I woke up yesterday to the sun shining through my window, a gentle breeze blowing and the smell of coffee coming from the kitchen. As the family talked over a breakfast of eggs and toast, my wife suggested that it would be a perfect day for a hike. She had found a spot that she was excited to share with me, a place I had heard of, but not yet been to: Moxie Falls.

We packed up the van and drove down a long, unpaved road just outside of Greenville, Maine. It was slow going but we had the beautiful scenery to keep us entertained. After what seemed like quite a long drive into the middle of the North Woods, a paved road and a small town appeared suddenly. We had arrived at Lake Moxie.

It might seem strange to find a quaint little town out in the middle of the woods. It is almost like something out of a fairy tale or fantasy novel. One look at Lake Moxie is all it takes to understand what draws people to this remote location. It is a beautiful view, teeming with life and all of nature’s majesty.

As we headed further up the road, we dreamed about what our life would be like if we packed up our home in Florida and moved to a remote location like Lake Moxie. The thought of a long cold winter in such a remote location quickly snapped us back to reality. Before we knew it, we had reached the trail head and the beginning of our hike to Moxie Falls.

It was less like a hike, it turned out, and more like a delightful stroll on a well maintained path through a beautiful forest. My son quickly ran and leaped from rock to tree and back again, making laps around us with childish abandon.

About halfway down the mile long trail, he found an uprooted tree that he immediately declared his cave/castle and it was some time before we were able to uproot him and continue down the path.

We hadn’t gone too much farther when we encountered a sign marking the entrance to the falls and a series of steps leading down toward the sound of rushing water.

The first area we discovered was a large pool at the top of the waterfall where we could hop across rocks and swim in the water. It would have been a delightful place to have a picnic if we weren’t so excited about exploring the beauty of this natural wonder.

As we explored further, we noticed that there is a series of small falls before the main waterfall. Everywhere we looked, there was some small wonder or great beauty to discover.

Moxie Falls is one of the highest waterfalls in all of New England. It drops an impressive 90 feet into a pool that is about 17 feet deep. It is a beautiful and majestic sight to behold.

One of the highlights of the hike for both my son and I was the impressive rock formations found in and around the pools of cool, flowing water. We all enjoyed climbing them and appreciated their unique natural beauty.

After a snack of apples and another splash in the water, we took one last look at the falls and decided to head back toward the van.

On our way back up the path, my wife pointed out a small trail heading off in the opposite direction. It seemed that none of us were actually ready to leave just yet, so we set off down the trail not knowing where it might lead.

It wasn’t long before we found out. The trail led us upstream to another series of small falls.

It seems none of us ever tires of walking through the woods, swimming in the water or climbing on the rocks. Even after a full day of doing nothing else we were delighted to spend another hour swimming and exploring.

We all headed back up the trail in good spirits. It had been a beautiful day filled with fun and surprises. When we returned to the trail head, we piled into the van and said goodbye to Moxie Falls as we headed east toward The Forks. This drive was much shorter on a paved road.

As we turned north and drove along the Kennebec River toward Jackman, we all felt refreshed. It was as if the waterfall had washed away all our troubles and the worries of everyday life.

Near Jackman, we stopped at a scenic overlook to enjoy the impressive view north to the Canadian border. My wife and I reflected on our day together and the summer that was so quickly coming to a close. It was only August but we could already feel the autumn chill in the evening air.