Dan and Hannah and Blueberry Fields Forever - White Cap near Andover, Maine

On one of the hottest days in Maine in easily five years, we are guests at our friends’ family house in northeastern Maine. They have air-conditioning; we don’t!  The trip from York is a mere two hours and 15 minutes as we take the Maine Turnpike north to Gray, then head north on a variety of small roads (routes 26, 232, 2, and 5).   In GPS we trust.  The drive takes you through 1950s Maine with houses built right on the road, farms among the forests, and rushing rivers.  It puts the quint in quintessential Maine life.

Scorched to a crisp by temperatures in the mid-90s at home, we head with friends, Donna and George, for White Cap Mountain not fifteen minutes away.  These are good friends.  You know the kind.  When we are with them, we have a voice, they think Hannah is very funny, the time passes quickly, and we play games together: Cornhole (http://www.cornhole.com/), Mormon Bridge (We’ll teach you this classic game when we next get together.), & Doubles Wild (http://www.areyougame.com/interact/item.asp?itemno=ENG1031&q=doubles+wild).  These are all good social games with the right amount of skill and luck to keep everyone interested and give each a chance to win.

Already 74 degrees and muggy at 730A, we park at the trailhead on East Andover Road and get ready to climb 1600 feet of vertical gain to a summit at 2200 feet. Lathered with Deep Woods Off, we don’t find the bugs an issue throughout the day.  Beginning on a logging trail, we soon climb among the deciduous trees (I use deciduous because I don’t pay enough attention to know if they are oaks, poplars, or whatever).  Rarely hiking in such muggy weather in the 90s, I relax knowing George is in charge.  He’s been coming here since he was a child.  Usually the responsibility falls on me to plan and execute the hiking experience.  It’s really nice to be just going along for the ride today.  The trail is exceptionally well marked and recently rerouted by the Mahoosuc Land Trust (PO Box 981, Bethel, Maine 04217). 

It’s a steady climb on mostly dirt trail that’s easy on the feet.  There’s no getting around that it’s a serious vertical climb; we are huffing and puffing.  Coming out of the forest, we begin to see the blueberry patches.  I’ve brought plenty of water, but sample the blueberries along the way to supplement my water.  My lightweight Under Armour (http://www.underarmour.com) George Mason University tee-shirt doesn’t hold in the sweat or suffocate like a cotton shirt can.  It’s very cool, too.  We drink freely and the good company makes the time pass quickly. 

Once at the top of this bald (few trees and much exposed stone on the mountain top) we scatter, take our three-cup Tupperware containers, and start picking blueberries.  In no time, I’ve learned I can grab a clump of berries with the ripe ones coming off easily and the green ones staying on the bush.  Soon it is apparent that bending over is not a winning strategy for picking berries so I find a shady area to plant myself.  Slacker that I am, I am soon thinking there is no way I am filling this little plastic container.  Having self-diagnosed ADD, I wander off to check out the mountain ranges on this summit with 360 degree views and wait till the others have filled their containers.  There’s Sunday River and Old Speck Mountain on the Appalachian Trail. 

I am so ADD.  I rarely read books, (too long), unless I am reading them aloud to my friend Vin.  I’m big into magazines (Sports Illustrated is #1 for me.  I like the New Yorker, which helps push the needle on my pretentious meter.  I like the reworked Newsweek with its renewed focus on pop culture and all things baby boomer).  If you have been a student of mine, you know that in a 2.5 hour class I might have four to five different things to do, and almost all interactive.  It’s experiential learning (learning by having an experience); it’s how I learn best - by being actively involved, thanks to my ADD. 

After berry picking on the summit, we descend quickly in less than an hour.  The trail is well marked with signs and cairns (piled rocks to show the direction of the trail).  Finding a teenage girl with a panting yellow lab Riley in the shade, we empty our water into a blueberry container for this tongue-pulsing dog who slurps wildly.   At the bottom, we are within fifteen minutes of a shower and a cool lunch of sandwiches and watermelon back at the homestead. 

White Cap Hike – Satisfying with panoramic views of the Andover valley.  Good for families and great for late July/early August blueberry pickers.  As always when hiking, know thyself, thy limits, and the conditions.  Be prepared, especially on excruciatingly hot days with water and salty snacks.