Yep, still scanning old slides and photos. . . .

. . . and got to return to another cabin from my past. Once again we go to Maine.

Under 'Log Cabins I have known' I wrote about this cabin in Maine, near Baxter State Park.

The Grand Lake Matagamon cabin of Edmund Ware Smith. (Don't forget to check out his books.)

Scanning and sorting I came across a few more from the time I got to visit the place.

This is the lake side of the cabin.
The opposite side from the view above.

 Kitchen, every thing cleaned up and stacked to keep mice away.

 Stove.
I didn't take many pictures inside.
I think I felt I was intruding. Although I was there with permission, I guess I felt I shouldn't take too many inside.

 Wife walking outside when we visited a few years ago. We did not get to go inside on this trip.

  In the above mentioned post I wrote about his friends who would visit and they called themselves 'Jakes Rangers' after artist, who was one of them, Maurice 'Jake' Day.

In the field just out of view in the above photo, there were several smaller cabins, log and otherwise.

Each "member" of Jake's Rangers had there own cabin to sleep in using Smiths house as the informal meeting place for there northern adventures.

Here is a picture of Jakes Rangers with Chief Justice Douglas and the caption that the Baxter State Park page had on the photo;
Jake's Rangers" at Roaring Brook, photo taken by Roaring Brook Ranger Ed Werler, date unknown (likely late 1950's,early '60's).
Left to right: Ed Pierce, Jake Day, Bentley Glidden, Justice William O' Douglas, Edmund Ware Smith. Justice Douglas was a wilderness champion and Edmund Ware Smith wrote about "Jake's Rangers" in his much loved books. Jake Day is the Maine artist who created the seal/logo for Baxter State Park.

A couple more cabins in Baxter State Park, 1979 - but they are still there.

Don't ya just want to sit on that porch and read a book or somethin'?

Okay, this one is not in Baxter, but just across the lake from Baxter.

Me working on a pack basket on the porch of a log cabin, 1977

Books to read while sitting around your cabins fire (We will call this B2R from now on)

Cooler weather is slowly approaching here in Missouri. Today is the fall equinox, Sept 22nd.
So my thoughts start roaming towards cooler days and chilly nights when the fires soft glow warms the spaces in the cabin.

Or if you prefer, taking a break outside by the open fire and reading while the sun warms your back.
No matter what image you come up with, this is the time to start bringing out the books suitable for cabin reading. And when it comes right down to it, it probably doesn't really matter what you read, just take the time and do it.

I am going to try to post at least one book a week till spring time, maybe more, that makes me want to be outside as the weather cools. We will see how that goes.

Whether with a cup of tea or hot chocolate, or a glass of wine, lets get comfortable and enjoy.



For my first suggestion I am going to go down very familiar ground and start with one of my favorite outdoor writers, one I have talked about here a few times.

As I have mentioned here many times, in the late 70's I had the chance to work in some of the most beautiful wilderness in the country, the area called Baxter State Park in Maine.

We were given a list of suggested books to explore that dealt a lot with the area I was going to work in.
One of the authors suggested was Edmund Ware Smith. And he was one of the ones I chose to familiarize myself with the area. Mr. Smith over the years wrote for many of the popular outdoor magazines like Ford Times, Outdoor Life, Sports Afield, etc.

I don't remember which of these two was the first I read, but it doesn't matter, I was hooked.
Either will do to start with.
Both tell stories of the areas local fishing and hunting and characters. Many true and many not so true, but still lots of fun.

You can smell the wood smoke and hear the loons as you read along with Mr. Smith.

I wanted a tar paper roof on my first cabin after reading his description of the sound of rain on a tar paper roof.

The call of the loon is exactly like Mr. Smith describes it.
You can see your canoe paddle cutting through the still lake water as you read the stories.

One of my favorites is the tale of a young man taking his father for his last canoe ride.
The father had died while at the hunting camp and the tale is a paddle down memory lane as the son take him back to the boat landing for the last time.

His books were hard to come by for many years, with old copies starting around $75.00.
But now reprints of some of his books are easily available.


It also didn't hurt that I loved the artist who did the illustrations.

I was also lucky in that Mr. Smiths cabin was just a short hike down an old logging road from where I worked.
I was able to see many of the places he would write about, some just down by the lake in front of his cabin.
Some of the people he wrote about still lived nearby and I got to know them pretty well and kept in touch for many years. This really brought the stories to life.

Mr. Smith had been dead for several years before I came to Maine, but his family still owned the property and I was able to visit it a few times, and walked by it many times.

I go back to these stories quite often and enjoy the return to the Maine woods.

I hope you enjoy the visit also.

Well I guess we are still on Maine

While going through old slides last night I came across a cabin from Baxter State Park Maine.
We did not stay in this one, but near it in another cabin.

This project - Where it all began.

Many years ago I had the privilege of working at an High Adventure Base in Maine. Right on the boundary of Baxter State Park.

Wilderness, lakes, rivers, wildlife and one of the best places to camp anywhere.
I, needless to say, fell in love with the area.

Depending on which way you are going, Baxter State Park is either your finish or your start to the Appalachian Trail.

And one of my favorite places to camp in the park is Katahdin Stream Campground.

Surrounded by trees, right along Katahdin Stream, the campsite is ideally placed for one of the best hikes up Mt. Katahdin.

 The entrance has this view of Mt. Katahdin, but the campsites soon take you into the woods.

 And way back in about 1978 is the first time I got to experience an Adirondack shelter like the one pictured here at Katahdin Stream campground.

These are ideal for sleeping in and looking out at the woods, and hearing the stream just beyond your picnic table.
If it is a rainy evening, a great place to hang your lantern and read a book.
Up off the ground, nice and dry.

 The closeness to others allow for visiting with like minded campers, yet far enough apart to be private.
And usually when I go there are not many people around anyway.

 Here in autumn colors.

Although built of much smaller logs than the ones I am using, this is where I got the idea to begin with.

While this campground is not the only one in the park that has these, these are the ones I think about the most.

 And a great place to hang things up to dry.















An old post card of Katahdin Stream Campground.

And look, even the ranger station is made out of logs.

I have also stayed in these shelters (below) at South Branch Pond. . .

. . . as well as some at Nesowadnehunk Field, both in Baxter State Park.

(These at South Branch are my second favorite, but much closer to where I worked near the park.)
Although also built of logs, the building style is a little different.

It's the browns and the greens. The cabins in Baxter State Park.

I have had the pleasure of spending a lot of time over the years in or near Baxter State Park Maine, and never tire of going back.
While most of the time I either camped or stay in an Adirondack shelter while there, I have also stayed in the cabins.
There is something about the cabins of this state park and some national parks that says comfortable yet wilderness. For me, part of it is the Green and Brown paints they use on the logs and trim.
It just works!
So enjoy.

When I find my old photo of the cabin I stayed in I will post it.

However, here is someone else's picture of the cabin. Owl's Nest