N.E. Wanderer: July 2014


Main Lodge at Red River Camps

For our summer vacation this year, Bethany and I decided to relive memorable experiences we had in 2001 and 2002 - a trip to Red River Camps (RRC). RRC is a remote sporting camp located in the Deboullie Public Reserved Land in T15, R9. For those of you not familiar with what T15, R9 is, it stands for Township 15, Range 9 and it's an unorganized township in northern Maine about 20 miles from the Canadian border.

In 2001, Bethany and I and our Golden Retriever Bud visited RRC for the first time. We stayed in the Island Cabin. Yes, it is on an island and the only access is via canoe from the dock at the main lodge, unless you are a good swimmer, then I suppose you could do your best Michael Phelps impersonation to get there. The second year, we stayed in Upper on the mainland, for two reasons. One, it was more convenient than having to paddle back to shore every time you wanted to go anywhere and two, it was also the year Bethany was pregnant with Ashton.

These experiences have stuck with us since we first visited, and many times over the years we kept saying we were going to go back. Well, this year we did and we brought Ashton who is now 11 and Nickel, our 4-year-old Golden. Once again we stayed in Upper because we like this cabin with its bunkroom and full kitchen. Plus it was convenient to walk down to the dock and dive into the pond to cool off anytime we wanted - something we did a lot during our visit.

From the L/A area (that's Maine lingo for Lewiston/Auburn Area), it took about 6 hours to drive to RRC with periodic bathroom breaks for us and the dog. We drove I-95 to Sherman, to Route 11 North to Portage. Then we took a left at Dean's Motor Lodge and drove about 4 miles to the Fish River Checkpoint where you have to check in and pay a fee to access the North Maine Woods. The fee was $50 and it is a usage fee to travel through paper company land.

The North Maine Woods is about 3.5 million acres of working forest land. It is primarily owned by paper companies so there are rules of the road to remember when traveling across their property. The most important rule is that the logging trucks have the right of way, so when you seen them coming, pull over and let them pass.

View up the hill to Upper (on right) and Denny (on Left).

The camp sits on the shore of Island Pond and includes the main lodge and eight cabins built from hand-hewn logs. Some of the cabins date back to 1886. The cabins all have different shapes and sizes and different setups, but they all have hot and cold running water, propane lights and woodstoves for those cooler nights, if you happen to be there in the shoulder seasons.

Fortunately for us, we were there in the peak of summer. The temperatures were in the 80s and we had a constant breeze that kept the air circulating both inside and outside the cabin. Our first order of business was to check in with Jen Brophy, the owner, she's the daughter of Mike Brophy who ran the camps when we first visited back in 2001 & 2002. Then it was down to the dock for a swim in the pond.

Pushineer Pond Boat Launch with Deboullie Mtn. in Background

After supper we strolled down around the corner to Pushineer Pond. Years ago when we first visited, if you wanted to drive the road around Pushineer and over to Deboullie Lake and the trail head for Deboullie Mountain, you had to drive through the Red River which begins as an outlet to Pushineer Pond. A few years ago the State built a bridge, so the crossing went from precarious to smooth sailing.

The next day, our goal was to visit the "Ice Cave" and summit Deboullie Mountain. It was hot, but there was a breeze, so we doused ourselves in DEET and drove to the trail head. Even with the bug spray, the mosquitoes and deer flies practiced their dive bombing skills and kept buzzing by our ears just to let us know to keep our guard up.

Looking west across Deboullie Lake to Gardner Mtn.

Looking east across Deboullie towards Pushineer Pond

Water break in the "Bug Free Zone"

The trail is about a 2.5 mile hike through the woods, across the rock slide and practically straight up the mountain. The wooded path follows the shoreline of Deboullie Lake for about a mile and a half. It crosses the rock slide at about the mile and a half mark. Besides the views, the rock slide was a "bug free zone" so we savored that moment before delving back into the forest and up the mountainside.

When I say up the mountainside, this is no exaggeration. From the lake to the summit is a strenuous hike for nearly a mile. I have to give my family credit (including Nickel) for persevering and making it to the top. At the summit, I was the only one to brave the climb up into the fire tower. It was straight up and the breeze was pretty brisk, but the views from atop the tower were beautiful. For me, the view of the vast expanse of green wooded mountains and sparkling lakes was well worth the trip.

View of Gardner Pond from the fire tower

View of Deboullie with Black to left and Pushineer to Right

Ashton attempting the tower climb

The descent was less strenuous, but the bugs were a bit more annoying, probably because we were all sweating and the bug spray was wearing off. At the foot of the mountain, it didn't take Nickel much coaxing to cool his paws in the lake. He just walked into the water and stood there, something I probably would have done if I had a change of clothes with me.

Nickel cooling down at the foot of the mountain

Ashton cooling off by the ice caves

We stopped by the ice caves and let the cool draft cool our heals a bit before heading back to camp. Even on July 1st with temperatures in the 80s, there was ice in the caves. We're told it's a great place to keep a bottle of water you can enjoy on the return hike from the mountain. Too bad we didn't take that advice. We were stuck with the warm water that went up and down the mountain with us.

When we returned to camp, it didn't take us long to shed our hiking gear and dive into the refreshing pond. The water temperature was cool, but not cold, so we spent a good amount of time in the water during our stay.

Up to this point we had stayed in Red River Camps and drove across the Red River to go hiking, so it was only appropriate that we played in Red River Falls for a bit. A few hundred yards down the road from the camps was Red River Falls. It isn't a swimming hole, but you can wade in the river and sit in the falls as is evidenced by the photos below.

Ashton at Red River Falls

Steve cooling off

Surrounded by the raging river (Ok, raging may be an exaggeration)

Later in the day Bethany and I did some paddling around Island Pond. When we paddled away from the shore, Nickel (who won't let Bethany out of his site for a minute) took off through the woods trying to catch us on land while we paddled across the pond. He seemed determined not to let Bethany out of his site. When we got back from our paddle we learned that Ashton, running barefoot through the woods, and Gloria, one of our Red River hosts, had to trudge through the woods to catch him.

On our final night, we took a drive by the other lakes in the area, commenting on which campsites were the best. The waterfront ones always ranked high. Then, after three nights, we packed up the car and headed home, happy we had the opportunity to introduce our son to this special place.

Red River is a wonderful place where you can escape the daily routine and experience the North Maine Woods in a rustic log cabin, but with basic amenities. You can let your everyday stresses melt away and just take in the peacefulness and beauty of your surroundings. Take a dip in the pond. Listen to the wind rustling the tree leaves or the woodpecker tapping out its own form of Morse Code in a nearby tree. Read a book on the porch. Go out at night and look up into the vast universe to see stars you haven't seen before. These are some of the simple things that made for a memorable vacation.

Parting pictures: