Two Maine High Schools Spend a Week Exploring the Allagash
Reported by Eva Dodge with journal entries and photos by Sam Andrews.
Students and guides half way through the trip at Churchill Dam.
As part of a collective, summer long exploration of the 347-mile Maine section of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail (NFCT), students from Forest Hills Consolidated School and Ashland High School joined together to paddle the Allagash Waterway. The July trip, which encompasses two sections of the NFCT, was led by Maine Guide and retired Special Education teacher Rae Wren and Teens to Trails Program Manager and Maine Guide, Samantha Andrews.
For some students, exploring the Allagash was a new experience, and for others, the trip had long been on their bucket lists. Andrews kept a journal of the weeklong trip. Following are excerpts from their unforgettable adventure:
Day One:
We started off with a 5:00 a.m. wake-up. The group tackled the first 4 miles with little experience, and a lot of headwind, which makes paddling challenging. Despite the difficulty, our group docked at the campsite in high spirits, and wasted no time before jumping into the water for a swim. After playing in the water, the students used the last of their energy to cook dinner, clean up and head to their bunks for the night.
There was no shortage of stunning swimming spots during the trip. Mt. Katahdin is in the distance.
Day Two:
Another early-rise, but with all of the students working together, our group was on the water by 7:15 a.m. Facing a 14-mile day, we took time to appreciate the beautiful morning. We paddled through the light fog lifting off the lake with the sun rising at our backs. Soon, we successfully reached Lock Dam, and our first encounter with moving water!
We paddled Eagle Lake next, and made an exciting stop to view the Ghost Trains, which were built in 1926-1927 as a part of the Eagle Lake and Westbranch Railroad to haul pulpwood. After some exploring, our group completed the final mile of the day before landing at Farm Island. The group swam with Katahdin in the distance and laughed at each other’s terrible singing. We set up our tents for the night and prepared our dehydrated meals.
The students stop to pose at the Ghost Trains with their guide, Sam Andrews.
Day Three:
We started off with sore arm muscles early in the morning. After a 7:00 a.m. launch, and a quick rearranging of an unbalanced boat, we were off! Surrounded by beautiful lakes with mountains in the distance, the group was quiet and in awe of their surroundings, until we spotted a moose! What better way to distract from sore arms than watching one of Maine’s favorite animals go for a swim across the river in front of us?
Before making it to our destination, we enjoyed a dip at a beach we spotted from Scofield Point, another campsite along the Allagash. After this break, we reached our own campsite at Churchill Dam relatively early at 12:30 p.m. This allowed for plenty of time to complete the camp tasks, and visit the Allagash Historical Society Museum. After a quiet evening, and lots of laughter among students, everyone was surprised to see Amanda Barker and her two pups show up to our campsite! Amanda is the outdoor club advisor at Ashland High School. She drove into Churchill Dam on logging roads to surprise us with cold iced tea and watermelon! It was a great way to end a memorable day.
The group snacking after paddling Chase Rapids - the first ,class II whitewater the students experienced.
Day Four:
This day came with some much-needed rest and a chance to sleep in until 6:30 a.m. The group started their day with a mixture of nervousness and excitement, anticipating the upcoming rapids. To prepare, we gave our gear to the Ranger to shuttle below Chase rapids, and emptied our boats of gear. We added padding to kneel, and double-checked our bow and stern lines. Each pair of students navigated the white water incredibly!
Student Kaira and Sam Andrews traversing some rougher waters along the way.
With huge grins on our faces and a thrilling energy buzzing throughout our group, we packed our boats with our shuttled gear and left for the next campsite; The Ledges. As we paddled, we took in the scenery around us. The rich green forests were filled with Spruce. The river took us deeper into the wilderness and eventually opened to a lake surrounded by mountains.
Once we arrived at our site, we discovered bees had decided to make their home in the fire pit. Luckily our group was able to move to a different site up the hill. After lunch, we spent the rest of the day ducking moose flies circling our heads in the water as we swam. We belly laughed as we tried to swat each other. We dried off and wrapped up the day by playing cards and eating dinner; mac and cheese and hot dogs. The sound of raindrops hitting our tents lulled us to sleep.
Day Five:
The rain continued into the morning while we packed up camp and prepared for our longest day yet — 17 miles! Luckily, the rain stopped as we started to paddle, and we made our way to the Long Lake Dam. The students encountered new challenges due to the high water levels and flooded trails from the rain.
With risky conditions, the group decided to paddle upriver to reach a portage. We stopped for lunch, and soon after, it started pouring again! This was our group’s first experience paddling in such wet conditions, and after a cold, wet landing at Jalbert Camps, we were grateful for warm cabins with hot woodstoves waiting. We spent time with the caretaker, Norm, and read the history of the camp. Norm and his grandson surprised us with pizza, chips and soda for dinner.
A much-needed warm up in the wood fired hot tub! What a treat.
Day Six:
Another early 5:30 a.m. wake up. We took time to appreciate the special place we’d stayed at the night before, which included Round Pond, the last lake we’d be seeing on our trip. We headed into the last river stretch of the Allagash Wilderness Waterway. As we made it to the mouth of the river, the students realized the high waters were in their favor, moving the current along nicely so we didn’t have to worry so much about paddling hard or hitting rocks.
Due to increasingly high waters, however, our group realized that our time paddling might need to be cut short. We decided to make the best of the time we had left. The students sang songs, braided each other’s hair, played games, made s’mores, and watched the sunset.
Students enjoying sunset during the final days of their trip.
Day Seven:
The day came with the news everyone dreaded — the water conditions were calculated at 8,000 cubic feet per second (CFS). The ranger announced it was unsafe to continue our paddle to the Allagash Falls portage. I could tell you the feelings everyone experienced as our trip reached its early conclusion, however, it’s better to hear from the students in their own words:
“Life living outside has been amazing. It has been a long trip but a good one too. I thought that we (the group) wouldn’t mesh together, but we did in record time. I have learned how to survive the beautiful Allagash river and how to steer and paddle a canoe. I wanted to give a big shout out to Rae Wren. She has done a lot to make this a great experience for us. She has taught me a lot, so if I ever do it again, I will know what to do. Also thanks a lot to Teens to Trails.”- Melynda
All smiles on the water.
“I love being outside. I’ve made some connections with new people which has been great. I don’t mind being away from my phone.” - Anonymous Student
“It's my very first time camping outside for more than two days. Life hasn’t been too bad. It’s been nice to get away from social media and all the drama. It's much more peaceful outside. I learned how to set up a tent in record time, our group learned how to filter the water. We usually spent our time singing or playing card games, charades, or just talking. One of our adventures led us to a couple of abandoned trains. Another adventure led us to a beaver dam. I learned everything I need if I ever wanted to do a trip like this or go camping again. Some of us, including me, don't feel like leaving and could keep adventuring. I’d like to thank Teens to Trails for allowing me to be here.” - Kirk
Extended time outside together on this trip created strong connections.
“I made lots of connections with everyone on this trip. I will never forget one of my connections with any of them, they all have a place in my heart.” - Anonymous Student
“This trip was fun. If I could do it over again I would. The games, jokes, laughs, and the people all helped me through this trip.” - Sean
“If I had a choice to do anything different I wouldn’t change a thing. Everyone is great, life is good. I miss some things about real life, but if I had a choice, I could live like this. I’m going to miss this group. We clicked so fast and I’m gonna have no clue what to do without them.” --Cassidy
Ashland High School Student, Cassidy.
Although a week may not seem like a long time to most adults, for these kids, experiencing this paddling trip outside together has created memories that will last a lifetime.
Teens to Trails sincerely thanks our own Sam Andrews, Rae Wren, and Meagan Leduc for leading the trip, as well as the Maine Department of Education’s Maine Outdoor Learning Grant for making this trip possible!
American Rescue Plan Act GEER, Reverted EANS Funding received from the USDOE support the implementation of this project. The project has an award totaling $6.6 million dollars of which 100% is federally funded and directly attributed to project implementation. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by the USDOE or the U.S. Government.
