Precipice Hike

This is Precipice Trail. It is not for the faint of heart. Nor for the faint of knees.

As I have alluded in a post last month, we were preparing for a hiking trip this autumn. That trip is to the Acadia National Park in Maine.

There are many hiking trails in this park. From easy, to moderate, to strenuous. But the most thrilling and also the most challenging trail is the Precipice Trail.

This trail is only 3.2 miles loop so that is not what makes it strenuous. It is the physicality of the activity needed in navigating this trail.

It involves hopping on boulders.

Stepping up on stairs.

And clambering up iron rungs nailed to the rocks.

The hike also requires squeezing through tight spots and even crawling under the rocks.

Of course it also necessitates walking in rock ledges with precipitous drop. Thus the name, Precipice Trail. One errant step and you can be accelerating, downward that is.

This hike is definitely not for the agoraphobic.

But the most exhilarating part, at least for me, is climbing up the iron rungs. And there are lots of them.

If not for the aid of iron rungs, this hike would qualify as a technical climb. In fact this hike is not suited for kids and they put warnings that people have fallen attempting this climb.

However, you can justify doing this hike as it is ‘adrenaline-rush’ exciting. It is also a good heart-pumping exercise (just don’t fall for definitely that is detrimental to your health!) with the “forest-bathing” health benefits (see previous post). Plus you cannot beat the breathtaking view while climbing this trail.

It may be exhausting. It may be taxing. It even may be dangerous. But it is all worth it.

From Acadia National Park,

Pinoytransplant

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Here’s a short clip of me and my wife navigating through Precipice Trail.