After the rain yesterday, we awoke to a glorious sunny day, but it was cold. The rain had cleaned the skies and they were a brilliant blue and the wet leaves looked so saturated. And off we went…

We started with a drive up Quill Hill outside of Rangeley. Quill Hill lookout is the result of one man’s vision, commitment, money, time, and hard work. After retiring as a logging owner and executive, Adrian Brochu, spent the next ten years single-handily building a four mile road to the top of this mountain on his family’s property so he could share the view with everyone. Though the family still owns the land, it is now protected by a Public Land Trust. It is truly a remarkable view.

Next up was a drive out to the town of Stratton for a view of Flagstaff Lake and the Bigelow Mountains. It was a bit of a one shot wonder, but quite pretty.

Finally, we stretched our legs with a hike to Hunter Cove, which is an inlet of Rangeley Lake. If you have ever hiked much in the Northeast you know about all of the roots protruding from the hiking paths. Apparently, the top soil here is shallow glacial deposits that sit on bedrock below. Also, nature evolved to have trees with shallow roots like Maples, Beeches, and Birches that thrive here. Hence, hiking trails are full of exposed root systems protruding from the ground that make walking a bit treacherous. One must pay attention to where they step. And, it was a bit boggy.