built up our appetites, so we ate our food with great delight.

We made excellent time on the way back, and got back to Colby at around 1:30 in the afternoon.

I can’t think of any ice cream or yeti metaphors to add here, but suffice it to say we all had a great time!

The first COC trip of 2015!!

January 12, 2015January 12, 2015 Margaret Staller Uncategorized day trips, difficulty 1, Eric, Gregory, Hannah, snowshoeing

Location: Lincolnville, Maine

Date: January 10th

Trip Difficulty (1-5): 1.5

Trip Length: Day Trip

This past Saturday, 11 brave souls attached micro spikes to their boots and ventured into the woods. Fernald’s Neck, just outside of the Camden Hills area, proved to be an excellent hike.

As we trudged through the powdery snow, it was decided that both Nick and Eric would be eaten first if our trip turned Donner-esque. Within the half hour, we arrived at our first overlook and enjoyed a quick photography break.

We continued onward in hopes of finding a way onto the frozen pond. We came across the “silver trail” which took us to Balance Rock.

When we reached the edge of the lake, we saw snowmobile tracks and decided that if the ice could hold a snowmobile, it could hold us. But, just to be sure, we shed some layers and took awesome photos.

After sharing lunch on an island in the middle of the lake, we packed up our supplies (including cholula hot sauce thanks to Hannah) and headed back for the cars.

All in all, it was an awesome day. The wind was minimal, the snow was fresh, and the people were awesome.

ROUND TOP!!!!!

November 26, 2014November 26, 2014 Margaret Staller Uncategorized day trips, difficulty 1, Gregory, hiking, Nick, Round Top

Location: Rome, Maine

Date: November 22^nd

Trip Difficulty (1-5): 1.3

Trip Length: Day Trip

This Saturday, ten gregarious Colby students set out with one special banana and the hope of seeing flying saucers turn the snow into flying monkeys. The trip was amazing. We hiked casually, taking breaks often, told lots of stories.

As we were almost done ascending the round mountain, we took a break at a scenic overlook scattered with rocks. Within the rocks, A PORCUPINE EMERGED!! The group was in awe. Pictures were taken, memories folded into our minds, and the porcupine receded into his warm bungalow.

A special guest, YOB the Banana, joined us in our adventure to find the roundlieness of the top. Although he had a much more adventurous life than many other bananas, his body had to be consumed shortly after the hike. External and internal bruising turned his peel brown. He needed urgent remediation from this depraved physical state, so with my newly primed WFA certification, I assessed the hazards and consequences of this matter. I opened my mouth and my stomach’s fluids welcomed his doughy substance with great pleasure. He had a good home in my digestive tract for a few hours.

Outside matters of YOB the Banana and a porcupine, the group had a fantastic time hiking. All matters of fun were explored, including, but not limited to: picture taking, whittling, cold, stories, makeshift spear throwing, snowballs, standing on ice, and climbing rocks. At the top of the mountain (it was a very round top), the group sat down for lunch. Though it was very cold to sit bundled in our warmest clothes, the view was fantastic, and the company was even better.

This hike was like a round scoop of ice cream because of the roundness, the cold and the sweetness! First, the roundness of the top is similar to the roundness of ice cream. Second, it was so cold it felt like we were swimming in ice cream!! Third, the people and hike was as SWEET as doughy cookies n’ cream ice cream!!