Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument by Eric Hendrickson is a fascinating history of the land designated as the National Monument.
Before it was designated a national monument, I hiked and fished that area (and yes, those waters are filled with brook trout). It’s a very beautiful part of Maine, just east of Baxter Park. And thanks to Roxanne Quimby and her son Lucas St. Clair, it’s now protected and available to everyone forever.
Eric takes us back hundreds of years, telling us about everything from wood harvesting to the importance of the land to native peoples for 11,000 years. Consider this: the final shaping of the monument ended about 12,000 years ago when the last glaciation period ended, the ice melted and the ground rebounded.
I was astonished by his chapter on all the wildfires on this land, including the Miramichi fire, one of the largest mega-fires ever recorded in North America. In all, it burned 5 million acres, including 1 million in Maine.
There’s a very interesting account of Roxanne’s purchases of land throughout the north woods and her frustration with opposition to creating a national park on her land. Fortunately, Eric didn’t report that, during that time, I created the Ban Roxanne bumper sticker!
I love to tell this story, because later Roxanne and I became friends, and I supported the creation of the national monument. I’m particularly pleased that this beautiful land will be protected forever, and available for us and our future generations.
Eric, at the end of the book, provides the lengthy proclamation that President Obama signed to create the national monument.
I strongly recommend that you visit this wonderful place, and if you like to fish, take your fishing rod!