Thurs. Morning Moose Hill Audubon Hike

TRIP DATE:      10-15-2015

                             

TRIP LOCATION:  Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary, Sharon, Mass. 

    

MEETING TIME:   10:00 am 

              

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):  21

     

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       3 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      5 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    app. 100 ft.

DIFFICULTY:    C          (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       Hans Luwald

CO-LEADER NAME(S):   Debbie Lepore

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION: Moose Hill Headquarters on Moose Hill Pkwy.  (parking fee for non-Audubon members...)

CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:   No               TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?  No 

     

BRIEFLY DESCRIBE SPECIFIC TRAILS HIKED AND TRAIL CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED:

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:  Sunny, 65 degrees

Blueberry & Speckled Mtn. hike at Chapter Hut Weekend

TRIP DATE:  09/19/15

TRIP LOCATION:  Blueberry and Speckled Mountains in Evans Notch                     

MEETING TIME:         met at 9:15 a.m. in front of Conant Lodge at Cold River Camp for the short carpooled ride to the Brickett Place trailhead three miles up the road in Evans Notch.                   

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS): 12 (including 5 from Blueberry Mountain-only contingent

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       app. 6 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      app. 8.5 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    app. 2,000 feet

DIFFICULTY:       B/C –semi-strenuous              (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       Paul Miller & Eva Borsody Das

CO-LEADER NAME(S):   Sandy Santilli

CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:       No                   TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:  N/A

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?    Yes   
IF YES TO ABOVE, DESCRIBE SPECIFIC TRAILS HIKED AND TRAIL CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED: Hiked Bicknell Ridge Trail as short distance to Blueberry Ridge Trail, which we took up over Blueberry Mountain to rejoin with Bicknell Ridge Trail, which we took up to the summit of Speckled Mtn.  Returned to cars via Bicknell Ridge Trail.  All trails were in very good condition with a very minor blowdown on the Blueberry Ridge Trail

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:   Mostly sunny and warm, but fairly humid, with a light breeze in exposed places.

OTHER COMMENTS (problems, views, terrain, etc.): Excellent near-360-degree views from the summit of Speckled Mtn, with some “teaser” views on exposed ledges on the way up to the summit.  As John mentioned in his earlier post, the trip up to Blueberry Mtn. involves a few fairly steep scrambles, which while fun, can be a bit challenging for newer hikers.  This group didn’t seem to have any problems or complaints.  Also, hitting Blueberry first is definitely the best way to do this loop hike, since it gets the more challenging scrambles out of the way on the way up, and is a very easy hike down on the relatively gentle and civilized Bicknell Brook Trail (which used to serve as an access road to the former fire tower on the summit of Speckled. Mtn.

Blue Hills Intro. Hike - Braintree Pass Path

TRIP DATE:  09/19/15

TRIP LOCATION:  Blue Hills – Braintree Path Pass                

WAS TRIP CANCELLED? (y/n):    No

MEETING TIME:          8:30 a.m.                    

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):             16

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       2.5 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      6.0 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    N/A

DIFFICULTY:       C                            (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       Cathy MacCurtain

CO-LEADER NAME(S):   Pat Achorn

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:  Chickatawbut Road

CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:       No                   TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:  N/A

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?    No    

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE: 
Sunny and warm

OTHER COMMENTS (problems, views, terrain, etc.)

The hike was the second in a series of five hikes.  Most the attendees were new to the Blue Hills.  We now have a waiting list for the last three hikes. They were very enthusiastic and many expressed interest in attending the SEM winter workshop.

Blueberry Mountain HIke #2 - Chapter Hut Weekend

TRIP DATE:      September 19, 2015                                      

TRIP LOCATION:          Blueberry Mountain, White Mountains National Forest, NH

MEETING TIME:          9am    

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):             5

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       3.5 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      3.5 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    ~1,200’

DIFFICULTY:         E                         (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       John Pereira

CO-LEADER NAME(S):             None

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:    Parking was at the historic Brickett Place off Route 113. It’s a developed site that can accommodate about 15 or so cars. The trailhead is located near the garage and there is an outdoor composting restroom.

CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:            No             TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?              Yes      

BRIEFLY DESCRIBE SPECIFIC TRAILS HIKED AND TRAIL CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED:        Began hiking along the Bickford Brook trail for ~.7 miles. At this point we took the Blueberry Ridge trail to the junction with Stone House Trail. We then took a loop trail near this junction around Blueberry Mountain. There was a great viewing area (views to the south) along the trail! Once we joined the Blueberry Ridge trail, we retraced our steps back to the trailhead.

Trail conditions were great! The trails were fairly dry with only a couple of wet spots along Blueberry Ridge trail. Bickford Brook was running pretty low.   

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:    Sunny, warm (in the mid-80’s) and a light breeze all day.

OTHER COMMENTS (problems, views, terrain, etc.)            For further consideration: even though the hike is short, the gain in elevation should make this hike an average to moderate rating.

Blueberry Mountain Hike #1 at Chapter Hut Weekend

TRIP DATE:      September 19, 2015                                      

TRIP LOCATION:          Blueberry Mountain, White Mountains National Forest, NH

MEETING TIME:          9am    

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):             5

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       3.5 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      3.5 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    ~1,200’

DIFFICULTY:         E                         (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       John Pereira

CO-LEADER NAME(S):             None

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:    Parking was at the historic Brickett Place off Route 113. It’s a developed site that can accommodate about 15 or so cars. The trailhead is located near the garage and there is an outdoor composting restroom.
CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:            No             TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?              Yes      

BRIEFLY DESCRIBE SPECIFIC TRAILS HIKED AND TRAIL CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED:        Began hiking along the Bickford Brook trail for ~.7 miles. At this point we took the Blueberry Ridge trail to the junction with Stone House Trail. We then took a loop trail near this junction around Blueberry Mountain. There was a great viewing area (views to the south) along the trail! Once we joined the Blueberry Ridge trail, we retraced our steps back to the trailhead.

Trail conditions were great! The trails were fairly dry with only a couple of wet spots along Blueberry Ridge trail. Bickford Brook was running pretty low.   

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:    Sunny, warm (in the mid-80’s) and a light breeze all day.

Allen's Pond Hike

TRIP DATE:      August 23, 2015                                             

TRIP LOCATION:          Allens Pond, Westport, MA

MEETING TIME:          9am    

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):   7       

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       3.5 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      7 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    Minimal

DIFFICULTY:          D                        (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       Anne Duggan

CO-LEADER NAME(S):             John Pereira

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:    Parking was at the sanctuary’s parking lot at 1280 Horseneck Road. The lot is situated behind a mound of wildlfowers and can accommodate about 10 cars.
CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:            No             TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?              No       

BRIEFLY DESCRIBE SPECIFIC TRAILS HIKED AND TRAIL CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED:        Began the hike by taking the group towards the shoreline along the Beach Loop trail. The trail took us to a 15 foot vegetated rock mound that offered great views up and down the coastline. We then took the Beach Loop to a dirt road and followed it to the start of the Quansett trail. We hiked along this trail to the junction of Fresh Pond trail. We took Fresh Pond trail until it merged back with Quansett trail. After a short detour to Reuben’s Point, we eventually reached the sanctuary’s education center. After a nice break at a couple of picnic tables, we retraced our footsteps back to the parking lot. There was only one exception on the way back. Instead of taking Fresh Pond trail at the junction with Quansett trail, we kept on hiking along Quansett trail.

Trail conditions could have been better. Due to recent rains, some sections of the trail were a bit muddy. Also, a majority of the trail was overgrown with vegetation.   

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:    Cloudy, warm (in the 70’s), humid and drizzle for the first hour.

OTHER COMMENTS (problems, views, terrain, etc.)            Poison ivy was prevalent along some sections of the trail. Horse flies were also an issue along certain sections of the trail.

Mt. Eisenhower & Mt. Pierce Hike

TRIP DATE:      August 22, 2015                                             

TRIP LOCATION:          Mt. Eisenhower/Mt. Pierce, White Mountains National Forest, NH

MEETING TIME:          8:30am           

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):             4

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       7.5 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      10.5 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    2,780’

DIFFICULTY:          B                         (A=very strenuous; B=strenuous; C=average; D=easy)

LEADER NAME(S):       Maureen Kelly

CO-LEADER NAME(S):             John Pereira

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:    Parking was at the Edmand Path Trailhead off Mt. Clinton Road. It’s a developed site that can accommodate about a dozen or so cars. Parking area is just passed the third culvert/bridge (guard rails used) along Mt. Clinton Road.

CAR SPOTTING REQUIRED?:            No             TIME REQUIRED TO SPOT CARS:

WAS TRIP WITHIN WHITE MOUNTAIN NATIONAL FOREST?              Yes      

BRIEFLY DESCRIBE SPECIFIC TRAILS HIKED AND TRAIL CONDITIONS ENCOUNTERED:        Began hiking along Edmands Path. In about two hours we began to enter into the alpine zone. At the junction with Crawford Path we took the trail up to the summit of Mt. Eisenhower. We spent a few minutes on the summit to enjoy the views and then headed back down the summit to Crawford Path. At the junction we had lunch at some rock slabs. Once done, we hiked along Crawford Path to the junction with Mt. Pierce. After quick hike to the summit of Mt. Pierce, we were heading down the mountain on Crawford Path. Once we reached the Mt. Clinton Road we walked along it to the trailhead.

Trail conditions were great! Not many folks were seen when hiking on Edmands Path and Crawford Path up to Mt. Pierce. The section of trail between Mt. Pierce and Mt. Clinton Road had a lot of folks hiking up and down the trail.  

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:    Mostly cloudy, mild (in the mid-60’s) and a very light breeze.