If there is a theme to this blog, it is that Maine is laden with hidden treasure along its coasts and rivers and within its forests and lakes.
So I was particularly interested to learn about a legend of the Mattawamkeag area. The legend has it that there is a gold-bearing bolder in the Gordon Brook woods near the Mattawamkeag River. The only catch is that the boulder casts a curse on those who try to find it.
We were too busy dodging rocks to spend much time looking for golden boulders as we paddled down the Mattawamkeag last weekend. The river, which runs up to Class V, depending on the time of year, was running at a very moderate 850 cubic feet per second, but it was still one of the more challenging rivers we’ve paddled.
We were staying at the Mattawamkeag Wilderness Campground, itself certainly right up there amongst Maine’s hidden treasures. This clean, quiet, old-timey campground has spacious sites, several miles of river frontage, and is surrounded by a thousand acres of wilderness. After moving our boats 100 yards upstream so we could run the Scatterack, the Class II rapid that fronted our campsite, we put in and began our adventure. A fisherman from a nearby campsite voiced concern when he saw that we were heading off in sea kayaks. “We know what we are doing,” I assured him. I sure hoped we did.
We had paddled other Class II and III rivers in sea kayaks. We had read everything we could about the river and had scouted the most difficult section the day before. Still there is that element of doubt as you put in on an unfamiliar river.
The first mile was made up of easy whitewater and provided an excellent warm-up. About a mile from the campsite the river goes around a big bend to the left before entering a narrow gorge, the infamous Slewgundy Heater. The evening before, by lantern light, we had read of the graves of 7 river drivers that line the Slewgundy. We had also read of the man who was killed while canoeing Upper Gordon Falls a half mile below.
We were so focused on the hazards of the gorge itself that we were surprised by the strength of the rapids at its entrance. Here we found a section of river with strong currents, large waves, and rocks that required quick maneuvering. Then, at once, we were inside the gorge, and after a 3 foot drop, the river was strangely calm. There we were in the narrow canyon, with the 40 foot rock walls above us and the roar of the river both above and below. Beneath us and around us the river was tranquil, dark, and flat.
We took advantage of the calm water and eddied out to scout the most difficult section of the whole river, which as just ahead. After some scouting and more than a little debate, we decided on a route that would take us into a hairpin turn along the far right bank. From there, we would need to reverse sweep to cut across the current to the right and then quickly turn left to line up for a final 3 foot drop.
Hearts pounding, we ran the drop successfully if not perfectly. We were out into daylight. Out of Slewgundy’s maw.
After a mile of easier whitewater, we came to Upper Gordon Falls, which is “bony” and requires a portage at medium water levels. Below Upper Gordon, we stopped for lunch and to swim in the river, which in the 80 degree heat seemed unnaturally warm. Then it was on to run Lower Gordon (a Class III drop with big waves). Below Lower Gordon the gradient decreases and the river widens. Acres of boulders are strewn about this widened riverbed, creating a different kind of challenge for the paddler. A few smaller drops keep it interesting. We paddled on, under the railroad bridge and then the Route 2 bridge, and then on to the confluence with the Penobscot.
Mattawamkeag means “at the mouth, a gravel bar.” True to its name, the mouth of the Mattawamkeag is still marked by a gravel bar just a few yards north of where it flows into the Penobscot. We floated at the confluence for a few minutes, testing the temperature of both rivers with our hands. The Penobscot was several degrees cooler, we decided.
Rather than ending our trip there, we paddled the Penobscot 4 miles south to the boat landing in Winn. After the thrills of the Mattawamkeag, we had anticipated the Penobscot would be flat and less interesting. We were happy to find it was neither. The river here is nothing like the deep somnolent river near Bangor and Bucksport. It is lively and braided and shallow with rips and rocks and sections of whitewater. The riverscape is interrupted with breezy park-like islands forested with oak and maple. In the deepening afternoon shadows, we curled through Five Island Rapids and then paddled back into the sunlight and on to a second set of islands that marked our take out in Winn.
We were sorry to leave the river but we still had adventure ahead. It was a 12 mile bicycle ride (4 on pavement, 8 on dirt) to get back to the campsite. Then a 24-mile car trip (16 on dirt, 8 on pavement, you get the idea) to pick up the kayaks. Then a 10:00 pm dinner at our riverside campsite and later to fall asleep with the river still in our ears.
We liked it so much, we were on the river by 1:00 pm the next day to do the whole thing again.
The story of the golden bolder seems to be a somewhat commonplace warning against excessive ambition and greed. On another level, it seems to teach that there are undiscovered riches out there — that can perhaps be found and appreciated only by those who are happy to be there for the sake of being there, who are not seeking anything tangible from the experience, who are seeking only the experience itself.
Resources:
Mattawamkeag Wilderness Park Campground
Gordon Falls on the Mattawamkeag (geology of the lower Mattawamkeag River)
Mattawamkeag River Stream Flow (river gauge)
Mattawamkeag Park to Open May 28 (BDN news article)