PORTLAND, Maine — Looking for a challenging hike in Maine? Greg Westrich has a suggestion.
It’s the Dudley Trail in Baxter State Park, which Westrich knows well. As the author of a freshly updated edition of "Hiking Maine’s Baxter State Park," he’s walked nearly every one of the 215 miles of trails the park has to offer.
The Dudley Trail is, as Westrich puts it, "epically steep." That’s not just a casual description. When he’s out mapping trails, he checks their pitch and records that information for his books.
"There are several sections on that trail where the pitch is 90 degrees—which is straight up," he said. "So you literally have like 30 feet where you’re rock climbing. And there’s a section in the middle for about three-tenths of a mile where it’s just like that over and over and over again."
Sound a little too intense? Westrich has you covered.
His guide describes 42 hikes in the park, ranging from South Branch Falls (an easy one mile out and back) to the "most strenuous" Knife Edge, about which he says simply: "This is the classic hike. There’s no hike more iconic in Maine."