1HappyHiker
Well-known member
Background:
As sometimes happens with me, I start out to do one thing and end up doing another. Today I was going to go up either the abandoned Gorge Brook Slide Trail, or attempt to retrace the former route of the Gorge Brook Trail (before it was relocated to its present-day course). However, once I got to the decision point as to which old trail to try to follow, I changed my mind, and decided to do neither!
For whatever reason, on this particular day, I decided that I just wanted the freedom to roam. Following an old trail can be tedious with having to frequently “re-find” the old trail after working your way around a nasty patch of blowdowns, or whatever. Don’t get me wrong, this can actually be fun, but that wasn’t the fun I was up for on this particular day.
Ultimately, I decided to bushwhack straight up the ravine along the west bank of Gorge Brook and eventually intersect the Carriage Road at the northern end of the ravine. Admittedly, this is a rather quirky way to approach “The Moose”, and afterwards I’m thinking to myself: “I did that because??”
This bushwhack had no real utilitarian purpose, such as being a short-cut between two points, or a means to reach a trailless peak, etc. Perhaps, it might be classified more as a “boutique” or a “specialty” whack (or maybe just a “whacky whack”)!? Regardless, it served a useful purpose for me in that it was a different way (to say the least!) of approaching “The Moose”, and it broke the repetitiveness of using the same on-trail approaches.
The Journey:
This was a loop hike. For the ascent, the Gorge Brook Trail was taken for over a mile up to the point where the old Gorge Brook Trail leaves the present-day trail. From there, I began the bushwhack up the Gorge Brook ravine and intersected the Carriage Road about mid-way between South Peak and the summit of Moosilauke. The Carriage Road was then used as the final approach route to the summit. For the descent, the Gorge Brook Trail was taken all the way back to the trailhead.
By some “zigging & zagging” to avoid nasty stuff, I was able whack my way up the ravine through mostly open woods . . . uh well ALMOST! A little over a tenth of a mile from intersecting the Carriage Road, an “evil curtain” of spruce & other thick stuff was encountered. There was no “zigging & zagging” around it! Although it was still very doable, it wasn’t nearly as quick & pleasant as whacking in open woods.
So, despite the encounter with the “evil curtain”, I eventually made it to the Moosilauke summit. Using the combination of hiking on a trail + bushwhacking up the ravine, the ascent took just slightly longer than it usually takes me to reach the summit when using the Gorge Brook Trail exclusively. The entire loop took just a bit over 5.5 hours (which included a lunch on the summit).
Just as a side-note, while whacking up the ravine, I had hoped to visit the cascades/falls known as the Pleiades. I’m nearly certain that I saw them from a distance as I was “zigging & zagging”. However, I opted not to work my way over to them, thinking that this could be saved for some future adventure when more time is available to enjoy poking around them. (I think they will always be there?!)
Upon arriving at the summit of Moosilauke, there was a sizeable grouping of people, especially for mid-week. However, even during mid-week, if it’s a beautiful day, it seems that many folks find a way to visit the popular summits (as it should be)!
Even though we've all seen similar shots before, below are a few photos taken from (or near) the summit.
The photo below was taken from Route 118 on the way home from my Moosilauke adventure. It’s such a great viewpoint, and each time I pull off the road for it, I almost feel like it’s cheating to get such a great view for free, without hiking to it!
BOTTOM LINE TO ALL THIS: It’s always a pleasure to visit “The Moose”, and this visit was made even more pleasurable by using a different approach, even if the approach was a bit “quirky”. And, even though the whack up Gorge Brook ravine has no real utilitarian purpose (such as being a short-cut, etc.), I found it enjoyable nonetheless. That has to count for something!
1HappyHiker
As sometimes happens with me, I start out to do one thing and end up doing another. Today I was going to go up either the abandoned Gorge Brook Slide Trail, or attempt to retrace the former route of the Gorge Brook Trail (before it was relocated to its present-day course). However, once I got to the decision point as to which old trail to try to follow, I changed my mind, and decided to do neither!
For whatever reason, on this particular day, I decided that I just wanted the freedom to roam. Following an old trail can be tedious with having to frequently “re-find” the old trail after working your way around a nasty patch of blowdowns, or whatever. Don’t get me wrong, this can actually be fun, but that wasn’t the fun I was up for on this particular day.
Ultimately, I decided to bushwhack straight up the ravine along the west bank of Gorge Brook and eventually intersect the Carriage Road at the northern end of the ravine. Admittedly, this is a rather quirky way to approach “The Moose”, and afterwards I’m thinking to myself: “I did that because??”
This bushwhack had no real utilitarian purpose, such as being a short-cut between two points, or a means to reach a trailless peak, etc. Perhaps, it might be classified more as a “boutique” or a “specialty” whack (or maybe just a “whacky whack”)!? Regardless, it served a useful purpose for me in that it was a different way (to say the least!) of approaching “The Moose”, and it broke the repetitiveness of using the same on-trail approaches.
The Journey:
This was a loop hike. For the ascent, the Gorge Brook Trail was taken for over a mile up to the point where the old Gorge Brook Trail leaves the present-day trail. From there, I began the bushwhack up the Gorge Brook ravine and intersected the Carriage Road about mid-way between South Peak and the summit of Moosilauke. The Carriage Road was then used as the final approach route to the summit. For the descent, the Gorge Brook Trail was taken all the way back to the trailhead.
By some “zigging & zagging” to avoid nasty stuff, I was able whack my way up the ravine through mostly open woods . . . uh well ALMOST! A little over a tenth of a mile from intersecting the Carriage Road, an “evil curtain” of spruce & other thick stuff was encountered. There was no “zigging & zagging” around it! Although it was still very doable, it wasn’t nearly as quick & pleasant as whacking in open woods.
So, despite the encounter with the “evil curtain”, I eventually made it to the Moosilauke summit. Using the combination of hiking on a trail + bushwhacking up the ravine, the ascent took just slightly longer than it usually takes me to reach the summit when using the Gorge Brook Trail exclusively. The entire loop took just a bit over 5.5 hours (which included a lunch on the summit).
Just as a side-note, while whacking up the ravine, I had hoped to visit the cascades/falls known as the Pleiades. I’m nearly certain that I saw them from a distance as I was “zigging & zagging”. However, I opted not to work my way over to them, thinking that this could be saved for some future adventure when more time is available to enjoy poking around them. (I think they will always be there?!)
Upon arriving at the summit of Moosilauke, there was a sizeable grouping of people, especially for mid-week. However, even during mid-week, if it’s a beautiful day, it seems that many folks find a way to visit the popular summits (as it should be)!
Even though we've all seen similar shots before, below are a few photos taken from (or near) the summit.
The photo below was taken from Route 118 on the way home from my Moosilauke adventure. It’s such a great viewpoint, and each time I pull off the road for it, I almost feel like it’s cheating to get such a great view for free, without hiking to it!
BOTTOM LINE TO ALL THIS: It’s always a pleasure to visit “The Moose”, and this visit was made even more pleasurable by using a different approach, even if the approach was a bit “quirky”. And, even though the whack up Gorge Brook ravine has no real utilitarian purpose (such as being a short-cut, etc.), I found it enjoyable nonetheless. That has to count for something!
1HappyHiker
Last edited:
