Hi all, in previous Maine Trail Finder blog posts I commented on accessibility of particular trails from a hand cycler’s perspective.
In this post, I share my hand cycling experience in Camden Hills State Park. It’s a well-maintained State Park with spectacular views – what’s not to like?
The draw to Camden Hills is usually Maiden’s Peak or Bald Rock lookout – but rather than go for those classic views, I was looking to find flatter stretches with miles of good biking trails in this mid-coast part of the State. So starting from the campground (on the bottom of the Park’s map to the left), I plotted a route and headed out (in green, the Ski Shelter Trail), thinking maybe I’d have time on the way back for the Cameron Mountain spur (in yellow) – it had been highly recommended to me by Park staff.
In about five hours of biking, out and back, it turns out that the first ¼ mile after leaving the campground (just after passing an electric tower) is the most difficult part. It’s a 12-14% grade in places and the gravel is not well packed. So if you can handle that on a hand cycle, the rest is delightful. With my type of cycle (one wheel in front, two in back), on terrain like that I find it helpful to lean forward on alternate sides of the pedals with each crank – it applies my weight to the front tire and helps keep it from spinning.
Once past that spot there are several long hills as in the photo to the right, that just keep going up with the next bend. It reminded me of Acadia’s Carriage Trails in that way. So I suspect the route will only be delightful if you have pedal assist or are in great shape or both.
As a curio to appreciate, there’s a 1930s ski shelter that the trail is named after, rebuilt in 2005 with on-site lumber.
In flatter parts, the packed and well-worn two-track roads present a constant choice for hand cyclers. The axle on my bike is too wide to be able to fit both wheels on either side of the road, so line choice comes down to these two images:
Hey trail managers with roads on your property, note this. Neither choice is nearly as smooth of a ride as two-wheeled cyclers enjoy all day long just by staying in one wheel well or the other. I generally pick the left option, because the bike doesn’t ride comfortably spanning both sides of mid-strips where tire wear is even a little bit deep. But that isn’t smooth either because the rear wheels are then both on elevated and rough ground, not in the well. It is still wonderful to be out getting exercise and enjoying nature though.
The northern stretch of the Ski Shelter Trail is one protracted downhill glide of 6-8%, landing at a parking area by ME-175.
Just be prepared for a long, slow arm-burn on the return incline. With the slow climbs I didn’t have enough time to catch the Cameron Mountain view on the way back – next time!
I’ll also share a transport adaptation that some might find helpful. I drive with hand controls and am not able to lift my bike, so with the help of a friend who is handy at metalwork, I retrofitted my trailer with a rack underneath to hold three ramps that I pull out for loading and unloading.
Then to enable getting the bike up and down the ramps I added a hand-winch from a boat trailer and it just cranks right up. The strap holds the front wheel snugly in place and all I have to do is strap down the back wheels for tight transport:
One other mechanical part of this, that some hand cyclers may need to tend to, is steadying the chassis. Left alone it will want to flop left or right with any jostling in transport, so I use tie-downs to keep it centered, with tension heading backwards behind the seat:
This combination of gear has enabled me to get out and about to many new trails around the State. Like, on the mid-coast area this summer I also especially enjoyed exploring the upper reaches of the Camden Snow Bowl. That’s for another post someday - but Camden Hills State Park is definitely one I’ll return to.
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