Foliage at its Peak

Our weekend here has turned out to be a 10! Ideal weather for hiking both days. Foliage at its peak! We chose to hike Borestone through the wooded trail as opposed to the gravel road. The rugged terrain and heavenly man-made steps were remarkable.

Viewing the colorful foliage, ponds and lakes from the summit was spectacular! My husband and I made it to the top in one hour, but we hike fast to get our exercise in. The rocks at the top were a bit of a challenge in the "fear of heights" department, but I was humbled when I saw about six or seven 8-year-old girls at the top! (and met an 80-year-old woman nearing the top.) My new-found "slight" fear of heights was confirmed when we walked across the 100'? high tressle bridge (Onawa Tressle)!

Had a delicious fresh egg breakfast from eggs up the road. Highly recommended! We are so glad we found such a serene respite. Thank you!

Lisa and David Mannix
Oct 5-8, 2007

Sit Relax & Enjoy

We really enjoyed our stay here. Set up for a 3-day stay, and ended up adding an additional day (glad it was open) at the end of our stay. The first three days we spent enjoying hikes and visits to all the surrounding areas, then realized we missed out on just enjoying the cabin, here. Spent the last (extended day) sitting by the fire and relaxing by the falls.

Never saw a moose - anywhere! I think they know hunting season starts next week. A small gray fox walked within five feet of us while sitting quietly by the fire ring.

There is so much to see and do and so little time. Make sure you make time for yourself to sit, relax and enjoy where you're staying. The cabin is outstanding. The property is even better. We will be back. Thank you for sharing your place with us.

B. Mead and D. Specht
San Antonio, TX
Oct. 3, 2007

Climbing Barren Mountain

If you're already conquored Borestone and want to test your meddle against another granite monster, try the Barren Slides, just on the east side of Lake Onawa. (Take Bodfish Road past Borestone, cross Long Pond Stream over a logging bridge, and stay left to a dead end on the north side of Barren Mountain. A trail continuing east from there joins up with the Appalachian Trail and takes you to the Barren Slides. Allow 4-5 hours, round trip.)

This climb is challenging - longer, but not much more difficult than Borestone. The views of Onawa and Borestone are not to be missed! The rockfall from the Slides (a vast field of freight train-sized boulders) are humbling. Amazing what a glacier can do!

If you have a little more time, continue on to the peak of Barren Mountain and climb the abandoned forestry service tower. (The top was blown off in a windstorm, but the ladder is still intact, and provides incredible views.)

Eric Schult
Bettendorf, IA
July 29 - Aug 9, 2007

Visiting from the Carolinas

We had a absolutely great time here. The weather was great! We saw tons of wildlife, including foxes and muskrats and, of course, moose! The water was great and refreshing, and we enjoyed wading and swimming. We went on a moose cruise at the Birches and got so close to a moose. It was great!! We also went on a moose cruise by canoe. We absolutely adore this place! And the Uno cards (We played an hour-long game!)

Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful place with us!

Emily Houts
Brevard, NC
Leigh and Emily (13) Nason
Columbia, SC
July 21-28, 2007

The Indian Store Was Cool

Had a great time despite uncooperative weather some days. The cabin's comfort got us through the rainy spells - many games of Cranium and Apples to Apples.

The kids really enjoyed the swimming and tubing - loved the sound of the rushing water always.

Had a great day on Moosehead Lake - rented a boat from the Birches, packed a picnic lunch from Juno's, hiked the Bridal Trail on Kineo. Also hiked Little Kineo (long drive but worth it - nice views).

Saw a total of five moose, the red foxes, woodpecker, rabbits, chipmonks and lots of other wildlife. The INDIAN STORE (Indian Hill Trading Post in Greenville) WAS COOL! Took a drive (long) and short walk to Moxie Falls. Beautiful.

The Anderson/Hunter Family
Kelly, Kimmie, Johnnny, Jack, Debbie, Ben
July 14-21, 2007

'When Can We Come Back?'

This is a beautiful spot! The swimming hole was fantastic. My daughters and I went down to the river and walked on the rocks and skipped rocks. They were awed by the sound of the rushing water and that you can hear it from the cabin. We drove down to the D.O.T. building and saw five moose just hanging around. That was really something. We also saw a reindeer and some bunnies. We saw a fox on the road in front of the cabin (our oldest spotted it).

The cabin is beautiful! Very homey and comfortable. (I'm glad we thought to bring a gate to keep our 2-yr-old off the stairs. Her older sisters though the loft was quite cool and she wanted to follow them up.) You obviously put a lot of time and care into the cabin. It's decorated beautifully. We were celebrating our oldest daughter's 9th birthday on 6/9 and she had a blast. She's already asking when we can come back.

Next time we hope to have more time so we can really go exploring and see some of the sights some of the other guests have mentioned. Thank you for having us.

John, Maureen, Emily (9), Jillian (7), Gracie (2), Garrett (3 months) Giorgio
Framingham, MA
June 7-10,2007

Jealous Owners

We've enjoyed following all these stories about our guests' visits to Big Wilson Camp these past few years. But we've neglected adding our own entries to the guestbook for way too long!

I was especially jealous of the Darmos, who visited last July and witnessed a moose sighting right out in front of the camp. Before this visit, I hadn't seen any moose closer than Greenville, but the day before yesterday, my wife and I met a moose cow just on the other side of the Elliotsville Road bridge. I want a picture of one *ON* the bridge or in front of our Big Wilson Camp sign, so I can put it on our web site (www.bigwilsoncamp.com).

The fishermen were having a field day here this weekend! A grandfather/grandson fishing off the rocks at the swimming hole across from the camp caught an 18-inch trout (a "brookie"), and two other keepers. Another couple said they'd caught a salmon and a trout. (I'm not a fisherman, but I like to hear the river is healthy and spawning new generations of wildlife.

I've been surprised so far Big Wilson Camp hasn't attracted any whitewater kayakers. We do, after all, have splendid class III and IV rapids right out in our back yard, and more downstream in Willimantic. Yesterday, we had two expert kayakers out on the falls, and recorded their antics on video. Look for it on our web site. I hope to post it as soon as we're back home in Iowa.

Keep telling us your stories! We post all these entries to our online guestbook (unless you ask us not to) and it really helps convey the message that this is a great place for families to come and connect with nature and each other.

Eric Schult
Bettendorf, IA
Memorial Day Weekend, 2007

Maple Sugaring Weekend

Big Wilson Camp (BWC) welcomed the overflow from the Farnham-Davis-Russell-Sprague/Wong cousins' annual maple sugaring weekend at our farm in Elliotsville (2.2 miles back up the Elliotsville Road).

BWC is, quite literally, splendor in our backyard. We enjoyed a big family dinner, the kids watched a DVD, and the turkey vultures soared high over the deck - hoping to score a cocktail, no doubt. Our families have all grown too large to fit everyone at the "Honeymoon Sugar Works", so we suspect that BWC will become a yearly tradition for the overflow.

Party attendees: Pat, Rollie, Tim, Erin, Cori, Nathan, Karen, Ed, Linnea, Bryan, Andrew, Mea, Kate, Jeff, Tory and Ali. All celebrated Pat's birthday.

If you would like to sell me a lot on the river, I could put my cabin here too! Thanks for a wonderful stay.

The Russels
Elliotsville, ME
March 31 - April 1, 2007