Tom Rankin
Well-known member
We started at 9:00 AM from Lost Clove Rd. The bridge on the direct route is out, so we had to take a small detour.
From this approach, you walk on an old road that goes up the side of the mountain at a medium-to-steep incline. After an hour, we came to the first lean-to. It's in very good shape. Good place to take a quick break and have a snack out of the intermittent rain.
Moving on, the trail levels out a little, and we came to the East Summit in about 10 minutes. There used to be a fire tower here and a cabin, but almost no trace is left of them now. There's a nice grassy area but it was still raining on and off, so we didn't stay long.
From here, it's a rolling walk along the summit ridge to the ski area. We passed several ski slopes (including Algonquin, Peekamoose, and Utsayantha!
) and another lean-to that is well kept. We saw a very friendly deer that followed us for a while, but it eventually took off.
After passing the summit lodge, you still have a little ways to go. When you come to a sign for Deer Run, the trail markers end. You can either go right or left. Left is on a well-mowed, gentle ski slope that heads directly to the West (and true) summit. Right stays on the road, and you can access the summit by walking straight up the mountain when you come to a lift. The sun threatened to come out a few times, but it never did. We saw Hiram's Knob off to the South briefly once, and a few patches of blue sky, but that was about it. We retraced our steps and met a group of 7 people with 2 very well behaved dogs at the East Summit. From here we made it down to the car, dropping 1800' in 40 minutes, not hurrrying, but just moving right along, down the old road.
Total walking, about 6 miles, with around 2000' of gain. Another CHH in the books!
From this approach, you walk on an old road that goes up the side of the mountain at a medium-to-steep incline. After an hour, we came to the first lean-to. It's in very good shape. Good place to take a quick break and have a snack out of the intermittent rain.
Moving on, the trail levels out a little, and we came to the East Summit in about 10 minutes. There used to be a fire tower here and a cabin, but almost no trace is left of them now. There's a nice grassy area but it was still raining on and off, so we didn't stay long.
From here, it's a rolling walk along the summit ridge to the ski area. We passed several ski slopes (including Algonquin, Peekamoose, and Utsayantha!
) and another lean-to that is well kept. We saw a very friendly deer that followed us for a while, but it eventually took off.After passing the summit lodge, you still have a little ways to go. When you come to a sign for Deer Run, the trail markers end. You can either go right or left. Left is on a well-mowed, gentle ski slope that heads directly to the West (and true) summit. Right stays on the road, and you can access the summit by walking straight up the mountain when you come to a lift. The sun threatened to come out a few times, but it never did. We saw Hiram's Knob off to the South briefly once, and a few patches of blue sky, but that was about it. We retraced our steps and met a group of 7 people with 2 very well behaved dogs at the East Summit. From here we made it down to the car, dropping 1800' in 40 minutes, not hurrrying, but just moving right along, down the old road.
Total walking, about 6 miles, with around 2000' of gain. Another CHH in the books!
