Paddling Indian Pond - (Greenville, ME)

We woke up this morning and most of our soreness had subsided.  However, the rain was lingering.

The rain eventually stopped, although it remained overcast to mostly cloudy.  By early afternoon, it was nice enough to get out and do something.

Linda suggested paddling one of the many area "ponds".  Prong Pond is a popular and highly recommended choice, but I had an ulterior motive for selecting Indian Pond.

The headwaters of the Kennebec River are at Moosehead Lake.  There are actually two "outlets" between Greenville and Rockwood - East Outlet and West Outlet.  Actually both outlets are on the west side of Moosehead Lake, but East Outlet is south and ever so slightly east of the West Outlet.

The East and West Outlets both flow south into Indian Pond but enter at two different points.  They combine in the pond and the Kennebec then flows south out of the pond about 150 miles.  East Outlet is shorter at about three miles and is used by the local rafting companies for whitewater trips with rapids classified between II and IV.  West Outlet is longer at seven miles with flatwater and Class I rapids in some spots.  West Outlet is recommended for wildlife watching, so we were considering doing that.

However, the main takeout at Indian Pond is a long way from where the West Outlet enters the huge pond.  I found a much closer, but much more remote, takeout and wanted to see if, in fact, we could get to it.

Off we went about 2:00.  We drove north on Hwy 15 toward Rockwood, first passing over the East Outlet bridge and then crossing the West Outlet bridge.  Just beyond the West Outlet bridge, we made a left on Somerset Road, another of the many gravel roads in the area.

Most of the gravel roads are named and they even show up on Google Maps.  However, very few of them actually have signs and there are lots of sideroads.  It's easy to get lost.

Having driven several of these gravel roads and made wrong turns and missed turns and driven miles out of our way, I was a bit more careful plotting our course today.  Still, with no signs, there is a lot of "I think this is right, but I'm not 100% positive".  The GPS may show that you are on a road or it may show you driving on a blank background.  :)

Eventually, we got to a skinny road that I was pretty sure led another half mile to the lake.  Of course it also included numerous potholes full of water from the rain.  We were in a Jeep outfitted for pretty much any kind of road, but Linda kept squealing "I don't like this, I don't like this" as we went through the puddles of unknown depth and surface.  :)

We made it to the end of the road and were surprised to find three other vehicles there.  We were just sure that we wouldn't see anyone.

Once we were there, it is actually a great place to park and launch a boat.  So we got out the Sea Eagle SE370 and got it pumped up and ready to go.

 

 

The sky looked ominous overhead, but there were more and more patches of blue sky in the distance.

We took a left from the launch point to head toward the West Outlet.  Once on the water, just like the mountans across the pond, we were in and out of shadows from the clouds.

 

 

It was a little chilly when the sun was blocked, but when it peeked through, the 70-degree day felt wonderful.

We immediately saw the obligatory loon, but not much else in the way of wildlife.  We got a couple looks at what I'm pretty sure were muskrats, and Linda briefly spotted a weasel-like critter that could have been any of several members of the weasel family, but no great looks at anything.

We paddled into smooth-water coves around stumps and rocks.

 

 

We saw a couple of Smallmouth Bass in the clear water among the rocks, but not nearly as many fish as we expected. 

Here is Linda preparing to shoot some video.

 

 

And here is the video of that area, complete with a bee flying into the lens, and coupled with another one as we paddled back out of the mouth of the West Outlet.

 

  

We paddled back into another cove that looked like it could be moose habitat or attractive to pretty much any type of animal.

 

 

That's where we saw one of the muskrats and these lovely purple flowers.

 

  

From there, we paddled upstream into the West Outlet until we came to a small set of rapids that sent us back toward the main body of Indian Pond.  The water flows around an island at the wide mouth of the outlet.  We came through the western channel on the way upriver, and then took the eastern channel on the way back.

There is a large beaver lodge on that side of the island.

 

 

It was so quiet out there.  Pure wilderness.

We spent about two and a half hours paddling and floating and enjoying the scenery and peacefulness.  But when the wind started picking up and the clouds returned, it was time to go.

Back at the takeout, we cleaned the boat, deflated it, and packed it in its bag.  Then we headed back toward camp.  What a nice, relaxing way to spend an afternoon.

By the way, here is another reminder.  If you are interested in Sea Eagle inflatable boats, contact our friends Tim & Crystal at InflatableBoats4Less.com and tell them "Howard Sent Me" or click on the box below.  :)

 

They are Sea Eagle's largest dealer, they won't be undersold, and Tim is great at helping you figure out which boat is best for you.

On the way out, Linda decided to video us going through puddles, so here you go.  :)

 

 

Back at Moosehead Family Campground, we stopped at the office to set up a time for a pump-out service.  They don't have sewer hook-ups, but they do offer pump-out service for a fee OR you get a free one if you stay a week.  Usually, they do pump-outs on Monday & Thursday, but Bob had some things to do tomorrow, so he came by this evening.

Once that was all taken care of, it was time to work on dinner.  Yeah, I know - not a very nice segue.  :)

Linda had picked up some chicken drumsticks and had marinated them in BBQ sauce.  So I threw them on the grill while she prepared a couple of sides.  Another tasty dinner.

Not much to tell after that.  I started researching the Acadia National Park area to sort of plan some activities when we get there on Sunday.  That's gonna be a busy week.

Oh, I meant to give you a link to the photo gallery for our Gulf Hagas hike the other day.  Just in case you want to see all the pictures, you can click on this link:  Gulf Hagas Hike Slideshow.  

Well that's it for another day.  Tomorrow is supposed to be gorgeous, so we'll be back out on some new adventure.  See ya.  :)

 

 

Comments

[Donna]

Wow what a beautiful lake... Loved your pictures!!!
Have fun & Travel safe
Donna

[Con]

I'm one of your anonymous followers, trapped in the Mid-Atlantic area but heading home to NE as often as possible. In early July spent 3 nights at the fishing camp on your moose trip "pond" and loved it. You need to be careful of heavy, fast lumbering trucks on their dirt/gravel roads, and never take New England hiking trails for granted - roots and rocks can be a daunting combination. You will love Acadia. Have tea and popovers at the Jordan Pond House, take some hikes to the tops of mountains with great views, visit Thunderhole and Thula Gardens in Asticou....

[Ron Westcott]

I believe your "lovely purple flowers" are water hyacinth. It's been several years since we've been to Moosehead Lake and it looks like we need to get back there! Thanks for the virtual trip, Howard!

[Maurice Kunkel]

Love your blog but I'm getting audio without video. ??