Mt Pleasant Work Party Spring 2026
[submitted by Jacob Schor]
Friday 22 May – Easy – Pleasant Mountain Work Hike (1,900 ft), Denmark, ME – 5.4 mi RT, 1,400 ft elevation gain. RT hiking 4 hours. RT driving 0.5 hours.
The trail head parking is on Denmark Rd. almost adjacent to the junction of Spiked Ridge Drive. Coordinates: 44.0071,-70.85314. or just google Pleasant mtn southwest ridge trailhead parking.
BYOT, as in bring your own tools. Mostly what proves helpful are rakes, loppers, hoes and a saw or two. If we end up turning this into a hike up to the Teepee, we can stash most of the tools along the way rather than carry them all.
This Friday is our Annual Spring Work Party and Hike on Pleasant Mountain. We clean out the water-bars, remove trees that are blocking the trail, restack the cairns that have been knocked over by snow and over exuberant hikers, and do what we can to give something back to our local land trust, Loon Echo.
Past reports suggest that there are twenty water bars between the parking lot and Phil’s Corner. I’ve always lost count about half-way up so I’m glad to hear that it isn’t fifty. Jeff will be happy to retell the story of Phil’s corner.
The Denmark Mountain Hikers have been doing light trail maintenance on the South West Ridge trail on Pleasant Mountain twice a year, once in the spring and again in the fall most years since May 2013. We clean out accumulated leaves and debris from the water-bars so they continue to divert water flow off the trail. This prevents trail erosion. We repair the trail cairns that mark the route over the rock slabs for hikers in the winter. We remove trees and limbs that have fallen across the trail. Last year we did some heavier work, rebuilding a couple of bars that had relied on old logs to divert the water. Those logs had rotted away. We usually seem to divide into three groups, those focusing on water-bar care, those who hike up past the water-bars, make the turn at Phil’s corner and focus on the cairns. Of course, there are aways a few eager beavers who make quick work of their tasks and continue to hike up to the Teepee or beyond to the summit.
Spring is here. The forecast looks good. [Note: The bugs are out here on Peabody Pond and up at Baldpate so you may assume that there will be a welcome committee composed of various insects on Mt Pleasant to welcome us.]
Jon Evans who manages or oversees the caretaking of Loon Echo’s various properties and I have spoken several times during this past year thinking that it might be time to alter our volunteer endeavors. The land trust has grown so much in recent years that they no longer need volunteer laborers such as we provide to the degree they did in earlier years. They are established enough that they pay people to do many of the tasks they once needed volunteers to do.
While they appreciate our efforts, our time might be of greater value to them doing other things that help their mission. One thing both Jon and Maggie Lynn have mentioned, and that both seem keen on, is recruiting and training more people as trail ambassadors. Ambassadors are the welcoming people at each of Loon Echo’s properties whose task is to help people figure out where to go and make sure they are prepared to get there. Usually this is a map and directions. I do this at Baldpate during the summer and Greg Dean is a regular over at Mt. Pleasant. (Neither of us would be mistaken as extroverts and yet we manage) You can ask either of us for more information or speak with Maggie at Loon Echo. Or start with Loon Echo’s webpage: https://www.lelt.org/volunteering#ambassador-program
Jon also spoke about our organizing what for now we are calling, “trail scouts”, that are simply individuals or groups of hikers who will walk Loon Echo’s trails now and then to see and report if areas need maintenance; things like fallen trees, washed out trail sections etc. Loon Echo manages about 35 miles of trails. If this sparks your interest, contact me directly as I think that this is a project I might be able to coordinate with Jon for the group. [email: DrJacobSchor1 at msn.com]. This is still an idea taking shape so your input and suggestions are both helpful and welcome. This might be just your excuse to go for a walk on a day other than Friday and get to see and become familiar with new places.
Obviously there is no hike report from last week.
However,, here are a few photos from the Sebago Cove trail faken last Friday. The dogs knew it was Friday when they woke in the morning and despite that three inches of rain and continuing downpour insisted on going somewhere.
That little rivulet was flowing
New bridge over a low spot
Leave a comment