HIKING KATAHDIN IN BAXTER STATE PARK

MOST POPULAR KATAHDIN TRAILS

MORE ROUTES/TRAILS ON KATAHDIN

HIKING KATAHDIN & HAMLIN PEAK TOGETHER

• Abol Trail: Class II/II+ (steep with loose scree and unstable footing)
• Cathedral Trail: Class II+/III (the steepest trail on the mountain; some may find this trail unnerving)
• Dudley Trail: Class II+ (some of the most fun scrambling in the East; don't miss Pamola's Finger); take note that this trail is *closed* as of 2019
• Hunt Trail: Class II/II+ (some metal rungs assist you while you climb; enjoy the false summit)
• Knife Edge Trail: Class III (only one section near Pamola Peak is class III; the rest of the trail is II/II+)
• Saddle Trail: Class II/II+ (steep with loose scree and unstable footing)

• Class I: Easy walking/hiking with a very low chance of injury; no use of hands required; a fall is highly unlikely to be fatal.
• Class II: Simple scrambling with occasional use of the hands; a fall is unlikely, but injury could result; a fatal fall is unlikely.
• Class III: Significant scrambling with moderate to heavy use of the hands; a rope is not necessary; falls can cause injury but are not usually fatal.
• Class IV: Intense scrambling; a rope is sometimes used; helmet recommended in case of fall or rock fall.

• PARKING PERMITS - Except for Appalachian Trail thru-hikers, day hiking Katahdin from its three trailheads (Roaring Brook, Abol and Hunt) require a parking permit. Parking permits are limited, especially for the Roaring Brook trailhead, which is what hikers use to hike the famed Knife Edge Trail.
  • Information on how to obtain a Day Use Parking Reservation ('DUPR') parking permit can be found on the Baxter State Park Authority website.
  • Long gone are the days where you absolutely had to wake up at 3:00am in the morning to get in line at the Togue Pond Gate so that you could be one of the first 30 or 40 cars to be allowed into the park to hike Katahdin from the Roaring Brook trailhead. You can now at least try to get a permit online ahead of time-although this requires that you still enter the park by a certain time (7:00am, currently) or you will forfeit your permit. If you are trying to obtain day-of entry without an advance permit (because you either failed to reserve online or the website was sold out of permits), you may still want to get in line super early for the best chance of getting in.
  • Maine residents get first chance to grab DUPR parking permits, typically in April of each year. Non-residents can currently reserve parking permits online up to two (2) weeks before the intended date of their hike.
  • You can still often score a day-of parking permit for the Katahdin trailheads by arriving at the Togue Pond Gate early and hoping that either (1) the parking permits for your intended Katahdin trailhead were not previously sold out online (b) the park is holding extra permits specially for day-of guests or (c) that somebody forfeited their DUPR parking permit by not showing up by the parks' specified cutoff time.
  • Persons staying at campgrounds inside the state park do not need to obtain a daily parking permit. However, campers are encouraged to let their campground ranger know of their hiking plans the day/night before their hike.
• BRING CASH - Baxter State Park does not accept credit or debit cards, so remember to bring cash with you to cover the per-vehicle entrance fees (free access for Maine residents) and also camping fees.
• HIKING SEASON - The normal hiking season for Katahdin is late-May/early-June through the first significant snowfall of October or October 15th, whichever is earlier. The black flies that thrive here are brutal, and so we urge you to either bring a bug net or consider avoiding this park until the black fly season ends around mid-July. Fall foliage is, as you might expect, gorgeous, but the higher reaches of the mountain will likely be very cold.
• SOUTHERN ENTRANCE - Nearly all day hikers of Katahdin will enter Baxter State Park from the south via the town of Millinocket and the Togue Pond Gate. The Togue Pond Gate is about 17.5 miles and 30 driving minutes from the town of Millinocket. It is simply too far to reach the Katahdin trailheads from the northern entrance since the roads of Baxter State Park are very long and are marked as 20 mph.
  • Millinocket is a very basic lumber industry-type town, so don't expect too much in terms of gourmet food or luxurious accommodations (except for perhaps the services provided by the whitewater rafting outfitters in town). Basic services and simple accommodations (like cabins) are pretty much the name of the game here. There are a few great restaurants in town (The River Driver's and Appalachian Trail Cafe come to mind).
• STORMS/BAD WEATHER - Katahdin is notorious for its stormy weather. Many people have died or have been seriously injured here. Avoid this mountain when severe weather is threatening. If you find snow or ice present on the trails and you don't have the necessary gear (i.e. foot traction), we suggest just turning around and hiking Katahdin another time.
• TRAILS TO AVOID WHEN DESCENDING - The Cathedral, Abol and Dudley trails on Katahdin are not recommended for descent. These are the most consistently intense and steep hiking routes on the mountain, and all of them involve significant rock scrambling or loose scree slopes.
  • However, hikers do descend the Abol and Dudley trails quite frequently without incident, so it is not impossible to hike down these routes.
  • Descending the Cathedral Trail is outright dangerous and should only be performed as an absolute last resort.
• SADDLE TRAIL - The Saddle Trail is perhaps the least enjoyable trail on the mountain - it is a steep scree slope, with loose/unsure footing. At this point in our hiking careers, we have pretty much decided that we really dislike this trail. We typically add Hamlin Peak to our hike so that we can avoid the Saddle Trail but still do a big loop of Katahdin.
• KATAHDIN IN WINTER - You can hike Katahdin in winter, but you need solid winter/mountaineering experience and permission from the park. Many winter hikers will cross-country ski into and stay at the heated bunkhouse at Chimney Pond. The bunkhouse can then be used as a basecamp to climb Katahdin, most commonly with crampons and an ice ax via the Saddle Trail.
• APPALACHIAN TRAIL HIKERS - If you hike Katahdin between August 15th and October 15th, you stand a fair chance of seeing some hikers finish their journey of the 2,180-mile Appalachian Trail. This is a huge moment for them in their lives, and it's quite an experience to watch these celebrations.
• CUT-OFF ENTRY TIME - You have to enter the state park by a certain time in the early morning hours or you'll forfeit your parking permit. In the past, the cutoff time was 7:00am, but you should always check the Baxter State Park Authority website for the most current cutoff time. You also have to actually start hiking up Katahdin before the strict cutoff times that are set by the park rangers.
• ASCEND OR DESCEND THE KNIFE EDGE - We find it much more enjoyable to ascend the Knife Edge Trail than to descend it. It is simply easier to scramble up this trail than down it in our opinion. Also, the steepest part of the Knife Edge Trail is the chimney just below Pamola Peak. If you can get through this section, the rest of the Knife Edge can be pure hiking bliss since you know that the most challenging / potentially scary section is already over.
• KNIFE EDGE TRAIL - Most hikers will only hike the Knife Edge Trail once per trip; in other words, they will take another route up or down the mountain to make a loop (or a "lollipop" type of loop).
• BLAZING - All trails on Katahdin are marked with blue blazes, except for the Hunt Trail, which is white-blazed like the rest of the Appalachian Trail.
• OTHER TRAILS - The Knife Edge Trail isn't the only worthwhile way to hike Katahdin - there are other trails that are nearly as fun and scenic. The Hunt Trail is one excellent alternative.
• SLOW HIKING - Even strong hikers will only average 1.0-1.25 miles hiked per hour on Katahdin's extremely rocky and tough trails. Don't expect any quick miles on this mountain, and always carry a headlamp (or two) in case it gets dark sooner than you expected.
• CELL PHONES - Your cell phone probably won't work on Katahdin, and it definitely won't work on the park roads. Also - be careful about trying to get into the park by using GPS. GPS doesn't always direct you to the park entrance; instead, it often tries to send you to the administrative offices of Baxter State Park, which are in Millinocket. It is recommended that you print a map before leaving and use that map to get to the Togue Pond Gate. There are some signs pointing towards Baxter State Park as you leave Millinocket, but it fairly easy to miss spotting them.
• HAMLIN PEAK - Peakbaggers will often combine hiking Hamlin Peak and Katahdin/Baxter Peak into one tough day hiking loop. This makes for a tough day, but the scenery is fantastic and you have an opportunity to avoid having to take the less-than-optimal Saddle Trail.
• CATHEDRAL TRAIL - The steepest trail on Katahdin is the Cathedral Trail. If you hike this trail, we hope you are comfortable with exposure and we also pray that the ledges aren't wet or icy for you. Oh, and don't even think about descending this trail-doing so is generally regarded as too risky.
• DIFFICULTY - Generally speaking, and depending upon the routes you select, Katahdin is perhaps 10-25% more difficult than hiking Mount Washington in New Hampshire. There are no easy routes to the summit of Katahdin/Baxter Peak - all trails are tough, rocky and long.
• TRAIL JUNCTIONS - All trails and trail junctions are extremely well-marked on Katahdin. As long as the peak is not shrouded in fog, the risk of getting lost is truly minimal. When fog is present, there are a fair number of cairns above treeline to help you navigate. Katahdin in a winter white-out probably wouldn't be fun, but luckily for us snow generally doesn't start hitting the mountain until early to mid-October in most years.
• 10 ESSENTIALS - As a reminder, you should always carry the "10 Essentials" when hiking Katahdin, which includes bringing a high-quality whistle and at least one headlamp.
• DRINK FLUIDS - We typically drink a full 4 liters of water + 1 liter of Gatorade whenever we hike Katahdin. This tough mountain really tends to drain you, so bring more than you think you'll need.
• ROCK SCRAMBLING - If you enjoyed rock scrambling on Katahdin, there are many more mountains in New England that offer rock scrambling. In fact, there are several other mountains throughout New England that have scarier rock scrambles than Katahdin.
• OTHER DAY HIKES - There are many other excellent day hikes in Baxter State Park besides Katahdin. In other words, try to stay in the park or in the greater Millinocket area and hike more than just Katahdin.
• ELEVATION GAIN - All routes that climb Katahdin gain a total of at least 3,900-4,000 feet of elevation gain. If you also climb nearby Hamlin Peak, you can add a few hundred additional more feet to that amount.
• ABOVE TREELINE - All of the routes that climb Katahdin are well above treeline and are 100% exposed to the weather/elements. All trails also include some degree of rock scrambling-if you are moderately afraid of heights (or worse), this is simply not the mountain for you.
• ACCOMMODATIONS - In addition to the campgrounds inside the state park, there are several campgrounds, cabin rentals and hotels in the greater Millinocket area. We haven't found one outside of the park that we are absolutely in love with yet. Our favorite campground outside of the park at the current moment is probably the Katahdin Shadows Campground. We like their cabins and their "jungle" tenting area. However, this campground is about 45 minutes from the south entrance of the park.
• UNPAVED ROADS - All of Baxter's roads are unpaved, but a 2WD vehicle is normally just fine. We can't remember ever seeing a car that was not able to drive Baxter's park roads. Motorcycles, dirt bikes, ATVs, etc. and are not permitted. You can bicycle the park roads.
• WHITEWATER RAFTING - Since you probably have to drive many hours to get the Millinocket/Baxter State Park area, you might as well also take a whitewater rafting trip on the most intense commercially-guided river in New England: the Penobscot River. Northern Outdoors and NEOC are two well-established guiding companies that offer rafting trips + lodging and other services. We've rafted the Penobscot River ourselves, and it's a wonderful experience.

MORE GREAT DAY HIKES IN BAXTER STATE PARK

• WATERFALLS
  • Little Abol Falls - 0.8 mile (each-way) from Abol Campground to a modest waterfall
  • Big & Little Niagara Falls - 1.2 mile (each-way) hike from Daicey Pond to several series of waterfalls
  • South Branch Falls - 0.5 mile (each-way) to a small waterfall
  • Howe Brook Falls - 3.0 miles (each-way) to a lovely waterfall
  • Katahdin Stream Falls - 1.1 miles (each-way) to beautiful, multi-tiered falls
• LAKES/PONDS
  • Katahdin Lake
  • Chimney Pond
  • Daicey Pond
  • Five Ponds Trail
• MOUNTAINS/PEAKS
  • The Owl
  • Mount Oji
  • Burnt Mountain
  • Traveler Mountain Loop
  • Mt. Coe/South Brother Loop
  • Doubletop Traverse
  • North Brother
  • South Turner Mountain

BACKPACKING IN BAXTER STATE PARK

• Some of the finest backpacking on the East Coast can be found in Baxter State Park. It takes a lot of planning (and a bit of luck) to score the permits needed to backpack where and when you want in the park. You can hike to remote summits, visit seldom-seen waterfalls, and you'll spot moose with relative ease.
• Backpacking in Baxter State Park is a mix of tent-sites and lean-tos. There are dozens of exclusive-use lean-tos you can reserve for yourself or your group. There aren't many places where you can rent lean-tos exclusively for backpacking, so this is a real treat.
• Chimney Pond is the only backpacking site from which you can easily reach Katahdin, but luckily it's a beautiful spot.
  • As of 2016, there were 9 lean-tos and a 10-person bunkhouse here, all requiring advance reservations.
  • Chimney Pond is filled to capacity just about every day of the week from June through the park's closing date in October. Learn to master the reservations process if you want a fair shot at getting a reservation.
  • Take note that hiking Katahdin is still quite difficult from Chimney Pond.
• One of the most sought-after backpacking locations in the park is Russell Pond. From here, you can canoe in the pond (the park rents canoes) or you can do day hikes to waterfalls (including gorgeous Green Falls) and to other attractions.
• You can also reach Katahdin by backpacking a multi-day loop from Russell Pond. You may also be able to do a day hike from Russell Pond to tackle Katahdin - I would call the park to inquire whether they allow this or not since it would be a tough and long loop.
• Visit the website of the Baxter State Park Authority to see a list of all the available backpacking options (there are literally dozens of great opportunities).

RECOMMENDED HIKING GUIDEBOOKS

• AMC's Maine Mountain Guide (12th edition; 2023)
• Hiking Maine's Baxter State Park (1st edition; 2017)