Follow these stealth motorcycle campers into the Maine woods

These two guys from the Bangor area just posted a Youtube video of their overnight motorcycle stealth camping adventure somewhere in Maine. Judging by the bridge they cross over the Piscataquis River, they started out on the Lagrange Rail Trail. After that? Who knows?

They end up taking a path unknown to them and camp next to railroad tracks. Somehow, they are surprised when a train passes in the night. One guy has a close encounter with a bear and they are both awakened early by a nearby logging operation. They finish off by catching a fish in a nearby pond. Fun stuff.

Stealth camping is, technically, not legal. So, it’s not for everybody. I’ve done it myself, though, and it’s fun.

The idea is to camp somewhere quietly, in a non-approved location. There’s no toilets or showers. You generally get in late, get out early and leave no trace.

“What you take in, you take out,” said one of the two guys, who goes by the handle, Padre.

He’s the one doing the filming in the video. Maine’s adventure motorcycling community isn’t all that large, and I didn’t have much trouble finding him this morning.

He told me that he and his buddy, known as Cap, try to complete their stealth adventures in less than a day. It’s called a sub-24 camping, or S24O in internet shorthand. This latest adventure was a mid-week jaunt that allowed him to get to work on time.

“It’s like you had a complete vacation by the time you get back,” Padre said.

Padre has a couple more videos out there and plans to make more.

“The whole goal is to share the experience,” he said.

I spent the first night in the woods south of Millinocket, Maine. The skeeters were something wicked. They sounded like bumble bees outside the bug net.

One of my own stealth camping spots near Millinocket a few years back. Troy R. Bennett | BDN

 

Troy R. Bennett

About Troy R. Bennett

Troy R. Bennett is a Buxton native and longtime Portland resident whose photojournalism has appeared in media outlets all over the world.