Hello, followers of the Apogee blog! This is a special blog appearance by Mike Lessard — I’m a third-year leader for Apogee. This coming summer, I have the privilege to lead the brand-new Caribbean Service Adventure trip along with the exciting Northwest Explorer. Needless to say, I am eager to get the trips started! I’m also interning for Apogee this spring and working on some pretty interesting projects.

This past weekend I had the amazing opportunity to go up to Baxter State Park and scout the backcountry section of this summer’s Downeast Explorer trip, following the Appalachian Trail to the towering 5,267 foot Mount Katahdin. It was a spectacular trip, and brought me to places in Maine I’d never seen before — even as a life-long Mainer.

Below are several pictures from my trip — all views that our Downeasters will be enjoying very shortly!

A view of Mount Katahdin from Appalachian Trail. The white spots are SNOW!

Pollywog Stream: A refreshing break!

Mount Katahdin from Rainbow Lake, just off of the AT.