Fisher Cat
New member
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2007
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Two disclaimers before viewing the report. 1-I am not a photographer, these are taken so remembering isn't that hard. 2-Though a trail working volunteer,we are not members of any group or club. I do not hold to any policy. I belong to NH.
Saturday night saw us setting up camp. For the first time I got to meet a member of the forums-KDT, which was a very nice experience. Unfortunately we were unable to partake of the beer he brought at the time, but if one has to postpone anything, it might as well be beer consumption, at least you can look foward to it. People talk of bears at Moose Brook Campground (which in fact we saw)but its the racoons that are a real pain. We had 4 successive wave attacks at camp, the last one at 330am. Jake the Forester was in hot pursuit of one who stole our pancake mix, who before dropping it and hitting a tree,"evacuated"and Jake the Forester had to burn his socks upon his return. Now to hiking....
Sunday morning was spent hiking Mt. Moriah.Jake the Forester and I present. Ascent was 2.5 hours. Fine views in all directions, though Presi's in clouds. Moriah is unique, Carter-Moriah Trails allows you to witness highly visible transfers of vegetation zones. Most noticeable is one directly after Mt. Surprise box canyon, where one goes from a more alpine zone & ledge vegetation directly into deciduous forest. Blueberries abound on ledges. Cleared 2 blowdowns, one of which had fallen into a waterbar. Many waterbars at lower levels looked uniform and recently cleaned. Found out a rookie skills session was conducted here in late July. We saw 1 saw-whet owl, and believe it or not, 2 Great Gray owls. Also jumped a bear grazing in the raspberries. Though this was a joyhike, we always feel compelled to bring the basic removal tools.
Monday saw a quick hike to Peboamauk Falls. Moose tracks but no moose. Route directly down to Falls after Marked Birch seems hard to find, but travel to right, and from MB it is less than 10 minutes. Descent requires careful footing but is short. Water a bit cooler than Emerald Pool. Ledges hemming in Falls quite impressive. I have a feeling that in autumn this is a beautiful spot for photos.
Wednesday up 19 Mile Brook Trail to Carter Hut.Fisher Cat, B&D(Bound & Determined),Jake the Forester, Ringtail, and le femme magkneefique present. Delivered 6 pack of Corona to Hut crew as is customary. Not quite receptive as Crew at Zealand Falls Hut, but work crew working on new septic installation was appreciative. Lukewarm receptions will not deter us. Hut Crews work hard.Cloudy with temps in low 50's. Thunder heard while ascending Carter Dome.On & off showers. Rainproof gear was on & off as well. Last good view was Mt. Hight, though limited. Descent of Hight can be tricky. True descent is west of sheltered outlook which looks east to ME.Zeta Pass a beautiful area. Deserves its protection. Bootleg campsites in the area, however. A true boreal rainforest. On North Carter Trail it was revealed by le femme magkneefique that keys for her vehicle were locked inside our Thule back at 19 Mile lot. So Ringtail & I quickly went down to Imp lot and walked rt. 16 to 19 Mile to get our Subaru. (PA plate which reads "FROM NH")Started at 630am,Ringtail and I down by 445, rest at 515. This is quite a hike in reflection. We had done Zealand and the Bonds one day in July and I think I was impressed with the Carters. Though its mileage is shorter its a decent challenge. Counted at least 17 people in passing.
Thursday was Alpine Skills session with Alex D. from AMC. Rode van up to Alpine Garden & Huntington junction. Spent time deconstructing tourist cairns which are abundant at scenic pulloffs. Inside can be found trash & 5 dollar bills. Spent time with plant ID and found, edible bilberry and cranberry, mat & black spruce, dwarf birch, alpine goldenrod, even Indian poke,Highland rush, bigelow sedge,crinkled hairgrass,Alpine sweetgrass,boreal bentgrass, and low rattlesnake root. Picked up trash, including cans, wrappers ,and one dirty diaper. Rebuilt a cairn with a nice piece of upright quartz hemmed in on Alpine Garden. Jake the Forester built another one while Pam built a scree wall. Weather cool but comfy while working, can't wait to return. While cooling AMC van brakes noticed another tourist cairn jutting out on top of great view of Washington's stratifed layers so we jumped out and knocked it down and dispersed it. A sad reflection is that many of the plants we saw still show signs of being trampled.
Friday spent trailwork time on our Osseo Trail. Big project was removing big spruce blowdown above the ladders. Made it in 2.5 hours. Jake the Forester was behind us blazing and made it into the switchback areas. Five more birch blowdowns in switchbacks we also removed. The growth of birches in this area are showing signs of age and we expect more will come down easily in future storms. Perfect weather, temps great. October trip will consist of waterbar cleanout before onset of winter & spring. Walk Osseo sometime and let us know what you think. We don't brush or blaze too aggressively as the right side of the trail is designated wilderness. Saw 2 moose, one in Randolph, the other in Jefferson near our old log cabin.
Thus concluded,regretfully, another week in NH. The next one can't come soon enough. I apologize for not getting this done sooner, its been a bear since getting back.
Links to pics is below.
thanks for looking in!
http://community.webshots.com/user/NHFisherCat
Saturday night saw us setting up camp. For the first time I got to meet a member of the forums-KDT, which was a very nice experience. Unfortunately we were unable to partake of the beer he brought at the time, but if one has to postpone anything, it might as well be beer consumption, at least you can look foward to it. People talk of bears at Moose Brook Campground (which in fact we saw)but its the racoons that are a real pain. We had 4 successive wave attacks at camp, the last one at 330am. Jake the Forester was in hot pursuit of one who stole our pancake mix, who before dropping it and hitting a tree,"evacuated"and Jake the Forester had to burn his socks upon his return. Now to hiking....
Sunday morning was spent hiking Mt. Moriah.Jake the Forester and I present. Ascent was 2.5 hours. Fine views in all directions, though Presi's in clouds. Moriah is unique, Carter-Moriah Trails allows you to witness highly visible transfers of vegetation zones. Most noticeable is one directly after Mt. Surprise box canyon, where one goes from a more alpine zone & ledge vegetation directly into deciduous forest. Blueberries abound on ledges. Cleared 2 blowdowns, one of which had fallen into a waterbar. Many waterbars at lower levels looked uniform and recently cleaned. Found out a rookie skills session was conducted here in late July. We saw 1 saw-whet owl, and believe it or not, 2 Great Gray owls. Also jumped a bear grazing in the raspberries. Though this was a joyhike, we always feel compelled to bring the basic removal tools.
Monday saw a quick hike to Peboamauk Falls. Moose tracks but no moose. Route directly down to Falls after Marked Birch seems hard to find, but travel to right, and from MB it is less than 10 minutes. Descent requires careful footing but is short. Water a bit cooler than Emerald Pool. Ledges hemming in Falls quite impressive. I have a feeling that in autumn this is a beautiful spot for photos.
Wednesday up 19 Mile Brook Trail to Carter Hut.Fisher Cat, B&D(Bound & Determined),Jake the Forester, Ringtail, and le femme magkneefique present. Delivered 6 pack of Corona to Hut crew as is customary. Not quite receptive as Crew at Zealand Falls Hut, but work crew working on new septic installation was appreciative. Lukewarm receptions will not deter us. Hut Crews work hard.Cloudy with temps in low 50's. Thunder heard while ascending Carter Dome.On & off showers. Rainproof gear was on & off as well. Last good view was Mt. Hight, though limited. Descent of Hight can be tricky. True descent is west of sheltered outlook which looks east to ME.Zeta Pass a beautiful area. Deserves its protection. Bootleg campsites in the area, however. A true boreal rainforest. On North Carter Trail it was revealed by le femme magkneefique that keys for her vehicle were locked inside our Thule back at 19 Mile lot. So Ringtail & I quickly went down to Imp lot and walked rt. 16 to 19 Mile to get our Subaru. (PA plate which reads "FROM NH")Started at 630am,Ringtail and I down by 445, rest at 515. This is quite a hike in reflection. We had done Zealand and the Bonds one day in July and I think I was impressed with the Carters. Though its mileage is shorter its a decent challenge. Counted at least 17 people in passing.
Thursday was Alpine Skills session with Alex D. from AMC. Rode van up to Alpine Garden & Huntington junction. Spent time deconstructing tourist cairns which are abundant at scenic pulloffs. Inside can be found trash & 5 dollar bills. Spent time with plant ID and found, edible bilberry and cranberry, mat & black spruce, dwarf birch, alpine goldenrod, even Indian poke,Highland rush, bigelow sedge,crinkled hairgrass,Alpine sweetgrass,boreal bentgrass, and low rattlesnake root. Picked up trash, including cans, wrappers ,and one dirty diaper. Rebuilt a cairn with a nice piece of upright quartz hemmed in on Alpine Garden. Jake the Forester built another one while Pam built a scree wall. Weather cool but comfy while working, can't wait to return. While cooling AMC van brakes noticed another tourist cairn jutting out on top of great view of Washington's stratifed layers so we jumped out and knocked it down and dispersed it. A sad reflection is that many of the plants we saw still show signs of being trampled.
Friday spent trailwork time on our Osseo Trail. Big project was removing big spruce blowdown above the ladders. Made it in 2.5 hours. Jake the Forester was behind us blazing and made it into the switchback areas. Five more birch blowdowns in switchbacks we also removed. The growth of birches in this area are showing signs of age and we expect more will come down easily in future storms. Perfect weather, temps great. October trip will consist of waterbar cleanout before onset of winter & spring. Walk Osseo sometime and let us know what you think. We don't brush or blaze too aggressively as the right side of the trail is designated wilderness. Saw 2 moose, one in Randolph, the other in Jefferson near our old log cabin.
Thus concluded,regretfully, another week in NH. The next one can't come soon enough. I apologize for not getting this done sooner, its been a bear since getting back.
Links to pics is below.
thanks for looking in!
http://community.webshots.com/user/NHFisherCat
