I decided to empty the freezer of leftover camp food from 2013 and as Mike had a TR posted and Andy S of another forum had paddled this lake in late September , I wanted to find out what the fuss was about. Its only 2.5 hours from home..even at the north end. I used a northern access and camped nearby at Twin Brook. It's run by Aziscoos Wilderness Camping.
The lake does have a reputation for funnelling winds and raising cain. Turns out its pretty shallow! For a lake some fifteen miles long a max depth of 60 feet is NOTHING. My "own" little lake has the same depth average and max and its only 3 miles long! I wonder why Aziscoos Lake is not Aziscoos Pond? ( Shallow waterbodies in Maine are often termed ponds regardless of acreage) So now we know why the chop that is so often suffered by paddlers and beat McCreas Monarch up.
http://www.lakesofmaine.org/lake-overview.html?m=3290
http://www.rangeleymaine.com/members/profile/aziscoos-lake-wilderness-camping. Access is off Rt 16 five miles NW of Oquossoc and when you reserve your site the caretakers will give you directions so you can easily navigate the 12.5 miles of good logging roads.
I noted on launch that the lake is down a good 15 feet. It is dam controlled. There is a huge hydro dam at the south end (I cant see it from the north end) and lakes are often drawn down for winter repairs to structures in Maine.
Well my experience was like neither of the other posters. I had sun, heat, barely a riffle on the water, calm landings and launches, cool nights at freezing, magnificent autumn color, no bugs, too many red squirrels.
Launch is easy. Parking is tucked in the trees at the top though at this time of the year the whole beach is a huge parking lot.
I load the boat and paddle only .7 miles to a campsite at Twin Brook. There are five there. They are also land accessible but the hike takes a while. The sites are nicely spaced and each is quite big.
My landing..
Campsite setup seems to befuddle me. I swear I used this tent in the spring. Now why is it not popping up. Even without the hoop pole it should..
Can you spot the error? It took me ten minutes.. doh.
This is my excuse and I am sticking with it. My reading material for the three days.
My camp slum. It never ceases to amaze me how fast I can foul up pristine scenery.
Next day I gunkhole around the Little Magalloway River. I dont get more than two miles up to Parmanchee Lake before running into what looks exactly like tidal flats.Gawd its hot! So I root around taking pictures and float some of the way down to just north of Lincoln Brook.
BTW Lincoln Brook is only 5.5 miles from the north end of the lake. Most folks use Black Brook Campground to access the lake and its much farther to get to Lincoln Brook from that end (9 miles).
There are quite a number of camps just north of Lincoln Brook on the east side. As its camp closing time there was a lot of activity going on. The west side of this part of the lake is not developed save for Bosebuck Camps at the extreme northern end.
Back to camp for an afternoon reading session and watching the light
Two mornings were quite foggy. The temp of the lake was higher than the air. I never felt cold but later learned the mornings were about freezing. I did usually arise at first light. I went to bed at seven! Dang this solo tripping at the darker side of the year!
The second to last day I went down past Lincoln Brook . Here is a pic of the campsite though I did not take pics of the moose bones that Andy SZ gnawed on.
The southern part of the lake is rockier than the northern end. The northern end is sandier.
Northern end
Across from Lincoln Brook
Looking to the south from 2 miles south of Lincoln Brook.
Lincoln Brook Campsite. There are three cells. So if you want to camp there , be sure to ask Carolyn or Charlie how many cells are occupied.
I think that other than the colors, what really impressed me that weekend was watching mother loons that were still nurturing their young. The dads were long gone and the moms were to leave soon but were still seeming to make sure their young were good at catching and not merely fishing.
The mom is the more traditional loon color (breeding plumage) and the young is the banker suit color. Not a great pix as I did not have a good tele lens.
Peace.
I really enjoyed my 75 hours of noticing. That was 75 hours from door to door of my house. Actual trip time was 67 hours. Not really a wilderness trip. No portages. Picnic tables. But when you get old maybe you can still get out there.
The lake does have a reputation for funnelling winds and raising cain. Turns out its pretty shallow! For a lake some fifteen miles long a max depth of 60 feet is NOTHING. My "own" little lake has the same depth average and max and its only 3 miles long! I wonder why Aziscoos Lake is not Aziscoos Pond? ( Shallow waterbodies in Maine are often termed ponds regardless of acreage) So now we know why the chop that is so often suffered by paddlers and beat McCreas Monarch up.
http://www.lakesofmaine.org/lake-overview.html?m=3290
http://www.rangeleymaine.com/members/profile/aziscoos-lake-wilderness-camping. Access is off Rt 16 five miles NW of Oquossoc and when you reserve your site the caretakers will give you directions so you can easily navigate the 12.5 miles of good logging roads.
I noted on launch that the lake is down a good 15 feet. It is dam controlled. There is a huge hydro dam at the south end (I cant see it from the north end) and lakes are often drawn down for winter repairs to structures in Maine.
Well my experience was like neither of the other posters. I had sun, heat, barely a riffle on the water, calm landings and launches, cool nights at freezing, magnificent autumn color, no bugs, too many red squirrels.
Launch is easy. Parking is tucked in the trees at the top though at this time of the year the whole beach is a huge parking lot.
I load the boat and paddle only .7 miles to a campsite at Twin Brook. There are five there. They are also land accessible but the hike takes a while. The sites are nicely spaced and each is quite big.
My landing..
Campsite setup seems to befuddle me. I swear I used this tent in the spring. Now why is it not popping up. Even without the hoop pole it should..
Can you spot the error? It took me ten minutes.. doh.
This is my excuse and I am sticking with it. My reading material for the three days.
My camp slum. It never ceases to amaze me how fast I can foul up pristine scenery.
Next day I gunkhole around the Little Magalloway River. I dont get more than two miles up to Parmanchee Lake before running into what looks exactly like tidal flats.Gawd its hot! So I root around taking pictures and float some of the way down to just north of Lincoln Brook.
BTW Lincoln Brook is only 5.5 miles from the north end of the lake. Most folks use Black Brook Campground to access the lake and its much farther to get to Lincoln Brook from that end (9 miles).
There are quite a number of camps just north of Lincoln Brook on the east side. As its camp closing time there was a lot of activity going on. The west side of this part of the lake is not developed save for Bosebuck Camps at the extreme northern end.
Back to camp for an afternoon reading session and watching the light
Two mornings were quite foggy. The temp of the lake was higher than the air. I never felt cold but later learned the mornings were about freezing. I did usually arise at first light. I went to bed at seven! Dang this solo tripping at the darker side of the year!
The second to last day I went down past Lincoln Brook . Here is a pic of the campsite though I did not take pics of the moose bones that Andy SZ gnawed on.
The southern part of the lake is rockier than the northern end. The northern end is sandier.
Northern end
Across from Lincoln Brook
Looking to the south from 2 miles south of Lincoln Brook.
Lincoln Brook Campsite. There are three cells. So if you want to camp there , be sure to ask Carolyn or Charlie how many cells are occupied.
I think that other than the colors, what really impressed me that weekend was watching mother loons that were still nurturing their young. The dads were long gone and the moms were to leave soon but were still seeming to make sure their young were good at catching and not merely fishing.
The mom is the more traditional loon color (breeding plumage) and the young is the banker suit color. Not a great pix as I did not have a good tele lens.
Peace.
I really enjoyed my 75 hours of noticing. That was 75 hours from door to door of my house. Actual trip time was 67 hours. Not really a wilderness trip. No portages. Picnic tables. But when you get old maybe you can still get out there.
