I am planning a week-long trip to Maine in September and have a question regarding our itinerary for Mount Katahdin.
We plan to arrive at the New England Outdoor Center in Millinocket on a Saturday evening to camp for one night and eat at Knife Edge Brewery as we are driving from New Jersey which is an 11 hour drive. On Sunday morning, we intend to be at the Roaring Brook Campground when the gates open at 6:00 AM. Assuming we have the reservations, we expect to be settled at our campsite by 8:00 AM.
Is an 8:30 AM start time ideal to begin on the Helon Taylor Trail, crossing Knife Edge, and descending via the Saddle Trail to Chimney Pond and back to Roaring Brook? Given that sunset will be around 7:00 PM, I want to make sure that we have enough time to complete this loop safely.
Would you recommend attempting this on Sunday, or should we wait until Monday morning? We are planning on doing this hike on Monday but may switch to Sunday if the weather forecast is better than Monday.