First time skiing at Caribou Bog Conservation Area (Orono) and finally found Bangor Hill! My mother has kept a Caribou Bog ski race hat for decades. I never made it here until last summer. I ended up lost in a downpour, trying to find Bangor Hill after climbing Newman Hill. More trails here than any map or app suggests. Gaia actually depicts two Bangor Hills. It felt like a miracle when I emerged out of the woods to the sight of Black Pond.
The place hooked me. I came back with my five year old in hopes of climbing Bangor Hill. Ice skaters deterred us. Nothing to see there, not a view of Katahdin like I read somewhere.
I did not arrive today with any hope of finding Bangor Hill. I wanted the miles of groomed trails, like the other skiers in the packed lot. I started with skiing the old railroad bed to Kirkland Road. If I only skied that, it would have been a spectacular day.
On the way back, I opted for the Heron Loop. At the end of the Heron Loop, it did not look that far to the elusive Bangor Hill. Nothing about the approach seemed steep. I focused on not making any wrong turns, and I made it! As the skaters said, the summit is wooded and recent thinned. No view of Katahdin (I searched), but a nice bench.
I did not consider that the most efficient descent trail may not be as gentle as the ascent trail. I have been skiing since I was 3 or 4, but my snowplow is rusty. My knees are still strong. They saved me from death, I am sure of it. I found it thrilling to reach the bottom still on my skis and not in a snow bank.
For the third time, I left Caribou Bog with a new story to relish. I love that Orono has this sprawling wild space for adventures. Cannot wait to see more!
Maine: The Way Life Turned Out 