Mt Katahdin - Baxter State Park

Rugged, beautiful, and nothing like hiking in the Smoky Mountains or Shenandoah. Trails are marked by spray paint as you climb and descend through miles of rocks! Be prepared for a full day of climbing, often using hands and feet to scale the “trail” up and down. Worth it? Absolutely! Just be prepared. No easy day!

Incredible hike. Knife’s Edge is exhilarating. Buy a parking pass 14 days in advance if possible.

I started from the Roaring Brook, followed the Helon Taylor trail then Knife Edge to the summit. It’s a challenging but fun hike. It was a beautiful day, I met so many hikers on the knife edge, two father-and-son teams, a mother-and-daughter team, two pairs of sisters, as well as several couples. After reaching the summit, I continued westward along the AT back to the Katahdin Stream camping ground. Overall it’s an exhausting but fantastic hike, and wonderful experience! I highly recommend it!!

Summited December 2021. Tablelands were pretty chilly and you'll need a winter permit, but good chance you'll have the place to yourself :

Gorgeous park and a great place to hike! There are beautiful lakes along the trail, and a priceless view from the peak. It took our group about 5 hours to climb to the top and back, though the ranger said it would take much longer. I would advise less experienced hikers to plan on an 8 to 10 hour hike, and expect mild rock climbing towards the top. You can take water bottles if you'd like, but the numerous mountain streams provide excellent refills along the way. Mt. Katahdin is a wonderful place to bring the whole family for an amazing day outdoors!

This mountain doesn't need reviews, it is its own testament. The knifes edge is phenomenal, as is Hamlin ridge. Obviously this mountain requires some endurance and conditioning but if you are up for the challenge, there's nothing like it

Hiked this mountain on Tuesday, August 25, 2020. The weather was forecasted to be dicey, and it was. But that worked out for me, because I had to wait at the Togue Gate for the chance to get a day parking pass anyway. So the bad weather kept away people who had passes reserved, and I was able to have my choice of which trail I wished to attempt. Because of the high probability of rain and wind, I elected to stay away from the fabled " Knife Edge", choosing to go up via the Abol Trail instead. A word about the Abol Trail: it starts out fairly gentle, but it starts climbing fast. Follow the blue flashes, they're painted on the rocks. I won't bore you with you all the details of my hike except to say that when I was just on the edge of the tree line, thunder storms arrived and lasted for close to an hour. Fortunately I had my rain gear and was able to get into it before the rain. I also hunkered down under some densely packed trees, so I stayed dry. Beyond the rain and the wind, I want to say this: this trail gets incredibly rocky as it climbs towards Thoreau Spring. I mean, CRAZY rocky. And these aren't little rocks I'm talking about either, there are a lot of HUGE boulders on the upper third of the Abol Trail. Be prepared to do a lot of searching for good places to place your hands and feet, so you can pull yourself up...to the next boulder. Some of the moves I had to make to keep climbing were little different from what one does in a rock climbing gym frankly. Just be prepared. From Thoreau Spring to the summit is pretty easy, it's a mile distance and it climbs gently. Heed the signs and stay off the endangered Alpine Grasses and plants. I will finish up by saying that having done the majority of my hiking in the Adirondack Mountains of New York State, I found this mountain, and the Abol Trail, to be more challenging than anything in the High Peaks. Come prepared. Don't attempt this hike without proper footwear, plenty of water and high energy snacks, trekking poles, gloves, and water proof jacket. I would also recommend a headlamp and waterproof map, at minimum...and start early. I enjoyed this hike, but Abol isn't easy. ENJOY!

Hiked this mountain from Roaring Brook via Helon Taylor, Knife's Edge to the top of Mt. Katahdin. First, Helon Taylor is hard but manageable with some exposure near the end of the trail. The first third of Knife's Edge is very exposed and challenging; would not recommend for people afraid of heights or uncomfortable maneuvering their body around and over boulders. Would certainly not recommend taking this route in inclimate weather. The peak had dozens of people and on the day I was there and visibility was extremely poor. For a quieter experience, we took the Saddle to Hamlin Peak, which had only one other hiker. We typically hike pretty quickly, but our round trip time was about 9hrs 45 minutes for this 11.5 mile loop including a few breaks for snacks and lunch. Overall, very challenging but rewarding hike.

Excellent hike! we went up Helon to Knife's Edge, and down saddle and chimney Pond trails. I found Knife's Edge to be the most challenging due to my fear of heights, but I still enjoyed it. Layers are a most, when we started it was in the mid 80's, by the time we reached the summit it was in the 50's and very windy. Parking passes are very difficult to get especially for non-Maine residents, so we ended up getting to the gate by 4:30 am and we were the 5th car in line. High protein and energy snacks are helpful, and staying hydrated is important. Overall an excellent hike!

It’s a hard hike, especially if you choose to do the knife’s edge! You have to be ready to pull your body up! Be there at 6 when the park opens so you have plenty of time to do the hike, make sure you have plenty of water. We did it in 9 and a half hours!