Tiny Feet, Tiny Hikes

Once upon a time, in a land before baby was born, I was a lone hiker. I would traverse my way across peaks, daring to climb where no woman had climbed before. (Okay, that’s not true. I stuck to pretty mainstream routes.) Acadia National Park and Downeast Maine were my stomping grounds, trails and mountains to explore and reflect upon.

Thankfully, not too much changed when baby came around. Instead of bagging the monstrous 1,000-footers Maine has to offer, we’ve downgraded slightly to tiny-feet-friendly hikes. And though we didn’t get out as much as mama would have preferred, for a 2-year-old Josie does have an impressive repertoire of hikes under her belt (or…diaper.)

In my research for our trip and spring hiking preparation, I’ve been perusing National Geographic’s Guide to America’s Outdoors and AMC’s Maine Mountain Guide. So here is my version of a “Tiny Feet, Tiny Hike” guide for Maine (keep in mind, it’s not comprehensive or in any particular order, just some of our favorite trails we’ve done with baby.)

• Blue Hill Mountain, Blue Hill. One of my all-time favorite hikes. It’s only 900′, but it has many fond memories and an absolutely spectacular view of Blue Hill Bay and Acadia from the top.

• Barred Island, Shore Acres, and Tennis Preserve trails, Deer Isle. 3 of many great hikes along the water’s edge on the island of Deer Isle.

Barred Island Preserve

• South Bubble Mountain, Acadia National Park.

  

  He-man lifting the bubble!

• Ferry Beach State Park trails, Saco. Our go-to when we need to get out of the house. Really easy flat trails that lead to the ocean, and beautiful in the fall.

  

  Ferry Beach SP

• Scarborough Marsh, Scarborough. As a section of the East Coast Greenway, it crosses the largest marsh in Maine. Birds abound! (Sidenote: the ECG is a very awesome concept, as its a foot/bike path that will eventually connect Key West, Florida to Calais, Maine – both places dear to me!)

• Rachel Carson National Wildlife Refuge, Wells. Our favorite, simply because it’s perfect for little feet to walk. A flat, 1-mile loop, it has great views of the marsh and ocean and so, so, so many acorns to pick and plants to touch! (Just ask Josie.)

  

  One happy girl at the Rachel Carson NWR

• Douglas Mountain, Sebago. My 27th birthday hike! Great views of the Western Maine mountains and the Whites. Plus a cool tower on top.

• Bradbury Mountain, Bradbury Mountain State Park, Pownal. Special because it was Josie’s first ever hike. Though there are many trails here we haven’t hiked, the Mountain itself is a really easy, family-friendly hike. And they allow dogs.

• Mount Agamenticus, York. Even only at 692′, Big A is actually a pretty good hike. The Ring Trail has  great interpretive story boards for the kids, and at the summit is a nice big expanse of grass, lookout tower and Learning Lodge. Dogs welcome also!

And in New Hampshire…

• Mount Kearsarge, Warner, NH. Technically, we didn’t hike the whole mountain – we drove up the mountain road and then hiked the rest of the way to the summit. But hey, remember tiny feet…

  

  Nina and Tyler, with Josie riding high on Dad’s back.

• Mount Chocorua, White Mountain National Forest, NH. We hiked the Champney Falls trail for Father’s Day and it was really beautiful. We didn’t make it to the summit, as we were unprepared for the 7-mile hike, but we’ll be back to this for sure!

Our Deuter child carrier backpack made all the difference when hiking with Josie. She slept in it, ate in it and had a great view when on our back. It may have cost as much as my car payment, but it was a worthy investment! So were the $10 used Keen sandals for when she was up walking. Thanks thrift store!

So with our sights set on spring, and then on to our summer journey, hopefully our list of summits will keep growing and growing, Who knows, maybe we’ll work up to those 1,000-footers once again!