BANGOR DAILY NEWS • April 4, 2026
On the third day of our six-day Baxter State Park expedition in 2023, eight of us awoke in the midst of a stormy Northeaster. Four of us decided to attempt a snowshoe climb from the bunkhouse at South Branch Pond to the top of 2,085-foot Barrel Ridge, At about 2.5 miles, the trail rose to an open escarpment that provided a foggy view of our destination. Proceeding through a sparse conifer forest, we climbed to the top of the exposed rounded summit that provided glimpses of Grand Lake Matagamon in the distance. The following day, five of us would make an attempt to complete the famed Traveler Loop in the opposite direction over Peak of the Ridges. From a massive boulder-pile that is the true summit, the views were breathtaking. The 7-mile round-trip journey took more than eight hours. ~ Ron Chase