Sunday, July 6, 2008

The Littlest Hikers

Going for a hike over on Mount Desert Island is one of the many things on summer’s “to do” list.

Jordan Pond from the top of North Bubble.

We ended up getting after this one very quickly, as the Edinburgh Thompsons determined that the best/only day for them to hike was Saturday. My uncle Henny is a serious traditionalist: sentimental, nostalgic, whatever you want to call it. As far as he’s concerned there’s really only one hike to do on the island, and that is Sargent Mountain. Every year, they do the same hike: up one side of Sargent, down a different trail, stopping at the pond for a swim, and then on to Jordan Pond House for tea and popovers. Admittedly, the hiking around here is pretty small scale, but, for around here, Sargent is one of the more significant hikes.

Henny very kindly invited Alden to come along with his group.

Looking out from the top of our mountain. Behind them is Sargent, where Alden and his group were.


Meanwhile, the rest of us, with smaller children or less ambition, were considering the other options (the idea here was that people could hike different things but all end up together for the tea and popovers part of the expedition).

We settled on the old standby for when you are hiking with the smaller set: a Bubble. The Bubbles are the classic hike for small children (or, crazy tourists who think they want the hike experience. Coming down, we passed one set of people including a very nicely put together woman, mid-50s, maybe, pocketbook in hand, very nice white crisp shirt and completely inappropriate shoes. Who knows whether she made it all the way up. I mean, it’s an easy hike, but, it is a hike, and you need appropriate shoes!)


We did the Bubbles with Alden and Max and Kira when the boys were 2 ½; then again, two summers ago, Anne and James and Alden and Milo and I did it, Milo at 6 months and in the back pack the whole way.

Georgia, 6 months old, sleeping.

and, awake:

This time, we decided to do the North Bubble, usually we do the South Bubble, so, time for a little something different. And, I brought the back pack, just in case…
North Bubble, yes, it really does say 872 feet. It's a whole 80 or so feet taller than the South Bubble.


The group included Paul and Eva and Rose, Anne and Milo and me, and Charlotte and Georgia.

Milo was a bit whiny at first, as we set off on the trail (poor thing, he was missing his nap), and he requested for me to put him in the backpack. But, within a few minutes, he realized that moving under his own steam was going to be way more fun, and he asked to get out. He then proceeded to hike the whole thing by himself.

Heading down turned out to be slower going than the hike up.... lots of stopping, for pretend falls and playing in the leaves and dirt.


you'll find photos of the after-party at Jordan Pond over at flickr.

2 comments:

Wendy & Jil - The Original Agreeable Sisters said...

Ahhhh, the Jordan Pond House. I recall my sister and I sitting in a car all day while may parents hiked so we could get the popovers at the end of the day. We weren't completely lazy children, we did hike the day before...and got the popovers. I love that place. The team went to Maine to play the fall of 03 after Josie was born and my dad, stepmom, josie and me went there. Love it.

Jil

Clarissa said...

okay, Jil, for real? did your parents let you sit in the car all day?

funny. different times, eh?

funny, also, to think you were here (Maine) in the fall of 03. I think we must have been neighbors already then. We moved to Raintree in the spring of 03. But, I don't think we had met you yet.

and, I don't remember Josie as a baby. But, she'd have been about 6months old, then, I think.