Note

Planning in progress. Dates (Aug 9–15) and the route are locked in; logistics — cost, RSVP deadline, transport, packing list — are being finalized through May. This page will be updated as details land. Questions or want to volunteer to help organize? Contact the trek leadership through the troop. Last updated: May 1, 2026.

50 Miler Patch

Adventure Trek

Confirmed C Participating Participating

When and Where

When: August 9-15, 2026 , 9:00 am — 9:00 pm
Nights: 6

Location: Mount Katahdin / Baxter State Park, Maine

Adventure Trek is Troop 23's flagship high adventure — a week-long expedition that pushes scouts beyond weekend camping into serious backcountry territory. From Sunday, August 9 through Saturday, August 15, 2026, we're heading to Maine for a multi-sport push around Mount Katahdin — the highest peak in the state and the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail.

The trek combines two disciplines into one expedition: a ~100-mile bike loop around Baxter State Park's eastern boundary along the International Appalachian Trail corridor, plus a summit attempt on Mount Katahdin on foot — about 10 miles round trip with ~4,150 feet of elevation gain. Combined, the trek is designed to qualify for the 50 Miler Award: five consecutive days, 50+ miles under your own power, and 10 hours of service along the way. Our planned ~113 miles and ~9,650 ft total vertical clear the bar with room to spare.

When and Where

Dates: Sunday, August 9 — Saturday, August 15, 2026 (7 days, 6 nights)

Region: Baxter State Park & Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, north-central Maine

Trip start / end: Togue Pond Gate, Baxter State Park (the main southern entrance), about 9–10 hours by car from Brooklyn.

Format: 1 travel day → 4 days cycling on quiet North Woods roads → 1 summit day on foot (Katahdin) → 1 layover/service day → 1 travel day. The bike loop runs clockwise around Baxter's eastern boundary, with three group campgrounds along the way.

⚠️ Weather

Northern Maine in August: daytime highs typically 70–80°F, nights can drop into the 40s, especially at altitude. Black flies are usually past peak by August but mosquitoes are not. Mount Katahdin makes its own weather — afternoon thunderstorms are common and the park can close the summit above treeline with little warning.

Forecast resources to check closer to the trip:

The forecast widget below is for Millinocket, ME — the closest town with a reliable point forecast, about 80 miles south of Baxter. Use it as a directional read on the week's weather; ranger postings at the trailhead are the source of truth for above-treeline conditions on summit day.

Powered by the Tomorrow.io Weather API

Overview

[TBD — to be filled in once logistics finalized:]

The full route — bike loop and Katahdin summit on one map. Pan and zoom to inspect any segment.

What to Pack

[TBD — full packing list. Sketch:]

Group gear (assigned by patrol): cooking stoves, fuel, group first aid kit, water filter, repair kit for the bikes, group shelter, bear canister(s) per Baxter rules.

Travel to Maine, Sunday

Long driving day. Brooklyn → northern Maine is roughly 9–10 hours, depending on route, traffic in CT, and how many stops we make. We aim to arrive at the Togue Pond Gate in the late afternoon, set up camp at a roadside or arrival site near the park entrance, and get a real night's sleep before the first riding day.

Departure: [TBD — early morning, ~6:00 am from OLA]

Bike transport: [TBD — trailer, roof racks, or rented box truck]

Driving stops: Two or three on the way — gas, food, leg-stretch. Plan refuel in Bangor before the final 80-mile push north.

Togue Pond Gate

Togue Pond Gate is Baxter State Park's southern entrance at 64 Balsam Drive, Millinocket, and the check-in point for every reservation in the park's southern half. The gate typically opens at 6 a.m. and closes around 5 p.m. in the shoulder season; summer hours run later. Katahdin Trailhead Pass (KTP) holders must arrive by 7:05 a.m. or forfeit the spot — a hard rule that catches first-timers off guard. Day-use line-up at the gate begins at 5 a.m. The adjacent Togue Pond Visitor Center has rangers, maps, restrooms, the park's printed rules, and the day's posted above-treeline weather class (1–4, with 4 strongly discouraging summit attempts and a separate "black" closure status). Cell signal drops near Millinocket and is gone past the gate. The reservation office line is 207-723-5140. Maine vehicles enter free; out-of-state passenger vehicles pay a day-use fee [unverified — TBD: confirm current rate with park, historically $15].

Togue Pond Gate

Park's southern entrance — our check-in point on Sunday afternoon and our return point Saturday after the bike loop closes. Reservation office: 207-723-5140. No services past this gate.

Togue Pond Gate — Baxter State Park
Address:
64 Balsam Drive
Millinocket, ME, 04462
Coordinates(i): 45.8237°, -68.8855°
Google Maps  |  Waze  |  Organic Maps

Foster Field, Monday

Start: Togue Pond Gate (Baxter State Park southern entrance)
Finish: Foster Field Group Camp
Distance: ~11 miles by bike
Elevation gain: ~900 ft

Easy first day on the bikes — short mileage to break the legs in and let everyone shake out gear configurations before the bigger pushes mid-week. The route follows the Tote Road, the gravel road that loops through Baxter, climbing gently toward the heart of the park.

Foster Field Group Camp sits in the western part of Baxter, within striking distance of the Hunt Trail trailhead at Katahdin Stream Campground. It serves as our base for two nights — Monday and Tuesday — so we can attempt Katahdin without having to break and rebuild camp on summit day.

Foster Field Group Camp

Foster Field is one of four group-camping areas in Baxter State Park, on the Park Tote Road west of Katahdin Stream. It has three numbered group sites (capacities roughly 12, 13, and 25 people) sitting in an open field rather than tucked under canopy. Standard Baxter rules apply: wood fires permitted in provided fire rings, camp stoves recommended, tents are not allowed at lean-to sites — sleepers go inside the lean-tos. Water comes from a hand pump or stream source and must be filtered or boiled; pit privies serve the area. Group reservations are made by mail or in person at Park Headquarters in Millinocket — not online — and open four months ahead on a rolling basis. Foster Field sits a short drive (roughly 2 miles) from Katahdin Stream Campground and the Hunt Trail trailhead, which makes it the most common base for groups doing a Katahdin summit day. [unverified — TBD: confirm current bear-canister policy; Baxter has historically required hard-sided storage or hanging, not personal canisters.]

Set up camp, cook dinner, gear-check for the summit. Lights out early.

Foster Field Group Camp

Our base camp for Monday and Tuesday nights. Open-field group sites with lean-tos, fire rings, hand-pump water (filter or boil), pit privies. Roughly 2 miles by road from the Hunt Trail trailhead at Katahdin Stream Campground — the launch point for Tuesday's summit.

Foster Field Group Camp — Baxter State Park
Address:
Park Tote Road
Millinocket, ME, 04462
Coordinates(i): 45.9042°, -69.038°
Google Maps  |  Waze  |  Organic Maps

Mount Katahdin, Tuesday

Start / Finish: Katahdin Stream Campground (trailhead near Foster Field)
Route: Hunt Trail (Appalachian Trail) — out-and-back
Distance: ~10 miles round trip
Elevation gain: ~4,150 ft to Baxter Peak (5,267 ft)
Time: 8–12 hours round trip — alpine start required

This is the centerpiece of the trek. Mount Katahdin is the highest peak in Maine and the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail — the endpoint AT thru-hikers spend months walking toward. Standing on Baxter Peak puts our scouts on that same summit.

The Hunt Trail climbs through forest for the first 2 miles, breaks treeline around 3,500 feet, then turns into exposed boulder scrambling for the final mile to the summit plateau. Above treeline there is no shelter from weather. The park can — and will — close the summit if storms threaten.

Knife Edge: the famous arête between Pamola Peak and Baxter Peak is one of the most iconic ridge walks in the eastern US. Whether the group takes that route on the descent depends on weather and the group's energy after the climb. Backup descent: retrace the Hunt Trail back to Katahdin Stream.

Water: Katahdin Stream at the trailhead is the last reliable water below treeline; no water above. Carry 2.5–3 L per person from the start.

If the summit is closed (weather, ranger call): we drop to the alternate plan — a lower-elevation hike on Daicey Pond or Sandy Stream Pond loop trails (3–5 mi each, well below treeline), saving the summit attempt for Wednesday morning before we ride out. [TBD: confirm the day-shift logistics with the camp reservation.]

Katahdin Stream Campground & Hunt Trail Trailhead

Katahdin Stream Campground is the launch point for the Hunt Trail, the Appalachian Trail's northern terminus route up Katahdin. Day hikers must hold a Katahdin Trailhead Pass (KTP) — $10, reserved through the park's online portal beginning April 1, capped at two reservations per calendar month June–October. Drivers check in at Togue Pond Gate by 7:05 a.m. and proceed to the trailhead lot, where parking is the limiting resource: no KTP, no lot. The trailhead has a ranger kiosk with a hiker register (sign in, sign out — rangers track returning parties), a water spigot at the campground, and vault privies. Northbound AT thru-hikers finish here, sometimes mid-morning during peak fall season; expect a celebratory crowd. The first mile of trail follows Katahdin Stream, passing Katahdin Stream Falls before climbing in earnest. There is no resupply, no concession, no cell signal — last gas and food are in Millinocket.

The Climb Itself

The Hunt Trail runs 5.2 miles one way from Katahdin Stream Campground to Baxter Peak (5,267 ft), gaining roughly 4,000 feet. The first mile follows Katahdin Stream past Katahdin Stream Falls; the trail then climbs steeply through forest to treeline near the three-mile mark, where it hits the boulders of Hunt Spur — an extended hand-and-foot scramble with iron rungs and rebar steps drilled into the rock at the worst pitches. Above the spur, the Tableland opens into a broad alpine plateau leading past Thoreau Spring to the Baxter Peak summit cairn marking the northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. From the summit, the Knife Edge runs 1.1 miles to Pamola Peak — three feet wide in places with drops of 1,500–2,000 feet on either side; not a casual descent option, and not to be attempted in wind or wet rock. Rangers post the day's above-treeline weather class at Togue Pond and at trailhead kiosks each morning around 8:15 a.m.

Back to Foster Field for a second night — eat, rehydrate, sleep.

Hunt Trail Trailhead — Katahdin Stream Campground

Tuesday's start point. Ranger kiosk + hiker register (sign in/out — rangers track returning parties), water spigot, vault privies. Last reliable water before treeline. Katahdin Trailhead Pass (KTP) required, $10, advance reservation only.

Katahdin Stream Campground — Hunt Trail Trailhead
Address:
Park Tote Road
Millinocket, ME, 04462
Coordinates(i): 45.887469090173°, -68.998732566834°
Google Maps  |  Waze  |  Organic Maps

Trout Brook Farms, Wednesday

Start: Foster Field Group Camp
Finish: Trout Brook Farms Group Camp (northern Baxter, near the Matagamon Gate)
Distance: ~28 miles by bike
Elevation gain: ~1,270 ft

The first long day on the bikes. The route runs north along the Tote Road, working through the heart of the park. This is real backcountry cycling — limited services, no cell signal, occasional moose. Pack snacks; the scenery is the meal between meals.

Trout Brook Farms Group Camp sits near the park's northern boundary, close to the Matagamon Lake area and an old farm clearing — open sky, good star viewing if the weather cooperates.

Water on route: [TBD — flag reliable refill spots between Foster Field and Trout Brook on the route map. Streams cross the Tote Road but treat all water.]

Trout Brook Farm Group Camp

Trout Brook Farm sits in the park's far northeast corner, a few miles inside Matagamon Gate, and is the quietest developed campground in Baxter. It is unusual in the park system because the sites are set in open grassy meadows rather than woods — the clearing dates to early-1900s farming and logging, and a remnant apple tree in the tree line still marks the old orchard. The group area has four sites with capacities of about 8, 14, 14, and 14. Facilities are basic: lean-tos and tent sites, fire rings, pit privies, hand-pumped water (filter or boil). The open meadow gives a wide horizon and genuinely dark skies — there is no town glow on this side of the park. Access is via the northern park road from Patten / I-95 Exit 264; expect gravel road and slow driving. The camp is the staging point for Matagamon Lake day trips and northern backcountry routes.

Trout Brook Farm Group Camp

Wednesday night camp at Baxter's northeast corner, just inside Matagamon Gate. Open meadow group sites (a former farm clearing), lean-tos, hand-pump water, pit privies, dark skies. Staging point for Matagamon Lake.

Trout Brook Farm Group Camp — Baxter State Park
Address:
Park Tote Road (north)
Patten, ME, 04765
Coordinates(i): 46.164109208904°, -68.851618766785°
Google Maps  |  Waze  |  Organic Maps

Lunksoos, Thursday

Start: Trout Brook Farms Group Camp
Finish: Lunksoos Group Camp (Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument)
Distance: ~28 miles by bike
Elevation gain: ~1,630 ft

Today the route exits Baxter at the Matagamon Gate and rolls into the Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument — a 87,500-acre federal recreation area that protects the East Branch of the Penobscot River and a long stretch of the IAT (International Appalachian Trail). The riding is similar in character to Baxter — gravel forest roads, low traffic, big trees.

Lunksoos Group Camp is on the Penobscot River. Two nights here — Thursday and Friday — give the legs a real recovery and let us run the service component of the trek without packing camp.

Lunksoos Camp

Lunksoos Camp sits inside Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, on the East Branch of the Penobscot River, reached via Swift Brook Road off the monument's south entrance. The name comes from the Penobscot word for a fierce, now-extirpated woodland predator (variously translated as wolverine or mountain lion). The site was a working inn and lumber-camp lodge built on the old Dacey farmstead in 1881. The campground has six numbered sites plus a lean-to and a boat-launch site: picnic tables, fire rings (no separate permit required), bear-proof food boxes, vault toilets. Site 6 is the larger group site (6–20 people). There is no potable water — bring a filter, no trash service (pack out everything), and no cell signal. The International Appalachian Trail (IAT) begins at Mile 12 of the Katahdin Loop Road and passes through this section, climbing Deasey Mountain and Lunksoos Mountain nearby. River access supports paddling on the East Branch.

Lunksoos Camp

Our Thursday + Friday base. Six sites + lean-to + boat-launch site on the East Branch of the Penobscot. Picnic tables, fire rings, bear-proof food boxes, vault toilets. No potable water — bring a filter. Pack out all trash. No cell signal.

Lunksoos Camp — Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument
Address:
Swift Brook Road
Stacyville, ME, 04776
Coordinates(i): 45.908256164677°, -68.613642454147°
Google Maps  |  Waze  |  Organic Maps

Layover & Service, Friday

The legs get a day off. The bikes stay put. This day is for the service component of the 50 Miler Award — the award requires 10 hours of conservation or community service performed during the trek.

Service options being explored (TBD — to confirm with rangers and the National Monument staff):

If the day goes faster than expected, optional add-ons:

Road Home, Saturday

Start: Lunksoos Group Camp
Finish: Togue Pond Gate (return to vehicles)
Distance: ~36 miles by bike
Elevation gain: ~1,700 ft

The longest riding day, closing the loop back to where we started. Early start to give us a buffer for the drive home — hitting Togue Pond by mid-afternoon means rolling into Brooklyn before 2 am.

Once at Togue Pond: load bikes, change clothes, eat real food, climb into the vehicles. Brooklyn is 9–10 hours away.

Arrival in Brooklyn: [TBD — late Saturday night / early Sunday morning depending on departure time and stops.]

Service Project — 50 Miler Award

The 50 Miler Award requires more than just covering distance. The full criteria:

Our 5 qualifying days are Monday — Friday (Aug 10–14): four days of riding plus the Katahdin summit day. Total mileage clears 100 miles.

The 10 hours of service are concentrated on the Friday layover at Lunksoos — see Layover & Service, Friday for the project details. Additional service hours can be banked on the Monday short ride day if the Lunksoos project comes in under 10 hours. [TBD: confirm scope with the project host.]

Useful Links

Goals

Trek participants can work toward the following advancement and awards:

Awards:

Merit Badges (active progress on the trek):

Rank Advancement: cycling, hiking, camping nights, and orienteering all map to Tenderfoot through First Class requirements. See Youth Training for the full matrix.

Camping Merit Badge

Please read ahead and be ready. The hardest to get:

Requirement 9b. On any of these camping experiences, you must do TWO of the following, only with proper preparation and under qualified supervision.

(1) Hike up a mountain, gaining at least 1,000 vertical feet.
(2) Backpack, snowshoe, or cross-country ski for at least 4 miles.

First Class Rank Emblem

First Class

(!) A lot of items will be covered. Please read ahead and be ready. Most important:

4b. Demonstrate how to use a handheld GPS unit, GPS app on a smartphone or other electronic navigation system Demonstrate how to use a handheld GPS unit, GPS app on a smartphone, or other electronic navigation system while on a campout or hike. Use GPS to find your current location, a destination of your choice, and the route you will take to get there. Follow that route to arrive at your destination.. Use a GPS to find your current location, a destination of your choice, and the route you will take to get there. Follow that route to arrive at your destination.

5a. Identify or show evidence of at least 10 kinds of native plants found in your local area or campsite location. You may show evidence by identifying fallen leaves or fallen fruit that you find in the field, or as part of a collection you have made, or by photographs you have taken.

9c. On a Scouting or family outing, take note of the trash and garbage you produce. Before your next similar outing, decide how you can reduce, recycle, or repurpose what you take on that outing, and then put those plans into action. Compare your results.

The Adventure Trek Tradition

Every year, the Trek takes a different form — a different discipline, a different landscape, a different kind of challenge. Here's where we've been:

The 2026 trek to Katahdin combines two disciplines in a single expedition — a 100-mile bike loop and a 4,000-foot summit climb in one week. The previous Adventure Treks listed above each picked one mode (paddle, hike, or pedal); this is the first multi-sport edition in recent memory.

On the Horizon

Before we settled on Maine, the planning conversations went big — and some of those ideas are worth keeping on the radar for future years:

None of these are off the table — they're the kind of ambitious goals that keep the Adventure Trek program evolving. For now, Katahdin is the mission. But the conversation about what comes next is always open.

Backpacking Hiking Bikepacking High Adventure

Last updated on May 01, 2026