For the second stop on Asa’s World Tour of Maine, we visited Gully Oven Natural Area in Lebanon, Maine. Millions of years in the making, this unique geological feature is named for the oven shaped cavern formed amongst the rocks. With its dramatic sheer bedrock cliff that soars overhead, a waterfall rushing down the rock face to the brook below, and nooks and crannies to explore, it is an interesting spot to visit if you are in the area. In fact, for hundreds of years people have been stopping to explore the cavern, as evident in the graffiti carved into the stone face, which some claim dates back to the Victorian era. Even further back in time, this spot was also a gathering place for Native Americans.
However, what made us choose this as a stopping point on Asa’s World Tour of Maine is a story Mom stumbled upon years ago that claimed the 19th century Norwegian virtuoso violinist and composer, Ole Bull performed a concert there in 1871, when he was summering in West Lebanon. During the 1860s and 1870s Bull went on several tours across the United States, and was known to have performed on Appledore Island at the Isles of Shoals. For those who have been following us for awhile, you may recall that Lemmy, Asa, and myself are named for Mom’s ancestors who lived at the Isles of Shoals during that time. So of course because of this connection, we had to add to the musical history of Gully Oven, by making a stop on Asa’s tour here.
Today Gully Oven Natural Area in Lebanon, Maine is an historic site that is more of a curiosity than a place to hike. The trail is short, steep in places, and does require a jump over the brook. Although in light of the recent rainy weather, that may not be the case all the time. We wouldn’t recommend going out of your way to explore this spot, unless you have a curiosity for geological formations, 19th century Norwegian violinists, or just want to test out the natural acoustics yourself. Instead we recommend taking a hike at Salmon Falls Preserve, also in Lebanon, which we reviewed in 2017. Dogs are allowed under control, we advise leashes due to the steep terrain and cliffs, and please pick up after your pet. Also please be respectful of the neighborhood where this cavern is nestled. On-road parking can be found on Gully Oven Road, just look for the boulder with the name engraved on it!
We began our tour of Gully Oven by taking the stairs down to the trailhead.
From there we followed the trail down to the brook.
Our apologies that the pictures of the cavern don’t do it justice!
Nor do our photos begin to capture the enormity of the bedrock cliff.
But it was a lot of fun exploring the trail that meandered around the rocks…
…while stopping to admire the waterfall…
…before making our way back up the trail again.
