Maine's Highest Peak or Not? EarthCache
Maine's Highest Peak or Not?
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This earthcache will bring you to the tallest peak on the Katahdin plateau and a look at the history of the measurement. At the summit you will find a cairn that marks the top or does it?
Welcome to the 209,501-acre Baxter State Park, a wilderness area that was a gift to the people of the State of Maine by former Governor Percival P. Baxter and established as a park in 1933. While the Park’s main attraction is Katahdin, there are many other natural features within the Park’s boundaries. Gov. Baxter expressed the spirit of the Park when he said, “Man is born to Die, His Works are Short-lived, Buildings Crumble, Monuments Decay, Wealth Vanishes, but Katahdin in All Its Glory Forever Shall Remain the Mountain of the People of Maine.” The most famous of the early explorers came in the 1840s when Henry David Thoreau climbed Katahdin; his ascent is recorded in a well-known chapter of The Maine Woods. Because "Katahdin" means "Greatest Mountain", "Mount Katahdin" means "Mount Greatest Mountain", which local people maintain is incorrect.
Katahdin is part of a laccolith (an intrusion of magma underground) that formed in the Acadian orogeny, when an island arc collided with eastern North America approximately 400 million years ago. On the sides of Katahdin are four glacial cirques carved into the granite by alpine glaciers and in these cirques behind moraines and eskers are several picturesque ponds. Katahdin is one of the best places to view glacial features in the Eastern States. Above 4,000 feet elevation on Katahdin, the mean annual temperature is below 30°F and the climatic conditions are comparable to those found in the Arctic zone, 400 miles north of Katahdin. This severe climate has resulted in several interesting geologic features including the shaping of the summit ridge.
When you are driving toward Baxter State Park people often look up and make the following statement to the people riding along with them. Look up and you will see the tallest peak in Maine. While you are looking up at Maine’s tallest mountain, Katahdin you are not looking at the tallest peak. What you are looking at is called South Peak, which is about 400 meters to the southeast of Baxter Peak, the tallest peak in Maine. While the peak was originally known as Monument Peak and even called West Peak at one time. It was officially named Baxter Peak by the state on April 2, 1931 with the name being accepted by the US Geographical Board on October 7, 1931. At 5267 feet Baxter Peak is the highest point of land in the State of Maine.
In August of 1804 Charles Turner, the Massachusetts’s surveyor became the first to reach the summit. He estimated the height to be 13000 feet while it may appear to be unusual it was the manner of the day to exaggerate to impress other. In 1820 Maine became a state and formed the Maine Boundary Commission who on October 19, 1820 found the summit to be 5385 feet, which was formulated using a British barometer. William Odell one of the leaders later corrected the barometer reading to a measured height of 5335 feet. In 1828 the great mapmaker Moses Greenleaf estimated the height to be 5623 feet using spherical triangle measurements from sea level in Frankfort.
In 1838 Maine’s first State Geologist, Charles Jackson, measured the summit to be 5300 feet using a barometer. This measurement was repeated by the Young & Delaski expedition in 1846 also using a barometer. In 1861 Chas Hitchcock, Maine State Geologist, travelling with Keep measured the height to be 5385 feet once again using a barometer. Wanting a more accurate measurement of the summit and to resolve the issue once and for all in 1874 Merritt Fernald used a barometer and triangles. The spherical triangles used were from Orono to Houlton to Katahdin and Orono to Lincoln to Katahdin giving the height 5215.5 feet with an error not to exceed 4.2 feet. In 1881 Varney’s Gazetteer measured the summit at 5385 feet, while in 1884 Colby’s Atlas listed it as 5248 feet. The controversy began in 1899 when R.S. Tar measure the peak at 5150 feet with several barometer readings corrected to a weather report from Eastport. Baxter Peak was no longer the highest in Maine, as South Peak was now taller. In 1906 as part of the West Branch Survey Harold Boardman measured Baxter Peak to be 5273 feet using vertical angles. Finally in 1927 the U.S. Geological Survey under the direction of Floyd Neary measured the summit by way of Saddle Slide. The Saddle Slide BM measured 4316.23 feet while the summit with its permanent BM (N 16 1927 MC USPBM 5265.4) measured to be 5,266.716 feet.
There was another survey in 1941 but the big change came in 1955 when the 1955 U.S. Geological Survey reset the mark after they discovered that the 1927 rock had been moved. It was set with three bronze disks and a small 4-foot high and 4 feet wide rock cairn at the highest point, a large flat rock. The three markers are a station mark stamped 5267 N 16 1927 MC (USGS Survey State Survey Disk), Reference marker number 1 stamped “KATAHDIN USGS NO 1 1941 (Standard USC and GS Disk), and reference mark number 2 stamped “KATAHDIN USGS NO 2 1941 (standard USC and GS Disk.) Yet there have been more changes, the 1955 cairn has been removed and a new larger cairn has been constructed on top of the station mark. You should be able to find Katahdin NO 1 & NO2. If you look just behind the summit sign you will see a large flat rock, which was the site of the 1955 cairn. You can even find the broken rock from the 1927 marker if you look carefully.
Please remember the due to the fragile nature of the plant environment in the Tableland alpine zone you should never leave the marked trail. The plants along all trails are sensitive indicators of climate and the plants, which live on the Tableland, are native to the Arctic zone and exist on Katahdin because of its severe climate. As such walking on these very small plants can destroy something that will never recover. The Katahdin loop hike is a long hike with many miles of very exposed terrain. Hikers should be prepared for changeable weather and be equipped with sufficient water, food, protective clothing and a headlamp or flashlight. All hikers should register their hike at the Ranger office in the campground before they start their hike.
The posted coordinates bring you to the location that was once thought to be the highest point in Maine. Viewing Baxter Peak from this location it is not difficult to see how in the fog the error might have been make long ago. To log this earthcache you will have to hike to summit of Katahdin along a trail from any one of the campgrounds. While hiking to this earthcache make sure to follow the trail and be well prepared as all of the trails have a great distance that is completely above the treeline. Make sure that you do not leave the trail for any reason. To log this cache, you must answer an educational question and post a photo of yourself or your hand with your GPS showing the summit ridge or cairn. Email me through my profile your estimate of the elevation difference between South Peak and Baxter Peak. This can be easily done using your GPS on this 400-meter section of trail. Please include the name of the earthcache and the number of people in your group in your email. Then post your photo with your log taking the time to describe why you find this location special so that others might have the same experience.
Please remember that this park is maintained primarily as a Wilderness and recreational purposes are regarded as of secondary importance and shall not encroach upon the main objective of the park, which is to be "Forever Wild." The park personnel strive to carry out the provisions of the trust, created by Percival P. Baxter. So please make sure to follow all regulations carefully and register before you begin any hike. Remember that forethought and a little preparation are the key elements to a successful and enjoyable outdoor experience. Do not leave the trail and make sure to practice “Carry-in-carry out" to keep this park special for the future visitors.
More information about the Baxter State Park can be found at: (visit link)
If you enjoy this earthcache you may want to check the Maine Geological Survey located at (visit link)
They have developed a number of information sheets or field localities giving a great deal of information about geologic features. They also have a number of books and maps about Maine’s natural history/ geology that you might find interesting.
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