Our bubble buddies Andrea and Chuck just happened to be launching their Nepisiguit Mi’gmaq trail thru hike the same weekend Maria and I were going to finish all the trails at Mount Carleton, the highest mountain peak in the Maritimes. There are many trails in the park that people miss because of the lure to reach the top of Carlton.
We gave them a lift to the park and arrived close to dark. They agreed to stay at our somewhat primitive campsite and then begin their 150km trek east to Bathurst the next morning.
The trail head for the Nepisiguit is at the Bathurst Lakes end of Mount Carleton park.
Chuck brought scotch, Maria brought gin, the next morning brought a rough start, for me only. We dropped the hikers at the trail head, and they were off!
It was time for Maria and I to begin hiking the few trails that were left on our list. We started with Pine Point trail, a short and easy 2km. A loon kept calling beside us on the right, and I tried to get a video for this blog, but every time I was in a position to get a great video of the lake, blue sky and loon, the loon stopped calling. This game of cat and mouse, or should I say Colin and Loon lasted most of the hike. I never did get that video.
Pine Point Trail 
View of Sagamook along Portage Trail
In fact, that loon played coy with me all weekend. When Maria and I were back at camp after hiking all day, I’d hear the loon calling on the lake beside our campsite. By the time I ran to the shore to get a video, the loon wouldn’t say anything. I waited 45 minutes for the loon to call, it didn’t. When I went and sat by the fire, guess who belted out the loudest loon call as soon as I sat down, that a-hole loon. I’ll eventually get a video of the loon, I will win this war.
Back to the day of hiking! After hiking Pine Point, we traversed along the reclaimed Portage Trail. Thousands of years ago it was the travel corridor between Little Nictau Lake and Bathurst Lake for First Nations people. They carried their canoes to access other waterways in the Nepisiguit River system all the way to the St. John River.
The portage trail is only 4.7km, an easy hike and extremely beautiful. From there, we had a short road walk to the Caribou Brook trail head where we’d be looping back to our car at Pine Point. A quick 15km before 1pm.
We napped in our hammocks back at the campsite that afternoon, and then fired up the dutch oven for supper! We had lasagna. Maria made single serving lasagna which we heated in the Dutch oven using BBQ charcoal.
We kept the fire going as darkness fell, and busted out our cast iron pie pan and baked raspberry Pillsbury turnovers. It was a good fire snack. Sleep hit us pretty hard.
The next morning on Sunday, our breakfast consisted of the rest of the raspberry turnovers along with a breakfast sandwich made with halloumi cheese, a fried egg and bacon, smashed between a cheese bun. The calories we needed to climb two mountains.
We’ve been to the top of Mount Carleton before, just not the usual way. We’ve trekked up to the tall peak by way of Big Brook Trail and another time we hiked up Sagamook Mountain, then hiked a side trail (Mount Head Trail) which leads to Mount Carleton. We’ve never actually hiked the Carleton loop, today is that day, which is 9.9km according to the park map.
Our uphill climb to Carleton started from the longest section of the loop. We passed a number of day hikers and Headwaters primitive campsites before we reached the ‘extremely dangerous’ final hike up to the top.
Maria said she’d be disappointed if we didn’t take the rocky edge leg of the trail. So we did.
Once we were close to the summit and above the tree line, we decided to take another rock climbing route, which almost proved to be a disaster for me.
Accidents happen to the most experienced hiker, me included. As we were climbing up boulders to reach the peak, I placed my foot on what I thought was stable footing, I slipped and scrambled to grab a piece of the boulder to catch me from falling off Mount Carleton!
I was starting to slip down to the sharp rocks 6 feet below when my right foot jammed into a crevice, and my only thought was my leg is going to snap in two and I’m going to have to be airlifted of the side of the mountain! I stiffened my leg to counteract the snap, which didn’t happen, and I came to a stop.
My heart was in my throat, my leg was bleeding and my knee was bruised. I’m glad thats all that happened, or I would have landed on my back on a pile of rocks on the side of the Maritimes highest peak.
After I gathered my wits and Maria giving me a pep talk, we finished the last few hundred meters with no problems, and nobody at the top! 10 million trees laid before us as well as our next mountain to conquer, Mount Bailey.
After lunch we took the easier, shorter route down Mount Carleton, this is the trail tourists take, it’s an easy 3km, almost too easy.
We were on our way to Mount Bailey to complete every trail in the park when on the side of the road a couple of young ladies flagged us down.
They said they took a wrong trail and ended up on the wrong side of Sagamook Mountain where their car was. With face coverings on, we agreed to drive Sophie and Jess to their car.
Now a bit of a back story. When Maria and I camp at Mount Carleton, we always get the same campsite, Armstrong #18, we didn’t get the campsite this time because it was already booked. We decided to try the somewhat primitive sites at Williams campground. You hike in about 100 meters to the site, there are now showers but the lake view is incredible! This is now our new favourite site.
Back to the lost hikers. As we were driving Sophie and Jess to their car, we learned they weren’t even suppose to be camping this weekend, they were given the site by a friend who couldn’t make it. Of course I asked which campground they were in and they responded:
“Armstrong campground, site #18”.
What are the chances! So here we were giving a ride to complete strangers that had our camp site booked! Crazy how things work. Good people. With a wave of our hand and face masks removed, Maria and I continued to the Mount Bailey trail head.
It was an amazing hike up. Not too hard, and strenuous enough for a late day mountain number two hike. We reached the summit and had a picnic on a table over looking the valleys and lakes below, with Mount Carleton and Sagamook just off to our left. What a view!
Then as we were finishing our hummus, Maria excitedly pointed out that off in the distance in one of the lakes, a moose was feeding on lily pads! You could barely make it out, but you could certainly tell it was a moose wading around in the cool lake. It would go from one side to the other munching away getting fat for winter. We did get a picture, but I don’t think you can tell it’s a moose, just a black dot.
Far off in the distant horizon, you could see spurts of rain.
Then within 20 minutes of us starting our trek down Mount Bailey, the sky opened and it started to pour. 3 kms later back at our car on the other side of the lookout where we had lunch, it was dry, like it never rained.
Mountains are amazing.
That night for supper, we had fish cakes, beans and cheese bread. We tend to eat well when we camp. Its definitely one of the biggest joys for us.
As the sunset next to the lake, we watched geese fly overhead making their way south.
But then the loon came back. It taunted me all evening. Calling, flapping its wings in the water splashing around, bellowing me to try and get a video. I ignored it. I’ll be back loon, when you least expect it. I’ll get you on video yet.
Happy trails! -Colin
Supper/dinner Friday
-Subway
-Lots of drinks
Breakfast Saturday
-Home prepped breakfast wrap with tators
-Coffee
Snack/lunch Saturday
-Hummus, crackers
-Cliff Bar, dehydrated cherries, All Dressed Crispers
Supper/snack Saturday
-Lasagna, cheese roll
-Raspberry Turnover baked over fire
Breakfast Sunday
-Halloumi cheese, a fried egg and bacon, between a cheese bun
-Left over turnovers
-Coffee
Lunch/snack Sunday
-Snickers, cliff bar, All Dressed Crispers, dehydrated cherries
-Buffalo style chicken on crackers
Supper/snack Sunday
-Homemade fish cakes (home tartar sauce), beans and cheese bread
-Apple Turnovers
-Cinnamon cookies, Jersey Milk (Maria also had -blah- marshmallows)
Awesone story Colin
Awesome write up!
And thanks for the trail tips !
Although, minus the almost fall.