utL 128 P r t L a n d montHL maga ine from Left: courtes Barr dana meagHan maurice n ouis eptuneadvised horeautobringa bottleo rumtoplace orthespiritatthetopo the mountain. hy We’ll never truly know why Louis Neptune told Thoreau what he did, but I see it as a word of caution. And a bottle of alcohol as an offering? I have no idea! That makes no sense and is definitely not in keeping with true native religious thinking. But Penob- scots are really good at playing tricks and pulling your leg… an you tell me i it s true that many members o the enobscot ribe re use to climb to the very top o atahdin Why do we natives say not to go there? Think about who we say it to: white people who need to conquer a sacred place. That does not lead to good karma. For my tribe, we see Katahdin as the place of our birth, where life began. It can’t get any more spe- cial than that. We still live within its shad- ow and honor our birth by returning to the mountain. We go to the top if need be for spiritual enlightenment and ceremo- ny, some simply for the pleasure that comes from looking out across so many hundreds of miles. It’s medicine for the soul. But we recognize that it is a mountain with an an- gry mood at times. It has its own weather– storms that can pop up without warning. The old stories about not going to the top of Katahdin were more of a caution. Be mind- ful of why you feel the need to be there. Keep an eye on the weather. hatexactplacein aineismostauthentictoyou and hy theressuchathingasacradleo authenticityin aine hereand hat ouldthatbe I do not view Katahdin as part of Bax- ter State Park, nor do I view my home- land as “Maine.” So when asked, I can’t say what or where is “authentic.” Maine is not a place unto itself. This area that includes the ocean, rivers, lakes, and mountains is all one living ecosystem dependant upon the whole in order to thrive. It’s one living or- ganism. We call it Wabanakigok: Land of the Rising Sun. ■ KatahdinCalls y haLey Snyder Waking u is the name o the game hen . Parking s ots are rst come rst serve, so a 0 rom your cam site is a necessity, as it s a rom the S P . i you re looking or a relatively rare as that is on Katahdin , ark your car at r , here a to the C P rovides access to the 2 2 S t , the least strenuous o all the trails. the most o ular routes or day hikes are u the cathedral trail and do n the Hunt trail, or ust u and do n the Hunt trail, hich is also art o the a alachian trail. t is kno n as the e : a 1.1 mile scramble bet een Pamola Peak and Ba ter Peak on a trail that in certain sections is only . it is this reci itous traverse that has claimed the most lives to date. in all, since 1963, there have been 23 recorded deaths. t , the terrain is demanding, and carrying a large amount o ater is crucial, but the rom the to o mount Katahdin are truly incom arable. Barr ana ith his daughter aulian ana ith. his is taken at atahdin trea a pgr und.We d ust ust nished ur annual ere nial run t the untain. aulian did a rela run ith her hus and ean r Indian Island.I hiked iles r ns n t atahdin.We nished at al st the e a t sa e ti e. aulian has ade this annual ere nial urne t atahdin her entire li e. M unt Katahdin e ati n eet rthern ter inus theAppala hian rail atalities sin e isit s e yea t Ba ter tate ark he na e Katahdin es r an ena i Indian rd that eans ain untain. Spirit of the Mountain (continued from page 125)