Camping in Maine Good Times in an RV

Camping in Maine offers a variety of experiences

By Chris Decker

Camping in Maine, it doesn’t get any better than this! Last month we discussed preparing for camping. This month, let’s talk about some of the experiences.

If you live near Maine’s capital you, are within a day’s drive to utopia. To the west, you have the mountainous wilderness of northern New England complete with the White Mountains National Forest and the Green Mountains. Travel north and you have Katahdin Woods & Water and Baxter State Park. Go farther north, and you will be in the St. John Valley and its wonderfully friendly people and lush potato fields. Maybe you want the ocean experience. Travel east to Acadia National Park, southeast to Reid State Park or all the way south to enjoy the ever so popular coastal beaches of Ogunquit and Old Orchard Beach. Lets not forget the lakes region. All regions of Maine have campgrounds, but I warn you, they are popular. For four months, Maine has some of the best camping experiences available anywhere on the North American continent.

One of our most treasured experiences happened up near Brownville Junction southwest of Millinocket. There is an interesting history of days gone by here. More than a hundred years ago, interior Maine was bustling with activity. Farming and logging were in their heyday, and the industrial textile industry was blossoming. Having a strong need for machinery, businesses like Katahdin Iron Works also flourished. The history of KIW is recorded in several books, and I highly recommend the read.

Entering the North Maine Woods at KIW, we are greeted with a gate. After paying the fee for camping and hiking, we proceeded to a very secluded spot. These are boondocking sites with no amenities other than beauty, serenity and seclusion. The sites are a half-mile apart; site #5 was ours, and it was right on the Pleasant River.

In order to set up camp, first I had to back up my 30foot camper about 200 yards on a narrow, tree-lined drive. I consider myself a novice at towing, but somehow I managed to get this tin can parked on my first try! Once set up, unpacked, lawn chairs out

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and beverages poured, it was time to take in the beauty. The Pleasant River is a wide, shallow pristine river meandering out of the mountains near Gulf Hagas. It is clean, safe and swimmable. Fortunately, it was late summer and a slight breeze filtered through the air. Biting insects were at a minimum.

The second day included a long hike. Four of us headed to the Gulf Hagas Rim Trail, just a short drive up the road. It is part of the famed AMC trail stretching from Georgia to Mt. Katahdin. This part of the trail is referred to as the “100 Mile Wilderness” and is very remote. Once we started hiking, we had to cross Pleasant River. Being careful, we forded the river as there was no footbridge. Some parts were quite swift and knee deep. Crossing in water that is barely 50 degrees, we didn’t want to fall in. Let’s just say not all of us were successful at staying dry.

What an amazing area! The hike, about nine miles, took us through beautiful hardwoods, great softwoods, animal trails and a chasm often referred to as the “Grand Canyon of the East.” Gulf Hagas is an amazing geological formation dating back to the last ice age. If you’re healthy, this is a must do hike. Please go prepared though. If you get into trouble, help is a long way off.

The hike could have been disastrous for us, but we were lucky. Amongst other things, we didn’t bring flashlights with us. We should have. Under estimating how long it would take, the last part of the trail went through the Hermitage (full, old growth pine forest) at dusk. We had just enough light to see the

The Decker family campsite on Pleasant River outside of Katahdin Iron Works. From left, Craig Dilman, wife Sherri Dilman, Deb Decker and husband Chris Decker.

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trail and escape back to our vehicle. Safely back at the campsite, it was time to relax in and around the Pleasant River. There is nothing like a refreshing swim after a hard day of hiking.

Speaking of relaxing, when it is finally time to settle in for the night, it sure is nice to have a heated camper and a comfortable bed. Yes, there are benefits when camping in an RV.

Next month we will explore three more great boondocking spots in Maine.

To quote Henry David Thoreau, “I took a walk in the woods and came out taller than the trees.” Enjoy your next adventure!

Chris Decker, with his wife Debra, writes about their camping and RV experiences. He is a retired principal and elementary teacher living in Maine. Questions, ideas or feedback can be emailed to Chris at campahedu@gmail. com. You can follow his blog at campahedu.com.

Submitted photos

Chris Decker looks over Gulf Hagas from the Rim Trail.

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July 12, 2019 Chiari

Page 14 • Poor hand coordination

• Neck pain

• Numbness and tingling in the hands and feet

• Dizziness

• Difficulty swallowing

• Blurred or double vision

• Hoarseness

• Severe headaches, especially with sudden sneezing, coughing or straining

• Tinnitus (ringing/buzzing in the ears

• Weakness

• Slow heart rate

• Scoliosis (curvature of the spine)

• Sleep apnea

Treatment

The fact that Heidi had Chiari malformation and not a cyst meant instead of back surgery she needed brain surgery. Not to cure her condition because it isn’t curable, but to prevent things from getting any worse.

The neurosurgeon removed a small section of bone in the back of her skull, which gave her brain more room and relieved the pressure from the build-up of spinal fluid. The procedure is called a posterior fossa decompression. He also cut open the covering of her brain (dura mater) and sewed in a patch to provide some additional room.

In some cases, a small portion of the spinal column is also removed to allow more room and relieve pressure on the spinal cord. If there is a build-up of fluid in the brain, it may also be necessary to put in a tube called a shunt to drain the excess fluid.

Heidi made it through her surgery fine. In fact, her main concern, said her dad, was that she might miss a favorite TV show that night. “As we pulled into the parking garage at Maine Med, Heidi says to us, how long is this surgery supposed to take? And I said, well, two to three hours. And she said, good, because I want to watch The Voice tonight. Fast forward through the surgery and through recovery. The first thing she said when she woke up, I think it was around 5:30, she asked what time it was. We told her and she said, good, wake me up, I want to watch The Voice.”

About seven years have passed since Heidi’s diagnosis and surgery. She is now a medical biology student at the University of New England. About to enter her junior year and carrying a full

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course load. The surgery was a success, but she still deals with some troublesome after effects and related symptoms. She has nerve damage in her feet and it was also discovered that she had scoliosis — a double s-curve in her back.

One specialist told her she needed a rod in her back. Instead, she wore a brace. She was also told that she’d probably never walk normally again. But she and her physical therapist worked tirelessly together for more than four years and today, except for when she’s tired, she walks fine.

The most debilitating Chiari symptoms she has to deal with are fatigue and headaches. They prevent her from doing the sports she used to love and sometimes, from doing anything at all. “I get headaches almost daily,” she said, “and when the pressure changes with the weather. What brings them on really bad and really fast is a jarring motion, anything that involves running and jumping.

“They start in the back of the head and it’s like if you’re nailing something into a wall. Usually, it spreads and sometimes it’s in one whole half of my head or sometimes it’ll just stay in the back.

“Some days I’ll wake up with a headache and I’ll know it’s going to be hard to even get through my classes. Other days I’ll wake up feeling fine and I’ll think I need to get a lot of work done. I don’t know how I’ll feel tomorrow, you know? I try to get my work done as far in advance as I can because I never know.”

At the beginning of this story, I said if you were to see her today, it would probably never occur to you that Heidi was anything but well and healthy. Her mother explains why. “It’s because even when she’s not doing well, she often doesn’t let on. I know that she does not complain. When I say she’s my hero, she is my hero. I know how bad of a debilitating headache she can have or how horrible she’ll feel and she will very rarely say I feel bad.”

But the fact that she’s not apt to complain and usually looks fine can mean that many people don’t have a clue what she might be up against. Her closest friends know and are very supportive, but others not so much. Sometimes, even when she tries to explain. “When I tell people what I have they have no idea what it is,” she said. “And it’s just hard when they don’t understand.”

“That’s because she looks okay,” said Lili. “She looks normal. You know, it’s really hard on her. She has headaches every day and people want her to go play and they want her to go out partying and she can’t, she can’t. She can make the choice — one day I’m going to dance with my friends or I’m going to run down that hill. And then she suffers from headaches but if you look at her, you don’t see it.”

Heidi decided that instead of staying silent about her Chiari she would become an advocate not only for herself but also for other people with rare, invisible diseases. She also decided to go into the medical field after college.

“I want to be able to help people who are in situations similar to mine and experience pain every day but feel misunderstood because their pain might not be obvious to other people. I want to be able to help people who also have conditions that most people haven’t heard of, and be someone who can relate to and help them through their experiences.”

Chiari malformation resources

You can find a lot more information about Chiari malformation on the Conquer Chiari website. The organization sponsors walk every year, including two in Maine. (https://www.conquerchiari.org/)

Heidi Fox

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