Welcome to The Logbook Challenge 2024!
Simple objective. Epic adventure.
A majority of the 220 sites on the Maine Island Trail for 2024 have paper logbooks that have been placed on them by MITA. These logbooks provide us and property owners with valuable data on visitation, but they also offer an outlet for visitors to leave evidence of their adventures. Stories, poems, jokes, drawings—we see it all in the logbooks, and we appreciate every single entry. Each year, we collect hundreds of logbook entries that all tell the story of a summer well spent.
Once again, we’re adding an element of competition to MITA’s logbook tradition. Whether you’re able to sign one logbook or are in the midst of planning an epic multi-day route on the Maine Island Trail, we want you to get involved!
Here’s how to play:
As you explore the Maine Island Trail this summer, keep an eye out for our logbooks! You’ll find them inside of distinctive containers with red lids, often hanging by a string from information signs at various sites on the Trail.
Once you find a logbook, make an entry. Take a photo of your entry (any photo will do, they don’t need to be beautiful!), and send it to Nick, our photographer and communication manager, at nick@mita.org. Please indicate which Trail site you were at when you made your entry. Once you make your submission, then you’re officially a contestant in The Logbook Challenge!
Just for participating, we’ll send you a special MITA Logbook Challenge embroidered patch! Send us your mailing address with your submission, and we’ll send you your patch to commemorate your adventure.
We could just say that whoever submits the most logbook entries wins, but we wanted to add a bit more excitement to the scoring system… so here’s the full breakdown of how you acquire points in The Logbook Challenge:
One (1) point for every entry that you make in a MITA logbook and submit to nick@mita.org. Please note that you’ll receive one point per Trail site for the season, so if you make multiple entries in the same logbook or make entries in multiple logbooks on the same site, you will still receive one point for that site in the competition!
One (1) point for a drawing or sketch in your logbook entry.
Two (2) points per region of the Trail* visited. Each site’s region can be found in the Maine Island Trail Guide and the MITA App.
Two (2) points for each Challenge Sticker discovered.
New this year: Four (4) points and a MITA hat for the BEST sketch or drawing in the Logbook Challenge! Get creative!
*The 10 regions of the Maine Island Trail are Southern Coast, Casco Bay, Western Rivers, Muscongus Bay, Penobscot Bay, Deer Isle, Mount Desert, Downeast, Bold Coast, and Cobscook Bay.
What’s a Challenge Sticker?
Certain random logbook containers will have ocean-themed stickers placed in them. Some will be placed on busy sites, and some will be on very remote ones. We’ll be placing them throughout the summer, so if you see one, please let us know when you submit an entry! Below is an example of what to look for:
Timeframe and prizes:
The Logbook Challenge begins as soon as you read this and make a plan to visit a site on the Maine Island Trail! All submissions must be sent to nick@mita.org by Friday, September 13 at noon. Look for prizes to be announced soon!
So, that’s the challenge. Get planning, and good luck!
Of course, the most important part of The Logbook Challenge is that you compete safely. Make informed decisions, always, when you travel on the Maine Island Trail. We encourage you to compete in groups! If multiple members of your group want points as Logbook Challenge participants, just include their names in your submission and they’ll be added to the score sheet.
Before you ask—no, we don’t publish a list of which sites have logbooks! Finding them yourself is part of the challenge! Here’s a hint, though: the Maine Island Trail Guide has a lot of great logbook quotes inside of it, and we do indicate which sites those came from. Keep an eye on our Instagram and Facebook content for more hints, too… there will definitely be some!