1HappyHiker
Well-known member
Many of my hikes are done solo. I dislike early starts, and prefer to avoid late exits by headlamp. Those two factors alone put me at odds with coordinating hikes with others. Teaming up with others becomes even more of a challenge since I'm not a peakbagger, plus my hikes are usually undertaken on a last minute whim, and are rarely planned.
However, on occasion it does happen that my stars align with those of another fellow hiker and I'll team up for a joint adventure. This was the case when I joined Steve for a bushwhack that he had planned for the purpose of exploring a knob located about a half mile east of the summit of North Weeks. In the 1940 edition of the WMG, Steve had found the following sentence regarding what was then called Round Mountain: "The summit is wooded, but about 1/2 m. to the E, from a spur which has been burned over, there is a view of the Upper Ammonoosuc wilderness."
The main objectives for this trek were to determine what, if anything might remain of the view that was mentioned in the old WMG, and also to investigate what views might be available from the ledges below the crest of this knob which show up on GoogleEarth. The approach route for this trek involved the York Pond Trail and the Kilkenny Ridge Trail (KRT). We left the KRT at a point about 400 feet below the summit of North Weeks and contoured our way around to eventually reach the top of the knob. The majority of this half-mile bushwhack was an easy trek through very open woods, although the final approach to the crest of the knob was a bit thick.
Much as expected, the view from the knob itself (as mentioned in the 1940 WMG) had long since become obscured by trees. And so, it was now time to begin Phase 2 of our exploration by locating the ledges that not only show up on GoogleEarth, but also had been viewed by Steve through binoculars on other trips to the area. The immediate area surrounding the knob was very gnarly with dense scrub, poor footing, and steep terrain with precipitous drop-offs. I opted to stay behind while Steve managed to work his way to a tiny viewpoint where he reported getting nice views northward over the fish hatchery toward the area of Deer Ridge, Rogers Ledge, and beyond.
Following Steve's solo expedition, we ventured further below the knob and eventually found the ledges that show up on GoogleEarth. Although the ledges themselves were too steep to stand on, there were some views from the perimeter. Mind you, these were not what I'd call "knock your socks off" views, but they were respectable vistas nonetheless.
Below is a snapshot showing a portion of Presidential Range.
Regarding the two snapshots below, the one on the left shows a portion of the Carter-Moriah Range on the horizon with a portion of the Crescent Range in the foreground. The photo on the right shows a portion of the Mahoosuc Range on the distant horizon.
Finding the views shown above was certainly rewarding. However, even if no views had been found, it would have still been a terrific hike. The woods of the Kilkenny region are such a delight. There is just a special ambiance that is created by the open woods, the fern glades, and an elusive abstract quality that's so difficult to describe. And at this time of year, the woods have an abundance of mushrooms of varying shapes and colors which adds yet another feature to the overall experience.
Typical Kilkenny Woods Scene, Plus Some Brightly-Colored Mushrooms
On the return portion of this trek, we bushwhacked directly from the knob area directly to the summit of North Weeks, and then took the trail from the summit back to the trailhead. At some point along the KRT we intersected the spot where we'd left the trail at the start of our bushwhack. And so, this turned our North Weeks trek into a bit of a loop hike. The words "loop" and "North Weeks" are rarely used in combination!
Oh! And although the snapshot below is of low quality, I can't resist showing it anyway. The photo shows a dinosaur-like figure that we encountered during the bushwhack portion of our hike. So, although we saw no moose, and no bears, we did see a dinosaur!
As a take-off on that famous response of "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.", it can now be said "Yes, trekkers, there is a view from North Weeks". Of course, it's about a half mile east of the summit, but there is a view nonetheless!
1HappyHiker
However, on occasion it does happen that my stars align with those of another fellow hiker and I'll team up for a joint adventure. This was the case when I joined Steve for a bushwhack that he had planned for the purpose of exploring a knob located about a half mile east of the summit of North Weeks. In the 1940 edition of the WMG, Steve had found the following sentence regarding what was then called Round Mountain: "The summit is wooded, but about 1/2 m. to the E, from a spur which has been burned over, there is a view of the Upper Ammonoosuc wilderness."
The main objectives for this trek were to determine what, if anything might remain of the view that was mentioned in the old WMG, and also to investigate what views might be available from the ledges below the crest of this knob which show up on GoogleEarth. The approach route for this trek involved the York Pond Trail and the Kilkenny Ridge Trail (KRT). We left the KRT at a point about 400 feet below the summit of North Weeks and contoured our way around to eventually reach the top of the knob. The majority of this half-mile bushwhack was an easy trek through very open woods, although the final approach to the crest of the knob was a bit thick.
Much as expected, the view from the knob itself (as mentioned in the 1940 WMG) had long since become obscured by trees. And so, it was now time to begin Phase 2 of our exploration by locating the ledges that not only show up on GoogleEarth, but also had been viewed by Steve through binoculars on other trips to the area. The immediate area surrounding the knob was very gnarly with dense scrub, poor footing, and steep terrain with precipitous drop-offs. I opted to stay behind while Steve managed to work his way to a tiny viewpoint where he reported getting nice views northward over the fish hatchery toward the area of Deer Ridge, Rogers Ledge, and beyond.
Following Steve's solo expedition, we ventured further below the knob and eventually found the ledges that show up on GoogleEarth. Although the ledges themselves were too steep to stand on, there were some views from the perimeter. Mind you, these were not what I'd call "knock your socks off" views, but they were respectable vistas nonetheless.
Below is a snapshot showing a portion of Presidential Range.
Regarding the two snapshots below, the one on the left shows a portion of the Carter-Moriah Range on the horizon with a portion of the Crescent Range in the foreground. The photo on the right shows a portion of the Mahoosuc Range on the distant horizon.
Finding the views shown above was certainly rewarding. However, even if no views had been found, it would have still been a terrific hike. The woods of the Kilkenny region are such a delight. There is just a special ambiance that is created by the open woods, the fern glades, and an elusive abstract quality that's so difficult to describe. And at this time of year, the woods have an abundance of mushrooms of varying shapes and colors which adds yet another feature to the overall experience.
Typical Kilkenny Woods Scene, Plus Some Brightly-Colored Mushrooms
On the return portion of this trek, we bushwhacked directly from the knob area directly to the summit of North Weeks, and then took the trail from the summit back to the trailhead. At some point along the KRT we intersected the spot where we'd left the trail at the start of our bushwhack. And so, this turned our North Weeks trek into a bit of a loop hike. The words "loop" and "North Weeks" are rarely used in combination!
Oh! And although the snapshot below is of low quality, I can't resist showing it anyway. The photo shows a dinosaur-like figure that we encountered during the bushwhack portion of our hike. So, although we saw no moose, and no bears, we did see a dinosaur!
As a take-off on that famous response of "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.", it can now be said "Yes, trekkers, there is a view from North Weeks". Of course, it's about a half mile east of the summit, but there is a view nonetheless!
1HappyHiker
Last edited:
