We had a nice, short 4 miles of hiking today. We crossed Kennebec river, which was done via canoe ferry. There’s a guy that just goes back and forth from 9am to 2pm ferrying thru-hikers across the river. I believe the Maine ATC is who provides this service, and they do it because of the potential danger of fording the river. There is a large dam upstream that can cause the river to rise very quickly without warning, and the river flows pretty quickly at the crossing point.
We hitched a ride up the road and went to Northern Outdoors, which is mainly used as a spot for rafting trips to kickoff, but also has a bunch of lodging options, a pool and hot tub, laundry machines, a restaurant, and the Kennebec Brewery. We did some laundry, took a shower, then ate lunch at the brewery. Unfortunately they had a limited menu for the holiday weekend, but the beers were decent.
Our friend Mike picked us up at the bar and brought us out to his cabins in West Forks. We spent the afternoon helping to put a roof and new siding on one of the cabins. We finished up just before dark. We grilled up some hot dogs and cheeseburgers, had a few beers, and hung out around a fire with a bunch of the neighbors who were out for the holiday weekend. It was quite an experience to be in the backwoods of central Maine.
