Peaks and views

We hiked in Acadia last week near Southwest Harbor. Two peaks were summited (small ones)! There was some ice on the trail, but we could pick our way around it.

First peak – Flying Mountain. Only 284 feet, but what a great name.

And a great vantage point for viewing Somes Sound. I looked up Somes Sound because I’d heard it was a fjord. Turns out it is not a true fjord, but a fjärd. I’d never heard that word before. Both are flooded glacial valleys, but a fjärd is smaller in all ways than a fjord.

We came down from Flying Mountain and continued along the trail to Valley Cove. A side trail led us to a little rocky cove. A nice place for a picnic, but not that day. It was cold and windy in exposed spots.

On the trail back to the car, we took a side trip to Valley Peak. Funny name, an oxymoron. On the way we passed through what we called the Bonsai Forest. The trees were all deformed by the wind and looked like oversized bonsai.

We reached the Valley Peak Summit, 530 feet. It was a bit of a scramble going up, trying to avoid ice most of the way. We were momentarily lost on our way down. Memory plays a big role in finding your way – how did this look coming up? – but the blue blazes were also a big help.

This section of map shows the trails we walked. It’s an odd topography, two ridges with a valley between them, parallel to the sound. It was a challenging hike, mostly due to the occasional ice and some strenuous steepness for us older folk to negotiate. It was an excellent hike on a winter day.