· By Lyndsay Hupp
Huppy on Belay: Mt Katahdin via the Armadillo
By Lyndsay Hupp
The best adventures are usually the ones you haven’t put a lot of time or thought into; where the sheer desire to get after an idea overtakes the need to pick it apart into 1000 pieces. Mt Katahdin was one such adventure for me and Dane.
I arrived on Mount Desert Island (MDI), Maine last Saturday to visit my main squeeze where he works as a climbing guide for the Atlantic Climbing School based in Bar Harbor and Acadia National Park. Already looking forward to shaking the dust off my climbing skills, my motivation was accelerated when Dane chirped about the Armadillo Route up Mt Katahdin-a classic eastern alpine climb with an involved approach to a beautiful 5.7+ granitic crack, face, and ridge climb to Maine’s highest summit, boasting one of the most exposed pitches of climbing east of Colorado. Given my lack of time on rock and rope lately (hell, I’ve never really been a climber) I should’ve been hesitant. But… I wasn’t. I figured between his technical ability and my ability to, well, persevere, we should be able to at least give it a helluva try.
So I immersed myself in the accelerated Dane Sterba school of multi-pitch climbing refresher course nearly every afternoon that week, running through transitions, techniques, and movement. He crushed it as coach and I the attentive student, quickly feeling like we had a handle on the required skills for our mountaineering pursuit.
Great Head, Acadia NP
Otter Cliffs, Acadia NP
Otter Cliffs, Acadia NOP
Sunday was go day. We collected bits of beta from friends and Mountain Project, threw some gear, clothes and food (Huppybars!…AZT and Apple for me) in the whip Saturday morning and pointed north to Baxter State Park. Baxter is busy and all camping permits sold out this time of year, so we booked a hotel in Millinocket and prepped for an early morning start. Just before we left MDI, a number of pesky details surfaced about getting access to the trailhead: parking permit requirements (!?!), Park hours of entry restrictions, and ranger check-in time restrictions that all had potential to sandbag the trip (the things you think about when you plan ahead….). We thought fast on our feet (and phones) and snatched a cancelled camp site in the Park (thank you, nice woman who answered the Park phone), setting us up with a secured parking spot and early launch in the A.M.
We had no camping gear in the car, or the state for that matter, so we put on our America hats and went to Wally-world for some “alpine gear” to get us through the night: $45 to Subaru snuggling freedom.
We got to camp, packed packs, made dinner, made breakfast sammies, drank beer, got fired up, went to bed. 3:50 am wake up, made coffee, packed car, drove to trailhead, more coffee, map check, fist-bump, got more fired up, hiking by 5:45.
Climbing the Armadillo--an aesthetically beautiful route with moderate but fun climbing—is one thing, getting there is quite another. As with most remote summit pursuits, the approach can be the most daunting, scary, and exhausting part of the journey. Armadillo’s approach did not disappoint: 3+ hours and over 2000 vertical feet of hiking, bush-whacking, bramble rambling, gully crawling, 5th class slab scrambling, and tight, exposed ledge walking brings you to the base of the technical climb and 1000’ shy of the summit ridge. Here we happily replaced our approach shoes and mental route-finding scrambles with rock shoes, harnesses, and a clear line to the summit.
Was I nervous? Yeah, some. Anxious? Sure. Was Dane? Somewhat. We paused to harness the eye of the tiger once or twice in the approach and knew there was more to come. But, just as I tell myself above a big rapid, or a huge rappel into a deep, narrow canyon, those feelings are a huge part of why we were there at all: to push our boundaries and comfort zones--to extend ourselves and to grow. This what makes us feel alive in this world, to live deeper and love stronger.
Pitch by pitch we fell more in tune with the mountain and each other. The higher we got, the higher we were and the more beautiful everything seemed to become. Nerves eased, smiles grew more frequent, and the rest of the world fell away. We were so damn happy and having so much damn fun.
The only problem was that the route ended. We were on the Baxter summit, staring at a 12’ rock cairn, with nowhere to go but down...
What we did was no great feat in mountaineering, we didn’t dance on the edge of the sport or turn any heads with our accomplishment. Many have come before us and many will be there after us. What we DID do was dance on our own edges for a day. We drew each other’s strengths, experience, goals, and motivation and set out on an adventure for US…to try, to push, to see, and to feel. Because we love it. And that’s the point.
Share:
119 comments
-
To anyone feeling trapped by bad credit, I truly understand. My name is Rose Anderson,, i felt like my financial life was a constant uphill battle. My credit score stocked at a dismal 512, tried applying for a better apartment and a reliable car but was met with rejection. It felt like past mistakes were forever holding me back. I tried other credit repair companies, only to have them take my money. I was beyond skeptical and convinced my credit was a lost cause, a permanent black mark. But then, a friend, who knew my struggles, urged me to try JERRYLINK CREDIT GROUP. My guard was up, but something about their genuine approach felt different. They didn’t make empty promises; they offered a clear, step-by-step plan tailored to my situation. For the first time, I felt understood, not judged. They meticulously went through my credit report, identifying every derogatory mark, old medical bills, late payments, even a forgotten collection. They didn’t just dispute them; they worked tirelessly to make sure it was off, the results were astounding, just within few days JERRY LINK CREDIT GROUP cleared all the report and my score soared from 512 to an amazing 802. THANKS. you can reach them via; jerrylinkcreditgroup@gmail.com. They are just what you need. And thank me later
Rose Anderson on
-
We can always make our relationship the best for us and make our life or career a successful as we desire, it only take you to put in the right effort and if you feel you need help then look for help. After my husband left me I was heartbroken, lonely, devastated and sad, luckily I was directed to a very kind and powerful man Dr Uzo who helped me bring back my husband and now he loves me far more than ever am so happy with life now thank you so much Mr Uzo. i will advice anyone seeking to restore your life back, send a direct message via email Druzospellhome@gmail.com
Lily Susan on
-
We can always make our relationship the best for us and make our life or career a successful as we desire, it only take you to put in the right effort and if you feel you need help then look for help. After my husband left me I was heartbroken, lonely, devastated and sad, luckily I was directed to a very kind and powerful man Dr Uzo who helped me bring back my husband and now he loves me far more than ever am so happy with life now thank you so much Mr Uzo. i will advice anyone seeking to restore your life back, send a direct message via email Druzospellhome@gmail.com
Lily Susan on
-
Hello guys, after I lost my Dad in 2021, everything became very hard for me and my siblings, we could not pay our bills anymore as life took a turn on our flesh, I can’t use my credit card because my credit score was that bad but I needed to figure out how to help my family. To get a house and a car to keep the family running but I could not because of my poor credit score. I thought everything was over for me and siblings because my Dad was everything to us, all hope seems gone, not until I came across MR. JERRY who helped me out with my credit score, from 534 to 786 excellent credit score. All thanks to him and his team for clearing all the negative items on my report. You can reach out to him via email: jerrylinkcreditgroup.com to appreciate me later.
MORGAN ANJI on
-
I want to use this opportunity to testify of the marvelous work of Dr. Odunga and how he has helped me in curing my sickness and bringing happiness into my life. I can really vouch for Dr. Odunga in herbal treatment. I was suffering from Cervical Cancer and infected with HPV 16. I used to have unusual vaginal bleeding and painful urination. There was nothing I could do until a childhood friend introduced me to Dr. Odunga Remedies. I spoke with him and ordered his recommended medication which was delivered to me through DHL. Immediately I began using herbal medicine, and within a week I couldn’t feel any pain. It took me 2 weeks to finish the medicine and afterwards I was completely cured. I highly recommend that you order your herbal medication through Chief Dr. Odunga. Contact his email odungaspelltemple@gmail.com OR What’sApp/Call him at +2348167159012
He is 100% reliable to help you too.
Lilian Jose on
-
2025 has changed my life. I never believed I would be cured by a spell caster who specializes in herbal cure and magical spells. I am talking about the help Doctor Odunga gave to me. I have been cured of herpes (HSV) which has plagued me for over 2 years. I am very happy to tell others that if you want to be cured or get your ex back spells and get pregnant naturally, even financial blessing through lottery, there is only one place to be and that is with Dr Odunga Spell Temple. Am so happy that just 3 days after taking DR ODUNGA Herbal treatments my herpes was cured permanently. DR ODUNGA also have cure to #HIV #Diabetes #Lupus #Tinnitus #Fibroid #Cancer #Hepatitis B, #Syphilis #Infertility etc … If you have this ailment or whatsoever you might be suffering from you should contact him at his EMAIL: odungaspelltemple@gmail.com OR VIA Whats App +2348167159012
Christine Davis on