Over the past two weeks, there have been two spectacular views of the 2020 fall foliage. The first is Hanson Lake in Mapleton. The boat landing near the Presque Isle International Airport is a frequently photographed scene.
On my visit to take a few photographs, I met Roland Saucier of Caribou, who was fishing from the boat launch beach. As we talked, he told his story of 50 years of fishing from this location and hoe it had become his favorite place to fish.
He started coming here before the lake came into existence. At 13, he began working at Aroostook Shoe, near the airport. During his breaks, lunch hour and before and after work, he and Ben LaBeau, a friend of his, played down around the Hanson Brook Stream and the old air base bunkers that were still there and open at the time. He pointed out that before the dam was built, the air base firearms practice range was right across from the boat landing. The area from there toward the end of the lake was four wheeling only, due to the mud roads and paths that existed in the area.
Roland Saucier of Caribou tends his fishing rods while enjoying the quiet, but spectacular beauty of Hanson Lake as he completes his approximately 50th year fishing at the boat landing. (Courtesy of Terry Sandusky)
Saucier’s time spent in this area fishing and hiking continued for the almost nine years that he worked at Aroostook Shoe. He remembered the removal of the storage bunkers as preparation for the Hanson Lake dam occurred in 1966.
Since his teen years, he has come several times a year to fish in his favorite spot in Aroostook County. Saucier was born in Eagle Lake 73 years ago, grew up in Presque Isle, lived and worked in Van Buren and now lives in Caribou. He still comes back to enjoy the quietness and beauty of this lake. He and his childhood friend, Ben, played and fished Hanson Lake for many years. One of his most enjoyable moments is when a deer will come down to water’s edge to take a drink and scurry off into the woods to only to come out again a few yards down the lake for another sip.
He has enjoyed meeting other fishermen coming and going, especially those who would come in by seaplane to fish down by the dam before flying back out at the end of the day.
On this day, as he fished, he sat quietly, on occasion going and recasting his two fishing lines back out in the middle of the lake, watching colorful forest on the other side. Then in a low voice, he said, “Time to pull in the fish.” Smoothly and quietly, he picked up one of his rods and in came an 11- or 12-inch brook trout. He explained that it takes about an hour of waiting this late in the season to catch a good fish. He figured he would catch another in the next hour.
As I left him, Saucier explained this would probably be his last fishing trip to the lake. He told several other stories of growing up in The County and depending on fishing and hunting to meet his family’s food needs. These stories were familiar, reflecting how challenging it was to grow up in The County back 60 and 70 years ago.
As I drove away, I saw him waiting for the next fish and quietly taking in the fall beauty of Hanson Lake, a 60-year veteran of this one spot that for so many seems like heaven on earth.
On top of Haystack Mountain in Castle Hill, a mother and her two daughters celebrate their successful climb and the beauty of the view from the mountaintop. Foliage colors were at their peak the weekend of Sept. 26-27, drawing hundreds of hikers to take in the view of Sco Pan Lake and Mt. Katahdin in the distance. (Courtesy of Terry Sandusky)
Visitors swarm Haystack
Hanson Like is beautiful, but it is not the only place in the area drawing crowds of visitors. Over the week of Sept. 20, Haystack Mountain experienced a constant stream of hikers up and down the mountain. The weekend of Sept. 26 and 27, hiking families and groups were only a few minutes apart.
I hiked the mountain on both days and experienced almost crowded conditions. Each day, the parking lot was filled to near capacity with vehicles parked out toward the highway. I passed 30-40 hikers coming down the mountain as I went up on each day. All were laughing and having a good time. Each group coming up the mountain was told how beautiful view was and how much they enjoyed it. They encouraged climbers to keep going because the view would be spectacular. This proved to be true.
I observed 20-30 climbers come and go as I caught my breath and rested while taking in the extraordinary view. Most groups were families with little ones in carriers to mature adults in my age range. One unusual family of six was from West Texas, who came to Maine of vacation and was touring through the area and simply blown away with the beauty of fall foliage seen from the top of Haystack.
Another family decided to make a day of leaf peeping by first climbing the twin peaks of Quaggy Jo Mountain in the Aroostook State Park before coming to Haystack.
Mapleton and Castle Hill are fortunate to have two enjoyable scenic recreation areas.
Ornament fundraiser
The Haystack Historical Society has arranged a fundraising stained-glass ornament workshop from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24.
This workshop will allow each participant to make three ornaments. The pattern will be cut out and ground to shape for each participant, who will then foil, solder and patina their pieces.
Space is limited to 12, which may change depending on the COVID-19 guidelines. To register, contact Glass with Class in Presque Isle. There is a $45 registration fee.
Take-out dinner
The Mapleton Daze Committee in Mapleton, Chapman and Castle Hill will host a drive-thru chicken stew/baked bean supper from 4:30 to 7 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 17, at the Mapleton Lions Club on Main Street.
The meal will consist of a to-go container of homemade chicken stew or homemade baked beans. There will be a homemade roll, a dessert (either homemade gingerbread with whipped cream or a homemade brownie) and a bottle of water. The suggested donation is $8 for the meal combo.
The committee suggests you invite all of your friends and family to come out, have a great meal and help raise funds for Mapleton Daze 2021.
Terry Sandusky is the Star-Herald correspondent for Mapleton, Chapman and Castle Hill and can be reached at 764-4916 or at starherald.Tsandusky@gmail.com.
