Maine's woods, through Thoreau's eyes

A trail tracing the first ecotourist's travels iwith his Indian guides pays tribute to unrestrained nature's effect on inner vision.

By Clarke Canfield, Associated Press
Published August 12, 2007

H enry David Thoreau made his third and final trip to Maine's North Woods 150 years ago, traveling waterways and forests that shaped so many of his ideas about nature.

A nonprofit group last month unveiled the Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail to pay tribute to Thoreau - whom some consider the first ecotourist - and the Penobscot Indian guides who accompanied him on two of his treks.

Maine Woods Forever has produced a detailed map of Thoreau's trips and will erect informational kiosks along different parts of Thoreau's route. The group also has worked in partnership with a photographer who is producing a book of photos, Wildness Within, Wildness Without, retracing Thoreau's steps.

The map tracks each of Thoreau's trips day by day, as he canoed Moosehead Lake, the Penobscot River and its tributaries, and climbed Mount Katahdin. The map gives a broad overview of Thoreau's travels and includes his observations from selected points along the way, but it is not intended as a navigational tool for canoeists and hikers.

The project aims to raise public interest not only in Thoreau's travels, but also in the wilderness spirit and recreational heritage of the North Woods.

"I hope what comes of this is a better understanding of the potential that the North Woods has to offer everyone in the world when it comes right down to it," said Don Hudson, president of Maine Woods Forever. "If we can achieve that, we can move a step closer to broader awareness of these assets."

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Thoreau, an author and philosopher who lived from 1817 to 1862, is well-known today for his reflections on simple living in nature, especially through his book Walden, about his two-year retreat in a small house on Walden Pond in his hometown of Concord, Mass.

He also wrote The Maine Woods, a less well-known book about his observations and thoughts during his three journeys to northern Maine, in 1846, 1853 and 1857.

For its Thoreau project, Maine Woods Forever assembled a committee of people to exchange ideas on which actions to take.

Butch Phillips, a Penobscot Indian from Milford, suggested that the trail be named to recognize the Wabanaki Indians - which include the Penobscot, Passamaquoddy, Maliseet, Abanaki and Micmac tribes.

In his last two trips to the North Woods, Thoreau used Penobscot guides Joe Attean and Joe Polie to lead him through the wilds. His routes were part of an ancient canoe trail used by Wabanaki tribes for thousands of years as they traveled the area on its various waterways and connecting portages, Phillips said.

"The trail is going to bring recognition and publicity to a canoe trail that was made popular by Thoreau's writings of his visits to Maine," Phillips said. "It also memorializes Thoreau's Penobscot guides, who played an important role in his travels and his stories."

The trail's first kiosk has also just been installed in Greenville, a prototype for eight to 10 others that in time will be placed at other yet-to-be-determined points along Thoreau's route. Two granite sculptures - one of a birch-bark canoe, the other of two hawks - have also been unveiled in Greenville.

Drawing attention to Thoreau's North Woods' journeys can help draw people to the region for its natural beauty, Hudson said.

"I think everybody knows that the economy of the North Woods is changing," he said. "Yet I think there is a role for nature-based tourism to play in the future of Maine. And I think this is a good example of how we can organize ourselves to essentially show people how wonderful this state is to travel in."

. IF YOU GO

Walking the walk

Thoreau-Wabanaki Trail: www.thoreauwabanaki trail.org or (207) 882-8439. The Thoreau trail includes portions of the Penobscot River and Moosehead Lake, which Thoreau explored by canoe, along with Mount Katahdin, the state's highest peak and the terminus of the Appalachian Trail. The first kiosk on the trail and two granite sculptures are located in Greenville, Maine, where Thoreau began his Moosehead Lake trip.

[Last modified August 9, 2007, 14:13:06]