Anyone Been to Moose Pond?

OK . . . I was undecided whether to post this at all. Then thought well maybe I will.
But then I had difficulty deciding if it should be posted as a Trip Report, or as a Q&A.

Obviously, I decided to post it as a Q&A. So, here are my questions.

1) First of all, is anyone willing to admit to being so weird as to bushwhack to Moose Pond?

2)If there's anyone willing to admit to whacking to Moose Pond, are there any ledges with good views in the nearby vicinity?

I visited two ledges just a short distance above the pond to the NW, but neither provided any great photo-ops because of trees obstructing the view. Did I miss something that's worth going back to see? That would not be a problem since it's an easy bushwhack.
As my starting point I used the Steam Mill Brook valley (called Stream Mill Brook on some maps).

3) Where the heck is Moose Pond, some may ask? That question I can answer for you!
Although some maps don't include this little pond, it is in fact a named geographic feature.
The map below shows its location (almost due south of the Rocky Gorge Scenic Area on the Kanc).


Below is a photo taken from the north shore of this mini-pond looking southward toward Third Sister (see "P.S." note at end).

P.S. The mountain seen at the end of the pond was incorrectly identified as Mt. Blue in the text I originally posted.
It is actually Third Sister near Mt. Chocorua. Mt. Blue is nearby, but it is not the peak shown in the photo. I have Steve Smith to thank for providing the correct ID of this peak. Thanks again Steve!

Did you follow an old trail up Steam Mill Brook? David Goodman's backcountry ski book mentions it as a worthwhile route.

I expect you have already visited it, but Long Mountain Pond up in Nash Stream looks very similiar. Its tedns to get visited more often as its on the route between the two peaks of Long Mountain.

I love finding secret ponds. Enjoy seeing your pics from interesting places.

audrey said:

Did you follow an old trail up Steam Mill Brook? David Goodman's backcountry ski book mentions it as a worthwhile route.

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Yes, exactly! I meant to mention this in my posting but totally forgot to do so. It took some "hunting & pecking" to find it, but once it was located, it did indeed provide a quick and scenic route up the valley.

It has just come to my attention that Steve Smith wrote an excellent article about a winter visit to Moose Pond (page 28 of Mountain Ear, January 8, 2009). In this article, Steve indicates that the Steam Mill Brook Trail was opened by the Forest Service about 1930 and was abandoned in the 1950s.

peakbagger said:

I expect you have already visited it, but Long Mountain Pond up in Nash Stream looks very similiar. Its tedns to get visited more often as its on the route between the two peaks of Long Mountain.

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Thanks Peakbagger! It's very interesting to learn that Long Mountain Pond has some similar features.

Actually, I have not been to Long Mountain Pond nor have I been to the two peaks on Long Mountain! This has been on my "hit list", but I haven't got to it yet. Of course, I tend not to follow any lists too closely, not even my own!

Mattl said:

I love finding secret ponds. Enjoy seeing your pics from interesting places.

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I know . . . isn't it great to find these secret places! It's sort of like a backcountry version of geocaching, but where the "prizes" are really "prizes"!!

That is one beautiful photo!

audrey said:

Did you follow an old trail up Steam Mill Brook? David Goodman's backcountry ski book mentions it as a worthwhile route.

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It shows on my NG TOPO! NE 100K scale topo, but not on the 24K topo. Seemed like a decent route...

Doug

DougPaul said:

It shows on my NG TOPO! NE 100K scale topo, but not on the 24K topo. Seemed like a decent route...

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Thank you Doug for that interesting information about the Steam Mill Brook Trail in relation to the maps that you referenced!

There are also some interesting details about this route contained in Steve Smith's article (see my response above to Audrey).
Here's what Steve had to say:

". . . opened by the Forest Service about 1930 as a Class 3 Trail , or "manway", and made its last guidebook appearance in 1955. The 1934 edition of the AMC Guide defined Class 3 Trails as: 'service trails built primarily for fire protection and maintained at a lower standard than that of regular trails'. Thus, even when the Steam Mill Brook Trail was in use, it may not have been that easy to follow."

1HappyHiker said:

2)If there's anyone willing to admit to whacking to Moose Pond, are there any ledges with good views in the nearby vicinity?

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I'm not sure if I've stood on the pond shore or not, but 20+ yrs ago I climbed the 2000-footers to the NW and SE so must have been nearby. I don't recall any view ledges on them but obviously did not search the whole peak.

We used the trail from White Ledge Cpg if I remember correctly.

Beautiful image! I've been there in December and the pond was frozen. I hiked the Champney Falls Trail to the Sisters and found the pond from where the trail comes close, then turns south near Mt. Blue. From there I hiked down looking for the old route of the Steam Mill Brook Trail and I suppose I found parts of it. I prefer to bushwack downhill Very nice area.

Great TR, yet again!