Saturday, October 11, 2025

Shelburne Moriah & Mt. Moriah via Shelburne & Stony Brook Trails (White Mountain National Forest)

Shelburne Moriah & Mt. Moriah via Shelburne & Stony Brook Trails (White Mountain National Forest)

Hike Type: Traverse
Distance: 13.70 miles
Elevation: 3,773 feet
Time: 10 hours, 54 minutes (7 hours, 58 minutes)
Hiking Challenges: New Hampshire 4000 Footers; 52 With-a-View; Operation Alaska Benchmark Challenge; 52 Hike Challenge 2025


The Hike 
It was the big day! My grand finale hike for my 52 With-a-View and my New Hampshire 48! The plan was a traverse from the Shelburne Trail to Stony Brook Trail, hitting Shelburne Moriah and Mt. Moriah on the way. Sarah and Emma were both going to join me, and Gen wanted to come but couldn't make it work sadly. My 2:45am alarm went off and I was on my way to pick up Sarah at 3:05am (it would have been 3:00am, but I couldn't find my house keys... turns out I left them in the deadbolt from the night before... oops!). I picked Sarah up, we had a quick pit stop at Hooksett, and then we continued to make out way up to the Dunkin Donuts in Gorham to meet Emma for some breakfast.

I hoped to get some hot chocolate packet at the Cumberland Farms, but they didn't have any - oh well. We dropped Emma's car at the Stony Brook Trailhead and then the three of us took my car to the Shelburne Trailhead. The beginning of the road was rough with one enormous pothole, but it then turned to dirt and was completely fine for the last mile to the trailhead, which had room for maybe five cars max. We spent more time than usual getting packed up, as Emma had to strap baguettes to her pack, Sarah had to make room for her fondue fixings, and I had to carefully fit a bottle of Veuve Cliquot and some plastic champagne flutes into mine! It was a chilly 30 degrees, but it felt nice and made us feel like ski season was right around the corner!

[7:10am - Start of Hike on Shelburne Trail]
We got started on the trail proper at 7:10am. The Shelburne Trail follows the continuation of the trailhead road (FR 95) and climbs at very easy grades with good and grassy footing. Much of the vegetation was covered in a beautiful, sparkling frost. We could tell that we were past peak foliage, but there was still some color to be enjoyed. Slowly, the sun began to kiss the tops of the trees, which was borderline magical. The trail also doubled as what I can only describe as a moose super highway - with piles of poop every 10 feet at a maximum. My shin splints were still present from yesterday's big loop over the Osceolas, but thankfully they weren't overly restricting. 

Shelburne Trail came to a junction with another road - maybe a snowmobile corridoor? There was a sign indication to continue straight on the road. After the sign, the trail was a little more grown-in, but still fine. Soon after, the Shelburne Trail left the road we were following at a signed arrow and began to climb more moderately, but never too steeply. The trailbed was mostly covered in leaves, but thankfully footing was generally good so there weren't any hidden obstacles. We saw our first two people of the day once on this stretch - two hikers in blaze orange happily hiking. They asked if we saw any wildlife, and we told them just a lot of poop! They said the same - no moose today!

The trail began to parallel the East Brook, which was down the bank on the right. Footing was occasionally slanted, but remained not-too-bad. There was a semi-confusing crossing in a really pretty area. The water was running low but the rocks, moss, and leaves were really stunning!

We continued to climb moderately, with a few steeper pushes until the sun was shining on us through the trees. We passed the only old yellow blaze we'd see on the trail, and eventually made it to the second crossing of the east branch of the East Brook, which was more of just a mossy rock hop with the low water levels. The trees were almost fully barren of their leaves, which made for nice autumnal tree views. 

The third crossing was further up and naturally even less pronounced than the second, and the fourth was basically just the trail meandering through a wet area near the height-of-land, passing one really neat boulder on the way!

[9:20am - Shelburne Trail/Kenduskeag Trail]
The Shelburne Trail leveled out in this area and meandered to the height-of-land, where the Kenduskeag Trail began and just about 50 feet down trail, the Wild River Wilderness also began. Naturally, we had to walk into the wilderness area for a second just to say we did! We backtracked the 50 feet to the junction and had our first break of the day. I had a slice of soggy pulled pork pizza and some honey roasted pistachios while the three of us yapped about who knows what - it honestly felt like we were in an episode of Adventure Archives, just sitting and chatting - it was lovely! It was fun to hike with both Emma and Sarah, too. It's rare that I hike with more than one person!

[9:39am - Kenduskeag Trail]
We got started on the Kenduskeag Trail, which had a very different character than the Shelburne Trail - notably it was now a rugged footpath versus an old logging road. We got a little chilled when were sitting, but soon warmed up again! The trail was moderate and soon climbed into denser forest where it remained rugged, spooky, and mossy. It reminded Sarah and I of the Mahoosuc area, but less ridiculous - best of both worlds!

[9:57am - Kenduskeag Trail/First View]
After some hiking, a side path scrambles up to the first of MANY views! We had a wonderful view of Shelburne Moriah with the Carters looming behind. Futher to the left were the Baldfaces, and the Wild River Valley in the forground. Really lovely! Somewhere around here Emma loudly goes "oh NO." Sarah and I paused and calmly asked "WHAT?!" Emma then tells us that she realized she left her keys in my car, meaning we were hiking towards a locked car with no keys... We weren't going to all turn around, and I wasn't going to ask Emma to turn around, so we quickly accepted fate and continued on, with MANY jokes to come over the next many hours!

Back in the woods, the Kenduskeag Trail undulated through the mossy, rugged woods - it was really pretty. The trail continued to narrow to basically a one foot-wide path, as it remained for the bulk of the hike. Soon, a ladder led us to a more open bit of trail that quickly led to another spectacular view (the guidebook labels this as the first of two knolls, the first view was the second). We rounded the corner through scrubby bushes to reveal more views into the Wild River Valley and over to the round hump of Shelburne Moriah, which still looked rudely far away. 

We dipped back into the woods before re-emerging out in the open on a nice series of boardwalks, still along the first knoll. We enjoyed views of the surrounding bog/meadows with a few views out through the trees. The moon was still up, providing a little extra pizzazz!

The trail steeply descended from the first knoll before starting a similarly steep climb up to the summit plateau of Shelburne Moriah. This was the first time all day our hearts were really pumping. Somewhere near rounding the shoulder, I stepped on a slick/muddy rock and slide a solid four feet down, landing in a "paint me like one of your french girls" pose (I was fine). Eventually, the Kenduskeag Trail rounded the shoulder to reveal some wonderful views followed by some extensive boardwalks through a pretty grown-in trail. 

[10:55am - Kenduskeag Trail/Shelburne Moriah Summit]
A few more steps and we were at the summit cairn of Shelburne Moriah! My 52 With-a-View was officially complete! The view was truly spectacular. Middle Moriah and Mt. Moriah were in the foreground, naturally, and the northern Presidentials, from Washington to Madison, were towering behind. TO the right were the Carters and Carter Dome standing tall. To the left, we could see the Pilot/Pliny Ranges. On thr far right were the New Hampshire Mahoosucs, and to the far left were Baldfaces and Wild River Wilderness. 

We took plenty of photos here, some with my homemade sign, and I got a little bit of attention by a group of really kind and friendly hikers. As much as I love attention from the Facebook groups, I struggle to accept it in person! Thankfully, we got to share Emma's snaffu with the keys which took the attention off of me. We shared stores of our hikes and they continued to give congratulations. One of the hikers taught us how to say "Kenduskeag" - and all I remember it was NOT how I was saying it, but I couldn't begin to remember what she said. 

We sat and snacked for a solid half hour, enjoying each other's company, our snacks, and of course, the view! Eventually though, it was time to continue on. We had about 2.7 miles to Mt. Moriah from here, and we were looking forward to our fondue and champagne!

[11:32am - Kenduskeag Trail]
Back on the Kenduskeag Trail, we said goodbye to our new friends and started out beautiful descent, which started along ledges and descend to a long series of right woods, boardwalks, bogs, and views. Some of the drops were steep, and one of them was so perfectly horrible that I... You know the act of swiping a credit card? That happened to me, but instead of a credit card it was a spruce branch (with needles) and the credit card reader was my eye. It HURT. Did not feel good! I took a second to really bask in the pain, but then just kept moving along, because we were over five miles into the hike - there was nothing to do about it here! Sarah, who is incredibly caring, kept checking in, and it felt quite badly, but again there was nothing to do about it! Slowly, my right eye's vision got less blurry and the pain began to subside, so that's good!

Thankfully, the hiking was wonderful! There were plenty of tight car-wash stretches, but Emma continued to point out that we were getting free exfoliation. Some of the bod/mud pits were impressively deep - we got poles almost all the way down! Thankfully nobody fell in. The route was mostly easy to follow, with either a clear footpath, boardwalks, cairns, or faded, painted arrows on the ground. From the lowest open spot, we had a great view back to Shelburne Moriah and forward to Middle Moriah and Mt. Moriah.

From the final view, we continued to descend into the woods with a few rambling ups, eventually hitting the junction with the Rattle River Trail just past the col between Shelburne and Middle Moriahs in a very pretty area (with more boardwalks - a theme of this hike!). 

[12:30pm - Kenduskeag Trail/Rattle River Trail]
From the Rattle River Trail junction, the Kenduskeag Trail was blazed in white, as it was now part of the Appalachian Trail. Interestingly enough, the first white blaze said "Beth ->" - we wondered, who is Beth? Maybe she's waiting to welcome us at the summit? Also at this point of the hike, I was winning in fart baseball by a truly increidbly lead. 

The Kenduskeag Trail climbed briefly and contoured around Middle Moriah Mountain, which was my favorite stretch of wooded trail. Extensive, flat boardwalks in beautiful, mossy woods. Truly wonderful! We all had such a lovely time. We saw one (1) moose print in this section, too!

Eventually, the Kenduskeag Trail descended to the col between Middle Moriah and Mt. Moriah and began to climb up - the final push! We caught one RUDE view of Mt. Moriah's summit cone (more like a loaf) through a blowdown area, but we took the following steep climb slowly and found it to be manageable, with some tree views back to Shelburne Moriah, which looked equally small and far away from this vantage point.

We hiked just a bit further down the trail and there it was - the Carter-Moriah Trail! One final push before I finish my New Hampshire 48! I was equal parts excited, anxious, and sentimental, but also a little cranky that I could hear so many voices... oh well! 

[1:31pm - Carter-Moriah Trail]
The Carter-Moriah Trail had a two-tiered scramble up to the summit "loaf." I went first and passed a duo who asked "is she carrying baguettes?" to which I happily said "hell yeah!" Once on the loaf's plateau, we noticed a side path to a ledge that had a truly wonderful view Middle and Shelburne Moriahs alongside the Mahoosucs and beyond. 

[1:35pm - Mt. Moriah Summit Spur]
We hopped back onto the Carter-Moriah Trail and then followed the Mt. Moriah Summit spur, which was short and ledgy and led to the top! The top had wonderful standing views in all directions, but also people in all directions. There were two USGS discs, at least one bolt, two gray jays, and MANY people. I whispered to Emma "I hate it when people sit directly on the summit" and Sarah loudly said "oh, so we're feeding the Gray Jays?" With that, we smiled, gave the top a "boop," and turned around to backtrack to that ledge from before. 

[1:39pm - Off-Trail View]
To preserve our overall joyful demeanors and to have some more space for our big celebration! Once we got on the ledge, we took packs off and got right to work! Step one was to get the fondue cooking, which Sarah masterfully did in her JetBoil (she started by preparing a concoction of white wine, lemon juice, and garlic, bringing it to a simmer, and then slowly adding one pound (!) of shredded swiss and gruyerre cheese - it was AMAZING). Once that was going, it was time to pop the champagne! Miraculously, the champagne was NOT over-shaken from the hike. We had zero spillage! People said "you got to spray it!" - absolutely not. If I had prosecco maybe, but this bottle was too expensive to waste a drop! Once the fondue was hot and the champagne was poured, we sliced up the apples and ripped up (literally) the bread, and started our feast! Naturally some food items fell on the rocks, but we practice leave no trace, so eating "rock cheese," "rock bread," and "rock apples" became a running bit throughout. 

This break was delightfully long. We shared lots of giggles, teehees, stories, and mindless yaps. Occasionally, the gray jays would swoop down and attempt to join the party, but Sarah was on "wave the trekking pole at them" duty, which did keep them away. We love those birds, but they're too used to humans feeding them! One did swoop up and land on Emma's head for a second, which was one of the funnier moments of the day! We took a bunch of silly photos, naturally got photos with the sign I made, and looked at our options for getting back to my car... It looked like there WERE Ubers available from Stony Brook through Gorham, so we had some hope. We flirted with going down Carter-Moriah to get closer to Gorham, but it was suposed to be a rougher descent, and for Sarah's reattached ankle we opted to go forward as planned (plus we would learn it was MUCH prettier!). 

At 2:50 we said it was time to start packing things up. I still noticed a sensation in my eye, but the pain was mostly gone (thank goodness). We DEVOURED basically everything - the only items remaining were one baguette and one apple (and the champagne bottle that I will be saving). Our packs were lighter, our hip belts were tighter, and we decided to pop up to the summit one more time before starting the great return (to a locked car). 

[3:06pm - Mt. Moriah Summit]
The summit was packed with a new group of people sitting right on the summit disc. The view was wonderful, especially towards the Carters and Northern Presidentials, but there was simply not enough room to really enjoy it. We did get our summit selfie with my sign, but not before I dropped my phone and watched it slide into oblivion (oblivion was actually just an ~8ish foot cliff that was a ~10 foot bushwhack around the trail, it looked like a MUCH more dramatic fall than it was). 

[3:12pm - Carter-Moriah Trail]
From the summit we spur, we backtracked on the Carter-Moriah Trail, down the double scramble, and then we were off! Thankfully, we had two long-ish stories to share between the three of us, so time felt to go quickly! The trek started by going up and down on Mt. Moriah's ridge for a while with more boardwalks and slabs (and views!). The car shuttle was on the mind, but I wasn't letting myself think about it too much. The hiking in this upper stretch was truly delightful - we even saw a glider!

Eventually, the trail did begin to descend at more moderate grades, alternating between wooded stretches and slabs. The views though - just amazing! The Carters and Northern Presis were still the most prominent, but the Wild River Valley was standing strong with the Baldfaces out in the distance. There was one ridge off Moriah in particular that looked super slabby and fun to climb - I was sad to see there's no trails there. 

Again, the trail became steeper on the slabby descent. We were lucky to do this on a dry day, as the slabs had great traction, but I'm not sure if I would want to descend this way on a wet day. The views felt endless in the best way, with one final view being back up the shoulder we just descended.

[4:15pm - Carter-Moriah Trail/Moriah Brook Trail]
[4:16pm - Stony Brook Trail]
After that final view, we dipped into the woods and hiked just for a couple minutes before hitting the junction with the Moriah Brook Trail, and just a few yards later the Stony Brook Trail! We did a short standing break here to get our means about it before starting our final descent! The short stretch from Moriah Brook to Stony Brook was very pretty with more boardwalks - kind of like the stretch around Middle Moriah. We joked about hitting North Carter just for funsies, but we all quickly called each other's bluffs. 

The Stony Brook Trail started by traversing the flat col and then steeply descending with rough, rocky footing, which was a little more difficult with the fallen leaves. Overall, it wasn't a brutal descent, though. The upper stretches were a bit steep, but the steepest sections didn't last for long. There were also some eroded sections, but similarly, they didn't last for too long. We spent this time talking about college and playing "where are they now?" There were nice autumnal tree views back to Moriah, which was beginning to glow in a beautiful afternoon light.

The trail description basically breaks the Stony Brook Trail into four chunks: (1) Carter Moriah to a "small brook under a mossy ledge," (2) the "small brook under a mossy ledge" to "crossing a branch of the Stony Brook," (3) "crossing a branch of the stony brook" to "turning left on an old logging road," and (4) "turning left onto an old logging road" to the trailhead. We passed a neat mossy, leaf-covered rock that would probably double as a nice cascade when there's water about (chunk #1 = complete!) and continued hiking down the footpath that had much friendlier footing. 

Chunk #2 felt longer on the brain. We played leap frog with some of the folks that were at the summit on our second visit and we stopped for a minute so I could photograph a very friendly red squirrel - it was actually so cute! 

We felt the temperature drop significantly as we neared the Stony Brook, which started Chunk #3. The Stony Brook was not flowing very fast, naturally, but it looked beautiful as it was littered with leaves. After crossing, the trail was absolutely lovely but it did become a bit rocky again. Thankfully, the rocky stretch didn't last for long. 

The final chunk was indicated by a blue arrow pointing to a turn and another crossing (easy peasy). Two more people from the previous hiking party passed us around this area, I guess the faster friends left them behind (to be clear, they were hiking solo, about 10 minutes apart). I get it when Sarah and I split up near the end, but we're both well-equipped and strong hikers (I only blast off becuase my legs get tired of fighting gravity). These folks were in semi-designer athleisure clothing - I wouldn't have left them alone... ANYWAY...

I did start to speed up in the last chunk - I was ready to be all done (and moreso ready to figure out a solution to this car issue). Also also, it was starting to get dark out, and I simply did not want to get caught in the dark, even if I was well-prepared. We were now hiking on the right of the Stony Brook, and there were private residences to the left, one that had bright lights illuminating the Stony Brook (I want that house). Eventually to my absolute delight, we hit the Forest Protection Area sign at 5:59pm, crossed a bridge over a flume-like stream at 6:01pm, hit the final footbridge at 6:03pm, and were back at the Stony Brook Trailhead at 6:04pm... with Emma's locked car! On the plus side, I had now OFFICIALLY completed the 52 With-a-View and the New Hampshire 48 4,000-Footers! I would also like to add that I won fart baseball with 13 points... they each had zero. I have no idea how I didn't soil myself.

[6:05pm - End of Hike]
Now is when the fun really began! Sarah was on Uber duty, I was on Lyft duty, and Emma was on "anything else" duty. Both rideshare apps proved unhelpful (not overly surprised), but Emma did get in contact with a few trail shuttle service folks. We eventually got into contact with one who was available, but he lived in Littleton and would charge $95 cash, to which we politely declined (a few texted back with jokes about people forgetting their keys, which was very funny). Eventually, Sarah, being the brave and powerful woman she is, talked to the group that was passing us sequentially on the descent, and they offered her a ride to the trail! She grabbed my keys and was off! Emma and I watched her location INTENSELY - they turned about to be lovely people. They even offered to drive her all the way to the car, but Sarah didn't want them to have to deal with the rough pavement. They did give her their number so she could text when she got to the car safe, which was super kind. She got the car, and drove back to us, and after almost 1.5 hours of down time, we were rescued! By now, it was pitch black out and chilly. The stars looked incredible, though. 

[7:30pm - Sarah Returns with Car]
DINNER TIME. We wanted to go to Big Day Brewing right in Gorham, but the wait would have been ~25 minutes, and we were already delayed by 90 minutes. We ended up saying our goodbyes to Emma and Sarah and I had our sights set on the Woodstock Inn and Brewery, which was a great choice for three reasons: 1) it was an hour from Gorham, which meant an hour closer to home, 2) the food is GOOD there, and 3) the bartender was super nice and gave us a free can of coffee when he learned we were driving back to Boston after dinner. We sat upstairs and there was live music downstairs, which was the perfect distance away for Sarah and I to still enjoy the music without being over stimulated. 

The rest of the drive home was... not the best. Sarah did a good job keeping me company and stimulated, but boy was I TIRED. We stopped at the Common Man in Plymouth for snacks and drinks, and then another stop in Hooksett just to stretch our legs. We eventually got to Sarah's apartment around midnight, and then I had a final push back to Boston for a 12:30am landing! 

Even with the car snaffu, the credit card eyeball situation, and the LATE return, this was honestly a perfect day to celebrate my big finishes. I wish Gen could have been there, but I'm happy both Emma and Sarah were able to join. It was the perfect balance of serious and silly, and I loved every bit of it!

Now time to hit the 1,000 other hiking challenges I have my sights set on...

Step-by-Step
- Drop car at Stony Brook Trailhead.
- Drive to Shelburne Trailhead (north).
- Start hike on Shelburne Trail.
- At jct., turn right onto Kenduskeag Trail.
- Summit Shelburne Moriah. 
- Continue on Kenduskeag Trail.
- At jct., turn right onto Carter-Moriah Trail.
- Scramble up and soon turn left to summit Mt. Moriah.
- Retrace steps back down scramble, turn right on Carter-Moriah Trail.
- At jct., turn right onto Stony Brook Trail.
- Follow Stony Brook Trail to car.

Facebook Post in "NH 52 With a View"
Shelburne Moriah for #52! Technically #61 - I wanted to hit all the new/delisted peaks before "officially" (in my mind) finishing. I made this hike a traverse with Mt. Moriah, which was my #48, too! It was an absolutely perfect day of hiking, celebration, and silliness! The Shelburne Trail seemed like a moose super highway (we did not see any) and even though it felt little-traveled, it was very easy to follow. Kenduskeag Trail to Shelburne Moriah was a delight with views and many boardwalks, even if it was a little scratchy at times. The view from Shelburne Moriah was spectacular and we shared the summit with some awesome hikers. The rest of Kenduskeag was similar - beautiful, interesting, and scratchy (I took a branch to the eye which was unpleasant). The stretch of Carter-Moriah Trail along Middle Moriah was an absolute delight, with more extensive boardwalks through mossy woods. The scramble up to Mt. Moriah was fun and although the summit area was packed, we landed on an off-trail ledge to enjoy a great view back to Shelburne Moriah and to celebrate the big finish with champagne and fondue! The rest of Carter-Moriah Trail down to Stony Brook was stunning with views (wouldn't want to do it while wet), and Stony Brook was a great way to descend. We had one snaffu at the end, when we found ourselves trapped with the wrong set of car keys, but thankfully some kind hikers shuttled my friend over back to the ME border to get the other car! We had our final celebration at the Woodstock Inn & Brewery on the way back home. Such a perfect day!

Facebook Post in "Hike the 4000 Footers of NH!" and "The 4000-Footer Club - Hiking and Climbing in NH"
Mt. Moriah for #48! I paired this hike with Shelburne Moriah, which was my final peak to finish the 52 With-a-View! It was an absolutely perfect day of hiking, celebration, and silliness! We took the Shelburne Trail, which was basically a moose super highway (without any moose) and even though it felt little-traveled, it was very easy to follow. Kenduskeag Trail to Shelburne Moriah was a delight with views and many boardwalks, even if it was a little scratchy at times. The view from Shelburne Moriah was spectacular and we shared the summit with some awesome hikers. The rest of Kenduskeag was similar - beautiful, interesting, and scratchy (I took a branch to the eye which was unpleasant). The stretch of Carter-Moriah Trail along Middle Moriah was an absolute delight, with more extensive boardwalks through mossy woods. The scramble up to Mt. Moriah was fun and although the summit area was packed, we landed on an off-trail ledge to enjoy a great view back to Shelburne Moriah and to celebrate the big finish with champagne and fondue! The rest of Carter-Moriah Trail down to Stony Brook was stunning with views (wouldn't want to do it while wet), and Stony Brook was a great way to descend. We had one snaffu at the end, when we found ourselves trapped with the wrong set of car keys, but thankfully some kind hikers shuttled my friend over back to the ME border to get the other car! We had our final celebration at the Woodstock Inn & Brewery on the way back home. Such a perfect day!

Photo Album

Thursday, October 2, 2025

Old Speck & Speck Pond via Eyebrow Trail, Mahoosuc Trail, & Speck Pond Trails (Grafton Notch State Park/Mashoosuc Public Lands)

Old Speck & Speck Pond via Eyebrow Trail, Mahoosuc Trail, & Speck Pond Trails (Grafton Notch State Park/Mashoosuc Public Lands)

Hike Type: Traverse
Distance: 9.22 miles
Elevation: 3,307 feet
Time: 7 hours, 53 minutes
Hiking Challenges: Maine 4000 Footers, Wicked Wild 25, 52 Hike Challenge 2025


The Hike 
The next stop on my 4,000-Footers Farewell Tour was what some would consider the "49th" 4,000 Footer of the White Mountains - Old Speck, just off the New Hampshire-Maine Border in Grafton Notch, Maine! Sarah and I had our sights set on this one for Yom Kippur (after half jokingly talking about a single-day Pemi Loop) after hiking Goose Eye last fall. I had a brutal 1:40am wake up and was on the road at 1:55am. Sarah drove up the night before, but I had a date to go on the night before. The skies were crystal clear for the entire drive. Naturally, there were no breakfast sandwiches at 3:00am, so I opted for a brutally dry ham and cheese sandwich. I listened to techno remixes of classical music, which was actually really fun to dive into, and of course Death Becomes Her on my schlep. My tummy was feeling weird, but it is what it is!

I was excited to see that it was 32 degrees in Franconia Notch - I knew lows were expected to be in the mid-30s, but it was fun to see it hit freezing! I pulled over at Boise Rock to catch a glimpse at the stars, and I saw a shooting star! I continued onto US-3, NH-115, and US-2 to Gorham, where I stopped for breakfast at Dunkin Donuts (and to christen that bathroom). I continued north to Berlin and then onto Success Pond Road, where a logging truck scared the life out of me (I was suprised to see one so early - it was still mostly dark out!). I eventually made it to the Speck Pond Trail trailhead at 5:52am. The road was in pretty good shape and it was now a CHILLY 28 degrees. Our meeting time was 6:15am, but Sarah made a wrong turn coming out of Grafton Notch, so it ended up being 6:30am, which was totally fine. I walked around a little bit until I got cold, and then back into the car I'd go! I did hear some kind of insane sound - maybe a weird frog, but I think it was too cold for frogs. Maybe a moose? I did hear some screaming loons, too, which was fun. Sarah eventually arrived and we were off to Grafton Notch!

[7:48am - Old Speck Trail]
The Old Speck Trail trailhead was a large, paved parking area with two privys and nice views. The foliage was looking good! We did another quick bathroom break before starting our journey up the Old Speck Trail (just for a second, though!). It was so delightfully quiet out - the only sound we could hear was the falling leaves (and the occasional car driving through Grafton Notch).

[7:51am - Eyebrow Trail]
Very soon into the hike, the Eyebrow Trail turned right. Now blazed in orange, the Eyebrow Trail climbed through an autumnal wonderland. There were a few series of rock steps that climbed steeply, but they were forgiven with flatter stretches after. Our outer layers soon came off in an area of really neat erratics/boulders (we wonder if the glaciers brought them, or if they fell off the Eyebrow's cliffs long ago?). 

Eventually, we hit the section of trail that earned it a place on the "Wicked Wild 25" list - basically, cables, ladders, and rungs, oh my! I say "oh my," but I cannot stress how unnecessary most/all of the aides were. They were fun, though! In fairness, we caught this trail on a dry day, so maybe it is more treacherous when wet? 

The first set of aides were cables up an eroded, slabby stretch with good grip. It was steep, though! We climbed up and then traversed along another slab that could have been an older slide with a few rungs to aide, and then we climbed a small iron ladder to clear this stretch. The fall colors were lovely! We caught some tree views across Grafton Notch to what we believe is Table Rock. 

Later, there was a mosty dry stream crossing with ropes to aide (again, pretty unnecessary, and it was funny to be climbing this trail with many aides after doing Flume Slide a week ago, which had zero aides) above a ledge view across the notch again. 

We did some more hiking, now steeply up to one of the best views of the day! We could see right down through Grafton Notch with the road winding down. On the left we could see up to a shoulder of Old Speck with an impressive drainage effectively splitting the mountain in half. Naturally, the foliage was muted (as every trail report has been saying), but it was still lovely. 

From here, the trail descended for a few minutes before hitting the terminus of the Eyebrow Trail. We would now turn back onto the Old Speck Trail (which was coinciding with the Appalachian Trail) to continue our climb!

[8:58am - Old Speck Trail]
We were now back in the woods for a while! The trail traversed a medium-flat stretch that was full of unofficial campsites and MANY squirrels, one who posted for a few photos.

[9:08am - Old Speck Trail/Conservation Area Boundary]
A few minutes later we entered a conservation area boundary, which is hard to tell if it was for Grafton Notch State Park, Mahoosuc Public Lands, or something else. We started climbing again at moderate grades - never as steep as the Eyebrow Trail. The trail was full of pretty slabs lined with moss, which was really lovely. We passed our first person of the day near our first pile of moose poop of the day, and soon came to the top of an open knob that had an Appalachian Trail survey marker!

From the survey marker, we descended for a bit and then resumed our climb, which was pretty continuously moderate and pretty. We hiked over a decent amount of PUDs with a few RUDE views up to Old Speck, passed a thru hiker, and eventually rounded a steep corner that had iciles! It's always funny to me how exciting the first ice/signs of winter of the season are. We continued to round the corner to reveal a truly spectacular view of late foliage into Maine with many low mountains and lakes. We shared a solid amount of "oh my gods" before continuing on.

[10:37am - Old Speck Trail/Departs AT]
The good news was that this view was soon before the summit! Just a few minutes after the "oh my gods," we turned left to continue on the Old Speck Trail while the AT/Mahoosuc Trail turned right. From this point, we had a super easy climb to the summit along more beautiful trail, now on a ridge. Soon enough, the trail passed another survey park and then opened up to the summit area!

[10:45am - Old Speck Summit]
The summit proper was a large clearing with an observation tower accessibly by a narrow, sketchy ladder. There were limited standing views from the summit, but of course we had to climb up to see what else was there! I wanted to have our break up there, but didn't want to carry my pack up the sketchy ladder. Sarah went to climb with her pack, determined as ever, and soon froze at how sketchy it was and climbed right back down. We decided we'd carry a snack up but do our full break down low. Sarah went first again on the ladder and had quite a time getting up - the fear was real! It was actually medium sturdy, but just did not feel incredibly safe. 

That being said, the climb was worth it because oh my GOD. First, the view across Grafton Notch to Table and Baldpate was stunning and surrounded by orange. We had a full view of Sunday River ski area, too. We could see into the distant Maine Mountains, notably to Saddleback and Sugarloaf. Back in New Hampshire, we could make out Success Pond and the Pilot/Pliny Ranges (and of course the Percys). The best part of the view, though, was of Mahoosuc Notch with Goose Eye and Success behind and the Presidential Range further back. It was such a dramatic, incredible, and unique view - one of the best I've seen in these mountains! We spent some time up here enjoying the view and eating our snacks, but I was getting ready for hot chocolate!

I went down first, which was significantly less scary than going up (I think it was the mental game of going closer to safety versus further away). Sarah stayed up top to continue enjoying the view (and to hype her self up for the ladder) while I started making the hot chocolate. Two Gray Jays started lingering around, but I had a firm talking-to with them, and they eventually left us alone (after I got 1,000 photos, naturally). Sarah made it down strongly and successfully and then we continued to enjoy our break. Sarah was a genius and brought a big bag of peanut M&Ms, which was an excellent choice. I ate way too fast and gave myself a tummy ache, but beside that, it was a wonderful break! We took a few photos with my silly tripod, and eventually got ready to make our long trip back.

[11:50am - Old Speck Trail]
We had a quick and easy trip backtracking on the Old Speck Trail, and then turned onto the Mahoosuc Trail.

[11:56am - Mahoosuc Trail]
The Mahoosuc Trail was... exactly what we expected. Steep, rugged, but pretty fantastic, too. It started off nice and easy on a ridge spine and then started to plummet down on super steep slabs. Thankfully, the slabs had good grip and even better views! We primarily looked into the Mahoosuc Arm compled with a hidden Speck Pond somewhere in the landmass. We continued to enjoy seeing Succcess Pond and the various dirt roads in the area, too. The Presis were still visible, but Mahoosuc Notch was expectedly hidden. We were SO GLAD we chose to come down this way versus hiking back to Grafton Notch!

We eventually made our way back into the woods where we took a potty break alongside at least 50,000 white-and-black fuzzy/spiky catepillars. The woods continued to be expectedly rugged and beautiful and once nearer the pond, we traversed a nice boardwalk section that reminded me of Ponkapoag Pond, caught one last view, and then had our final descent to Speck Pond, which included a smooth, wooden ladder. 

[12:49pm - Mahoosuc Trail/Speck Pond Trail jct.]
The Mahoosuc Trail effectively comes to a T-junction at Speck Pond. The Speck Pond Trail turns right while the Mahoosuc Trail turns left - we opted to go left because the guidebook spoke of some open ledges that we wanted to check out before our grand return.

The trail around Speck Pond was wild and rugged - it reminded me of the upper Kinsman Pond Trail. We crossed the outflow of the pond, which had a great view of the pond and an absurd amount of ladybugs. We could hear some people enjoying themselves on the other side of the pond, but it was time for our final climb du jour!

We were hyping ourselves up for the climb by telling ourselves "it's just one Blue Hill..." - about 300 feet. To no surprise, it was completely fine, even if it was classic Mahoosuc rugged. We hit a truly fantastic view back to Old Speck and over to Sunday River Whitecap. Around the corner we got one final (excellent) view of the Presidentials with Carlo and Goose Eye, and a few cliffs dropping into Mahoosuc Notch. 

The trail climbed easily a little bit more after this viewpoint, passing a male spruce grouse who I was swearing at, but Sarah was calling beautiful... We have differing opinions on the mountain chickens. 

[1:32pm - May Cut-Off]
We reached the May Cut-Off in a boggy/meadowy area with some boardwalks and a wonderful view back to Old Speck (our actual last view of the day). The May Cut-Off was a wonderfully open and short trail. The footbed was narrow and squishy and we were glad it's been dry! 

[1:43pm - Speck Pond Trail]
We quickly hit the terminus of the May Cut-Off, and took a quick side trip down the Speck Pond Trail back toward Speck Pond because the guidebook mentioned a view, but it started to descend before the view and we had no interest in continuing to climb, so we started our descent!

The descent on the upper Speck Pond Trail was moderate to steep with thin trees, lots of moss, and dirt and needles dusting rocks. I took one slip and fall on a wet rock, which didn't feel great, but I was mostly unharmed, minus a puncture wound on my hand. Fun! 

[1:52pm - Speck Pond Trail/Conservation Area Boundary]
We passed just a couple peopel on the descent, which had a flat section before more steep, and some moose prints! We hit a Conservation Area Boundary sign again - the same sign we saw on the Old Speck Trail. We also had some ladders every now and then, which weren't overly helpful, but were fun! Over time, the trail got leafier and canopy turned into stick season, which provided autumnal tree views - always appreciated. 

[2:46pm - Speck Pond Trail/Grafton Forest Wilderness Preserve Sign]
We finally had an answer to the conservation area signs! It was the Grafton Forest Wilderness Preserve - owned by the Northeast Wilderness Trust. With some research, they own a large tract of land east of Grafton Notch, but also this stretch of land, too. Just after leaving the preserve, the Speck Pond Trail joined a stream, which had a nice pool covered in leaves, with two brook trout in the pool? We had no idea how they got all the way up here. The happiest of possibilities is that they could have been born in this pool and the pool is all they know, the more likely possibility is that they swam up when water levels were higher and got trapped as the drought kicked in. Hopefully they're happy!

We followed the brook for the bulk of the rest of the hike out, including a dry, leafy confusing stretch. We passed a few piles of moose poop, and were DELIGHTED to eventually make our way to the trailhead! We did it!

[3:21pm - End of Hike]
After our hike, we changed at my car and had a scenic drive back to Grafton Notch to get Sarah's car before a LONG drive home. It was such a beautiful and perfect day. I also didn't realize that the US-2 that goes through Gorham is the same US-2 that goes through Bethel, ME and Rumford, ME - which is kind of cool to realize! 

Step-by-Step
- Drop car at Speck Pond Trailhead & Drive to Grafton Notch Hiker Parking/AT Trailhead.
- Start hike on Old Speck Trail/AT Southbound.
- At split, turn right onto Eyebrow Trail.
- At terminus, turn right onto Old Speck Trail/AT Southbound.
- At jct., turn left to continue on Old Speck Trail to summit.
- At summit, turn around.
- At previous jct., turn left onto Mahoosuc Trail/AT Southbound.
- At Speck Pond, turn left to continue on Mahoosuc Trail/AT Southbound.
- At jct., turn right onto May Cut Off.
- At terminus, turn left onto Speck Pond Trail.
- Follow Speck Pond Trail to car.

Grafton Notch State Park Map
Photo Album

Tuesday, September 30, 2025

Burns Hill Loop (2x) (Westford Conservation Trust)

Burns Hill Loop (2x) (Westford Conservation Trust)

Hike Type: Lollipop Loop
Distance: 2.42 miles
Elevation: 351 feet
Time: 50 minutes
Hiking Challenges: N/A


The Hike 
Back to Burns Hill for some mandatory woods time before marching band! Not much to say about this hike. It was a little warm out and the leaves were starting to change, it was quite lovely! I took a few spider webs to the face and there were some bugs in the low-lying stretches. I did a second lap, got just a little sweaty, and enjoyed an occasional breeze. I spooked a deer in the first low-lying stretch which was fun, and noticed some faded blue blazes in the same area with new pink flagging tape - maybe they're planning to revive an older trail? I had the "hey let's go!" song from My Neighbor Totoro stuck in my head for most of this. A lovely break from reality before band!

Step-by-Step
- Start hike at Burns Hill trailhead.
- Cross power cut, turn right at loop split.
- Follow loop two times with optional visit to Heron Roostery.
- When complete, return via power cut.

Burns Hill Map
Photo Album

Sunday, September 28, 2025

Mt. Flume & Mt. Liberty via Flume Slide & Liberty Springs Trails (White Mountain National Forest)

Mt. Flume & Mt. Liberty via Flume Slide & Liberty Springs Trails (White Mountain National Forest)

Hike Type: Figure-8ish Loop
Distance: 10.18 miles
Elevation: 3,771 feet
Time: 7 hours, 15 minutes (5 hours, 50 minutes moving)
Hiking Challenges: Terrifying 25, New Hampshire Appalachian Trail


The Hike 
It was FINALLY time to get back into the Whites after a few-weeks hiatus! Sarah and I were out at UMass for a marching band competition yesterday and naturally planned a hike for today. We went back and forth about what time to start - I was staunch about 4:00am up and out because of 1) foliage crowds and 2) it was a Sunday (I got my way hehe). I picked Sarah up on the way up, we stopped at Hooksett for bathroom and food, and made our way to the Flume Visitor Center parking lot (I did not know about the Whitehouse Trail parking...). We met a guy who had hiked the grid and 100 Highest in the parking lot who asked where we were from and said "welcome!" when we told him we were from Boston. He assumed we were hiking Mt. Pemigewasset, which I took offense to since we're clearly so strong and obviously tackling Flume Slide!

[7:06am - Franconia Notch Bike Path]
Our adventure started on the Franconia Notch Bike Path, passing the trailhead to Mt. Pemigewasset, and soon turning onto a spur to the Whitehouse Trail trailhead. We started in mostly full layers since it was chilly out, but they soon came off (as per usual - I do not like being bold and starting cold!). We caught a tree view over to possibly a shoulder of Mt. Pemigewasset where the sun just began to hit the top.

[7:09am - Spur to Whitehouse Trail Trailhead]
[7:11am - Whitehouse Trail]
[7:25am - Whitehouse Trail/Franconia Notch Bike Path jct.]
We passed the excrutiatingly stinky privy at the Whitehouse Trail trailhead and were now on a trail that slightly rose and fell over a hump in the woods, following blue blazes. Footing was good, yet a little rooty. Eventually, the trail descended back to the paved Franconia Notch Bike Path, where we finished removing our layers for the climb (we had barely gained any elevation at this point)!

[7:30am - Whitehouse Trail/Cascade Brook Trail jct.]
A few minutes later, we passed the the start/end of the Cascade Brook Trail, where the Appalachian Trail joined the Whitehouse Trail (I still needed the stretch of Cascade Brook Trail from here to the Pemi Trail, but that will come another day). Just after, we crossed the Pemigewasset River on a scenic bridge and came to the terminus of the Whitehouse Trail at the Liberty Spring Trail.

[7:31am - Liberty Spring Trail]
The Liberty Spring Trail started off wonderfully - a gentle walk through teh woods with some changing colors. We passed some nice boulders as the forest gradually grew brighter. The trail gradually became more moderate, but nothing every ridiculous. We turned sharply right at a point where there were "REVEGATION AREA" signs - the guidebook says this is the old main logging road that led to the former Whitehouse Mill - maybe the road used to be used as a trail down to the mill site, too? We had a nice walking break and then came to the junction with the infamous Flume Slide Trail!

[7:49am - Flume Slide Trail]
The Flume Slide Trail started by easily descending along and old road, with a few ups and downs along the way. The walking was generally lovely and we crossed the remnants of many brooks and streams (by remnants, I'm referring to how little water was flowing due to the drought). We continued on for quite some time, eventually stopping at what we believe was the Flume Brook for a sit and snack. The map made it look like after this crossing, we would start climbing again, so it was a perfect break spot. A few people passed us during our break here - first people of the day!

[9:15am - Flume Slide Trail/Base of Slide]
We recrossed the brook as the treetops began to turn gold and later turned a corner, indicating the beginning of the slide! It was time for the BIG climb! We were both cautiously excited, and I was feeling confident after my jaunt up North Tripyramid. The lower slide was mostly wooded gravel that was steep, but not ridiculous. Also, the air smelled wonderfully floral? We couldn't figure out what exactly it was, as nothing was visibly in bloom, but we were not upset! We also had a super obstructed tree view up to Liberty, which was neat. 

The gravelley section was relatively unpleasant, but we soon reached the first (of many) scrambles, and that's where Sarah and I both got excited! The scrambling was fun but occasionally challenging with occasional views out towards Mt. Moosilauke, which was wonderful. The climb took care and we were grateful, yet again, for the drought, as this climb would have been much more challenging with wet slabs (and many spots were wet, even with the drought). There were a couple of tricky spots that required time and care - one in particular took us a while. A guy came up behind us and we offered to let him go and he was happy to let us continue. We chatted with him a bit as we suffered up. I mentioned this trail being more challenging in terms of hand-holds and sliding than North Tripyramid, which he and Sarah both disagreed with. I was able to cruise up North Tripyramid without TOO much thinking, while this climb took serious care and thought. 

We passed and were passed by a few other folks, all of whom were super kind and fun to talk to, which tends to be the case with other crazy people who tackle the lesser-known/more difficult trails and peaks. After struggling our way up we caught one last restricted view out towards the Kinsmans, and then had a final push up a rocky, steep trail to the terminus of the Flume Slide Trail! I got ahead of Sarah here, just wanting to get it done (she is MUCH better at pacing herself). 

[10:31am - Franconia Ridge Trail]
[10:35am - Franconia Ridge Trail/Mt. Flume Summit]
Now, we were back in familiar territory. The final push to the summit of Mt. Flume was comparatively a walk in the park, and we immediately went into a series of "oh my god"s once we made it to the view! We stopped for a break just before the summit, as the true summit had ~20 or so people. It was chilly in the open, but the sun felt amazing. The lower elevations had wonderful yellow trees with hints of oranges and reds, especially looking into the Pemi beneath Lincoln and Lafayette. The craggy summit of Mt. Flume was a spectacle in itself, and we enjoyed watching a crow and a smaller bird fight mid-air over someone's snack wrapper with Mt. Liberty as their backdrop (acklowedging that it stinks they had plastic - it was still an entertaining show to watch). We chatted about the slide and how insane the other slides on Mt. Flume appear, too. We even caught a glimpse over to the Bonds!

[11:03am - Franconia Ridge Trail]
After a lovely 30ish minutes, it was time to continue on! We followed the narrow summit ridgeline up and over the true summit, gawked at views for a bit longer, and steeply descend back into the wood. The trail got easier and easier and closer we got to the col, where we stopped for a bathroom break (which was fun, because I remember Gen and I stopping in this col for a bathroom break in June of 2024 when we did the traverse - fun!). On our way down a woman ran past us and said she was going for the record - no idea of she achieved it or not!

The climb up to Liberty was basically a mirror of the descent off of Flume. It started so gently that we hardly noticed we were climbing, and slowly becamame steeper and more rugged until we were out of breath and scrambling. We met a trio of hikers who were asking about descending Flume Slide, and Sarah and I were both like "yeah don't do that you'll meet God" - we think they understood! 

[11:49am - Franconia Ridge Trail/Mt. Liberty Summit]
We soon made it to Mt. Liberty, which was just spectacular. Well-populated, for sure, but the 360-degree view was to die for. The yellow sprinkle of trees in the Pemi provided a wonderful floor for Mts. Lincoln, Lafayette, Garfield, and Owl's Head to rise from, the slides on Mt. Flume looked dramatic as ever, and of course the Bonds were just spectacular. Cannon, the Cannon Balls, and the Kinsmans stood proudly on the other side of the notch. Views didn't go TOO far out, since it was a little hazy, but boy, was it pretty. Colors in the notch were more of a muted orange, but still just incredible. Sarah wanted another break here, but I wanted to keep moving. We compromised on a short break, but I had to get out of the sun because my skin was burning.

[12:15pm - Franconia Ridge Trail/Liberty Spring Tentside FPA]
[12:20pm - Liberty Spring Trail]
The descent off Liberty was the same as Flume - steep at first and then calmed down. We soon entered the Liberty Springs Tentside Forest Protection Area, and just after made it to the Liberty Spring Trail - which was donning numerous signs about the infamous Liberty Spring Bear:
"BEAR ALERT! There have been a number of bear-related incidents at Liberty Springs Tentsite this summer. Your help is needed to keep both humans and wildlife safe. If bears receive food rewards, it may be necessary to have them relocated or even killed. Please prevent this by storing all food coolers, toiletries, trash, and food containers inside a bear resistent container at all times."

Just below, a duct-tape addition read:
"PLEASE don't leave your pack unattended!!! It has taken numerous packs this summer!"

Another sign ~5 feet away in a ziplock read:
"Bears have been stealing unattended packs frequently this season. This includes incidents at this exact location. Please don't leave your pack here, take it with you - even if you are just getting water!!!"

[12:32pm - Liberty Spring Trail/Liberty Spring Tentside]
Message received! The initial descent was steep but footing was... fine. We didn't noticed how steep it was, which we were grateful for. We were soon at our next round of bear signage, at the Liberty Springs Tentsite (I have no idea if it's Liberty Spring or Liberty Springs - there's conflicting names everywhere!). 
"PLEASE don't eat here!"
"Days since last bear incident: 1 Day. 9/27, 1:00am. Record: 16. Average: 4."

We admired a camper's genius idea of putting his camp beers at the spring to cool off, but we did not need water so we continued on.

[12:48pm - Liberty Spring Trail/Liberty Spring Trail FPA]
A bit further down the trail, we left the Liberty Spring Tentside FPA and entered the Liberty Spring Trail FPA - all to say, don't camp outside the tentside! The descent continued to be steep, but slowly relenting as we lost elevation over the next mile. Our feet were hurting from the constant rocks, but they were pretty stable and step-able. 

[1:38pm - Liberty Spring Trail/Departing FPA]
[1:44pm - Liberty Spring Trail/Flume Slide Trail jct.]
Things settled down once we left the FPA and then hit the junction with the Flume Slide Trail again. Naturally, we joked about heading back up for a victory lap, but we called each other's bluffs! The fall colors were back to being abundant, but less-so from the forest floor. We continued a moderate descent that soon became easy. This stretch felt long, but in reality it was only 15 minutes. 

[2:00pm - Whitehouse Trail]
[2:02pm - Whitehouse Trail/Cascade Brook Trail jct.]
[2:06pm - Franconia Notch Bike Path]
There was much rejoycing when we hit the Whitehouse Trail/Franconia Notch Bike Path. We opted to mix things up and follow the bike path all the way back to the car, which was really lovely, minus one uphill! We got very close to the tourist paths around the Flume Gorge area, and we took a menal note for a future day... The bike path wrapped around the landmass we climbed up and down on the Whitehouse Trail, and soon we were back at the parking lot!

[2:22pm - End of Hike]
We kept commenting on how much fun that hike was - truly an excellent loop! We went back and forth on what we wanted to do after the hike - I was very much having the Sunday scaries at that point, so we agreed to get some McFlurries in Lincoln, check out the ski sale at Roger's, and then do a quick grocery run at Hannafords in Plymouth before blasting down I-93 to Hooksett and then to home! 

Step-by-Step
- Park at Flume Gorge Visitor Center.
- Start hike on Franconia Notch Bike Path.
- Cross paved path, veer left onto unmarked trail to Whitehouse Trail trailhead.
- Follow Whitehouse Trail.
- At junction, continue onto Franconia Notch Bike Path.
- At sign, turn right onto Liberty Spring Trail.
- At jct., turn right onto Flume Slide Trail.
- At terminus, turn left onto Franconia Ridge Trail.
- Summit Mt. Flume and then Mt. Liberty.
- Descend Mt. Liberty to jct., then turn left onto Liberty Spring Trail.
- At terminus, turn left onto Franconia Notch Bike Path.
- Follow Franconia Notch Bike Path back to car.

Photo Album

Tuesday, September 23, 2025

Skyline Loop via Trailside Museum (w/ Sonya) (Blue Hills Reservation)

Skyline Loop via Trailside Museum (w/ Sonya) (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: o-o Loop
Distance: 4.62 miles
Elevation: 1,191 feet
Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes
Hiking Challenges: Great Blue Hill Summits


The Hike 
First hike in a minute! I hadn't been hiking much partially because this just happens in the fall with my schedule, but also because any time that I would hike during the week I've been going on dates - which I guess is a net positive, but I'm tired! This day was also Rosh Hashanah - I was supposed to hike Mt. Monadnock with a coworker, but she bailed (I wasn't surprised). Plus, it was raining up in New Hampshire. I ended up sleeping in and going for the Skyline lap. Sarah also texted me about doing a single day Pemi Loop? Is she crazy? (yes, she is, and now I can't stop thinking about it). It was a breezy 65 degrees! I had to pee at the parking lot already but there was a big group forming, so I blasted off. 

The smell of the woods brought me back to life right away - I missed it. I climbed up Eliot Path and crossed the road - I noticed some new graffiti in the little hollow before the road. It felt like a summer morning as I continued up to the summit of Great Blue Hills. There were trucks at the gravel path getting ready to do something with one of the communication towers. I continued up and over Wolcott Hill, where there was a wonderful breeze in Downtown Crossing. More wonderful breezes were to be felt on Hancock, and then I saw three horses at the stables on Hillside Street! They were in seperate enclosures as folks worked on the stables.

I was again humbled by Houghton, but also less humbled than usual. It was a little buggy between the two streams, and I passed the large group of parking lot people at the sharp turn just before the headwall push. I was fighting for air, but not totally gassed at that last climb, and had to lengthen my hike slightly due to the gravel path being closed for the communication tower work. I hit the top and descended via the ski trails - I am so excited for ski season.

Step-by-Step
- Start hike from Trailside Museum parking on Eliot Path (red dots).
- At terminus, turn right onto Eliot Circle. 
- At next jct., turn left onto Summit Road.
- At next jct., turn right onto spur trail to Summit.
- Hike around observatory building clockwise.
- Follow gravel path to Skyline Trail.
- At terminus, turn left onto Skyline Trail.
- Descend summit towards Skyline Trail South.
- Turn left onto Skyline Trail, and then right onto Skyline Trail North.
- At Hillside St., turn right onto Hillside St.
- After stables, turn right onto Skyline Trail South.
- Follow Skyline Trail South to Eliot Circle.
- At Eliot Circle, turn left.
- At gravel path (same as before), turn right to summit Great Blue Hill.
- From summit, descend to ski area.
- Follow Patriots and Sonya down.
- Near bottom turn on Sonya, turn right back onto Eliot Path.
- Retrace steps to parking lot.

Tuesday, September 9, 2025

Burns Hill Loop (2x) (Westford Conservation Trust)

Burns Hill Loop (2x) (Westford Conservation Trust)

Hike Type: Lollipop Loop
Distance: 2.64 miles
Elevation: 381 feet
Time: 55 minutes
Hiking Challenges: N/A


The Hike 
Now for something completely different! I enjoyed the Grassy Pond loop from last week, but it was time to try a new trail in Westford. This one I tried last week, but didn't see a parking lot. A friend said to just park on the residential road, so I did! Burns Hill Conservation Area within the Westford Conservation Trust. I went in with my normal clothes on since it was a neighborhood and I didn't feel comfortable changing. The entry path was a little overgrown, but it had a sign and a hard-to-read kiosk. Thankfully, it was super nice out!

The trail crossed a stone wall and continued on, with a few old woods roads around. The trail then crossed a pleasant power cut with a large swampy area on the left (which I would latern learn is the "Heron Roostery," and on the right were rolling hills. After the power cut, the loop officially began.

I turned left and followed the semi-regular but faded yellow blazes, which meandered through the woods. The trail eventually dipped to a rocky low point where there were a good amount of gnats buzzing about, and the trail here was a little tricky to follow. There were some narrow boardwalks and then a ferny area with yellowing birches - probably still due to the drought. The trail crossed another stone wall and then zig zagged up Burns Hill, which had a bench at the "summit" (pretty inconsequential). The loop turns left here, but more trails are on the right.

The trail followed the spine of the ridge back down and then turned sharply with the sound of I-495 present for company. I meandered some more, passing another seasonably wet spot (dry on this day), and noticed a sign for the "Heron Rookery" down a side trail - I had to take it! It led me to a viewpoint of the swampy area that I saw from the power cut - no herons to be seen, though. Lots of beaver evidence!

Back on the loop, I took a second lap since I had plenty of time. I got a little sweatier than expected, but I was just happy to be out and about. My brain was mostly off for lap two, and soon enough I was back at the car! I didn't see a single other human - I will definitely be back!

Step-by-Step
- Start hike at Burns Hill trailhead.
- Cross power cut, turn right at loop split.
- Follow loop two times with optional visit to Heron Roostery.
- When complete, return via power cut.

Burns Hill Map
Photo Album

Monday, September 8, 2025

Skyline Loop via Trailside Museum (w/ Sonya) (Blue Hills Reservation)

Skyline Loop via Trailside Museum (w/ Sonya) (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: o-o Loop
Distance: 4.45 miles
Elevation: 1,198 feet
Time: 1 hour, 31 minutes
Hiking Challenges: 52 Hike Challenge 2025; Great Blue Hill Summits


The Hike 
First after school hike of the year! I had a wonderfully easy drive, but I did smash my hand on my car door (to be clear, ON my car door, not in my car door), and it hurt... wildly bad? Hmm. It was a super nice day out - overcast at 72 degrees. The air felt dry in the parking lot, but got super humid halfway up - I'm guessing from the recent rain and the flatter area just holds water better. There were some early fall colors on the Eliot Path, but I'm pretty sure they were still just from the drought. I passed one guy who was moving slowly and he said "you'r elike a jet and I'm a single prop," which was very funny. I was also VERY sweaty. 

There were locked porta potties up top, which excited then disappointed me - I've always throught the top just needs porta potties and a water fountain! They're redoing the spur path to Skyline, so it is now closed. I had to descend via the gravel path closer to where the Skyline dips to MA-138. Along Eliot Circle, I noticed some sticks in the ground that read "edge trail" - which I assume meant that the sticks were marking where the eventual edge of the trail would be once work is done. 

On my way down Skyline North, the pines were smelling wonderfully. An older gentleman passed me while running in a polo and jeans as I noticed the blue blazes had been recently touched-up. I took a quick potty break on Hemenway and soon enough I was on Hillside Street - with my whole "trying to date again" thing going on, I have a LOT to think about!

I had my most successful Houghton Hill climb in a while (still flirted with death, but I was feeling stronger than usual). I think I felt so good because I hadn't hiked in a little bit and the horrible warm humidity of summer had finally subsided. Further down the trail, the streams were basically dry and there were a comical amount of mushrooms in that seasonally wet spot between the two streams. 

I also felt pretty strong going up the headwall back to Great Blue Hill, and I enjoyed the smell of wet dirt on my final push - it smelled like fall. I hit the summit and descended via Sonya, which had shockingly clear views from Wachusett, along the entire Wapack Range, and of course, Mt. Monadnock. 

Step-by-Step
- Start hike from Trailside Museum parking on Eliot Path (red dots).
- At terminus, turn right onto Eliot Circle. 
- At next jct., turn left onto Summit Road.
- At next jct., turn right onto spur trail to Summit.
- Hike around observatory building clockwise.
- Follow gravel path to Skyline Trail.
- At terminus, turn left onto Skyline Trail.
- Descend summit towards Skyline Trail South.
- Turn left onto Skyline Trail, and then right onto Skyline Trail North.
- At Hillside St., turn right onto Hillside St.
- After stables, turn right onto Skyline Trail South.
- Follow Skyline Trail South to Eliot Circle.
- At Eliot Circle, turn left.
- At gravel path (same as before), turn right to summit Great Blue Hill.
- From summit, descend to ski area.
- Follow Patriots and Sonya down.
- Near bottom turn on Sonya, turn right back onto Eliot Path.
- Retrace steps to parking lot.