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.

Copicut Woods Hike - 5-17-2015

TRIP DATE:      May 17, 2015                                     

TRIP LOCATION:          Copicut Woods, Fall River, MA          

MEETING TIME:          9am    

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):             3         

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       3 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      3.5 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    Minimal

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

LEADER NAME(S):       Walt Granda

CO-LEADER NAME(S):             John Pereira

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:    Trailhead parking was at the Indian Town Road parking area. It’s a developed site that can accommodate parking for a dozen or so 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 hiking along Horseshoe Trail and in a very short distance we crossed Yellow Hill Road. We continued to hiking along Horseshoe Trail until we reached Indian Town Road (the road is in poor shape at this location). We took a right at the road and hiked a hundred feet or so until we took a left onto another hiking trail (the entrance to the trail is gated). Hiking along this trail for a very short distance, we came upon intersection 4 and took a left onto Meadowhawk Trail. After taking a short break at Ed Shed, we continued to hike until we reached intersection 7. From here we took a left and passed intersection 12 and hiked towards intersection 11. At this junction we took a right and hiked towards intersection 10. From here we hiked along Miller Lane towards intersection 7. We took a left and hiked towards intersection 6. From here we took a left onto Soggy Bottom Trail and hiked until we reached a fairly new trial to the right (trail is marked by red painted tags). This new trail is not shown on the properties map. The trail took us to Yellow Hill Road. Upon reaching the road we took a left for a short distance and then took a right onto Cedar Swamp Trail (trail is gated). This trail takes one to a restoration site for White Cedar and a loop trail through the site. This trail is not displayed on any property map. Upon completing the loop, we headed back to Yellow Hill Road, took a left and hiked along it for several minutes until we come across where Shockley Trail cuts through the road. We took the left and in about 10 to 15 minutes we were back at the trailhead.

Trail conditions were great! The ground was very dry, with typically wet areas fairly dry.

WEATHER CONDITIONS FOR HIKE:    Sunny and warm (in the mid-70’s)

Mt. Moosilauke Hike

TRIP DATE:      February 7, 2015                                

TRIP LOCATION:          Mt. Moosilauke                      

MEETING TIME:          8:30 am           

NUMBER OF PARTICIPANTS (INCLUDING LEADERS):             4         

TOTAL HIKING TIME (IN HOURS):       8:30 hours

LENGTH IN MILES:      7.8 miles

TOTAL ELEVATION GAIN (IN FEET):    2,932 feet; 1,880 feet in the first 1.5 miles

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

LEADER NAME(S):       Bob Vogel

CO-LEADER NAME(S):             John Pereira and Paul Vermette

TRAILHEAD PARKING LOCATION & DESCRIPTION:    Trailhead parking was at Beaver Brook WMNF parking area (adjacent to route 112) in Kinsman Notch. It’s a developed site with an outhouse and parking for a couple of dozen cars. Parking area was well plowed.

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 with Beaver Brook Trail, then Benton Trail to the summit. Returned the same way. The trails had a decent hard packed base, but had some softer snow on top of it of about 6” that was packed down by a party ahead of us. Finding the beginning of the trail above treeline can be challenging (especially in poor weather conditions), but I was able to locate it with no issues because I hiked the trail a year earlier. Snowshoes was used up to the summit, while some used it on the way down and others preferred to use crampons or just regular boots.  

Temperatures were in the high single digits to low teens. Winds at the summit were gusting between 30 to 40mph.