The trip our campers love to hate, most likely because the name belies the difficulty level, the viewpoint is off the summit and the view isn't always that great because of poor visibility. Tripping, on the other hand sees a manageable hike without the long drive and is hard pressed to resist. The mountain is a long ridge with four trails ascending from different points. There's a good map included in the AMC Maine Trail Guide.
Firewardens Trail: This is the easiest way up the mountain. No views on the way up but that's true of all but one of the trails.
Ledges Trail: Steeper and more challenging, the payoff is views of Moose Pond on the way up.
Bald Peak Trail: Bald Peak is no longer bald although there is a dedent view below the summit heading south along the ridge. The trip along the ridge to the main summit is wooded and lacks views. This is more of a too-much-effort-for-too-little-reward trail.
MacKay Pasture Trail: Lots of interesting views as you ascend the south end of the ridge. The downside of this one is that there isn't a clearcut end-point. Continuing on to the main summit involves a significant drop before the final ascent. We tried this trip once in the rain so the jury's still out on this one. I also tried renaming it Mt Godzilla to see if it would alter the girls intensity level with mixed results.
Drive Time: 45 min
Hike Time: 2 hours each way
Ability Level: Mid-Upper (12-15)
Swim: I'm a little foggy on this. There are places to swim in the area but some are restricted to local residents. The nearest one that I've used (although never with this hike) is where route 160 crossed the Saco River in East Brownfield.
Ice Cream: Naples
This Year's Crazy Plan to Hike Pleasant Mt and Make it FUN: Run it as an overnight. Camp on the One-Mile Ledge and then do the summit and the MacKay Trail the following day. The one obvious complication is that it's a separate pick-up point and would involve either leaving a vehicle or sending someone. Either way, the trip will need a supplemental driver.
And of course, since I'm tiring of hearing kids complain about the name, call it by the name on all the local signage; Shawnee Peak.