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| Heading out |
Our second attempt at an Allagash trip got canceled due to family obligations and COVID-19. In its place, Bill and I decided to do an overnight at the Burlingame Canoe Campsites. We posted it on the RICKA message board, and Danny joined us as well.
The Burlingame Canoe Campsites are part of the Burlingame Management Area upstream from the Bradford Landing. There are six sites including an open field suitable for groups, and five smaller wooded sites. All the sites are available on a first come first serve basis, and can get crowded in the warm summer months.
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| Time to unload |
One of the challenges of canoe/kayak camping is that everything that you bring needs to fit in your boat. While you can carry more in a canoe or kayak than you can in a backpack, space is still limited, and drybags are needed to keep your gear dry. Once I packed up all my gear, I realized that I had more than I could fit in my solo boat. Fortunately, Danny has a collection of tripping canoes and likes to paddle tandem. He agreed to bring an 18-foot Old Town Voyager with more than enough room for our gear.
The forecast was for rain on Saturday, but sunny and warm on Sunday. It was drizzling as I drove down I-95, but it stopped by the time I reached Bradford Landing. We loaded the boats and headed out. As we headed upstream the clouds started to clear and we even saw some patches of blue sky.
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| Veggies for dinner |
All of the sites were empty when we arrived at Burlingame. We scouted out the field, but decided to take the first wooded site downstream. We hauled our gear up the steep hill from the river and began to set up camp. The first thing up was the rain fly – fortunately we never needed it – followed by the tents/hammock. With Danny’s big boat we were able to bring enough firewood so that we didn’t need to forage.
As we set up camp, a couple of hikers passed by and took the site next door. Trails lead into these sites from the parking lot on Buckeye Brook Road and from the North South Trailhead on Burdickville Road. They were quiet neighbors.
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| Enjoying the fire |
After setting up camp we took a break to enjoy cocktails and appetizers before cooking dinner. Dinner was Jonathan’s fried fish with rice and veggies. A few clouds rolled in around dinner time, and we heard rumbles of thunder to the north, but we never got any rain. After dinner we settled in around the fire for cherry pie, watermelon and a relaxing evening. By the time we went to bed the sky was clear and full of stars.
I awoke around 4:00 to the sound of Bill yelling at a whip-poor-will singing in a nearby tree. I have to admit, it was loud, but Bill was louder. I fell back asleep and woke up again around 6:00 when I heard Danny up making coffee. I decided it was time to get up and get the coffee pot going myself.
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| Loaded for the trip back |
Bill was up shortly after and we got the fire going and started cooking breakfast – omelets, home fries, sausage and English muffins. Most was cooked on the stove, but the sausage was cooked and the muffins were toasted on the fire by Danny. It was a beautiful morning, so we took our time enjoying breakfast and coffee around the fire.
After breakfast we packed up camp for the trip back to Bradford. The weather was beautiful – bright blue sky, a few puffy clouds and no wind. It was a leisurely paddle back to Bradford Landing. Once there, we packed up the cars and said our goodbyes after another great tip.
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| A pretty section of the Pawcatuck River |
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