Mount Battie Trail in Camden, Maine is a 1.1-mile trail that seems like an easy feat for a seasoned climber at first glance. However, I am not a seasoned climber, and the last time I went hiking was during my COOT trip (a full year ago). Last weekend, my friends and I took advantage of the nice weather and decided to spend our Saturday conquering Mount Battie. I knew I was going to be faced with a daunting challenge as soon as the hike began. Within a minute of the hike, I was already regretting my decision after finding myself slipping on the damp piles of leaves between the rocks. The good news is that the slipperiness went away the higher we climbed. However, my fear level rose after crossing paths with a woman making her way down who exclaimed she had fallen three times during the hike.
The next challenge I faced was the steep rocky inclines that unfortunately were also slippery. Though to be fair, I don’t think my worn-out Nike Roshes were the best choice of footwear for this hike. There were moments where my ascent probably would not have been considered hiking due to the fact I was crawling on all fours up the mountain. Luckily, it didn’t take long for me to get a glimpse of the sprawling town of Camden and a view of the bay.
In about 45 minutes, we reached the top of the mountain, and despite all the moments where I felt like I was going to give up and turn around, the hike didn’t seem too bad. Despite not running into many hikers on our way up, the top was populated with several groups of people. This is because the top is also accessible by car.
After snapping a couple dozen photos to make up for the treacherous hike, we were ready to make our way back to town. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only person in the group who didn’t want to hike our way down. Two of my friends and I made our way down by walking along the road that cars used to get to the top. Within a good half an hour, we made it to the bottom and were reunited with our hiker friends.
Mount Battie was definitely a baddie, but she comes with an amazing view of Camden and guarantees you’ll get a good work out.