Five Have Fun on Cabot...

[coldfeet]

I'm in! As long as i set up babysitters and playdates for my youngest child, (as per my wife)..It's cold and the snow is on the way here in NYC..I'm off to a soccer tournament with the little one, her team won last week also. I cleaned up and have my snowshoes ready and her little plastic ones for tomorrow..By the way, I didn't ask but i think i was supposed to move the clip in the msr snowshoes in the up position while going up. Is that true?

Hey Skimom, how did you son do in racing?

 

[SherpaKroto]

Campfires are allowed at Unknown Pond, and it is a beautiful spot to camp. One suggestion - why not explore a different part of the area? On day one, spot cars at York Pond and then drive over to South Pond, hiking the Kilkenny Ridge trail to Unknown Pond over Roger's Ledge (drop pack and take in the Devil's Hopyard on the way in, about a 2 mile very cool side trip - I've never had the chance to get there!). Camp at Unknown Pond (nice sites/privy). Day 2: since the "men" wimped out (haha) and didn't climb the Horn, head up there returning to Unknown Pond. Then head out to your spotted cars.

Since that is one section of the Kilkenny Ridge trail that I've not done, I could be easily coaxed to join your "Party of 5" (if you'll have me).

 

[HikerBob]

Sherp - great suggestion and of course you would be most welcome!

Looks like we have a mini-reunion (can't get too big a crowd) in the shaping

If interest grows beyond ethical group size perhaps we could arrange for different groups to take different approaches. One from the north from South Pond, one from the south via Waumbek and perhaps another in from York Pond. We could all pull together for a meet at the cabin on Cabot or perhaps some more secluded spot if there is a danger of swamping other cabin users.

Of course, this is a long way off and I hope to hike with everyone again between now and then. I'll keep this bubbling on the back burner and start coordinating things as the time approaches.

Everyone stay safe in the big storm this weekend.

Bob

 

[SherpaKroto]

HikerBob: I've stayed at Unknown Pond. A sweet little spot if ever there was one with good legal campsites. Lots of moose in the area also. Foliage season would be incredible.

 

[donna]

weeks hike this winter

TrampaAl, count me in for the Weeks hike this winter...that's one I can use on my winter list.

Thanks.

 

[MichaelJ]

I'll stay at Unknown Pond anytime - count me in if group size permits!

 

[Stan]

I'm interested. Would you all consider an end to end from Rt. 2 to Stark with car spots?

 

[Tramper Al]

I'm interested. Would you all consider an end to end from Rt. 2 to Stark with car spots?

That I would do. Time to start the Cohos Trail.

 

[RoySwkr]

Sounds like a great adventure, sorry I missed it!

After what seemed an age we popped out of the woods onto an old logging road where the only sign was one pointing to where we had exited naming it the Bunnell Noth Trail.

This was where we collectively made our first navigation error. Everybodys instinct said "Turn right" However, the map indicated that after several stream crossings we would hit a logging road where we would make a left turn.

You would have needed a very special map as where the trail comes out on the road apparently changed last summer http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=4482
and this change probably won't appear on hiking maps for a couple years anyway

Next time ... no loop ...

Another convert to Ellozy's rules of safe winter hiking? Now for my question: when you reached the summit of Cabot, you could have gone back the same way. Did you not think of it, think going on would be faster, or took what you thought was a tougher route for the adventure?

 

[HikerBob]

Roy - Neither the AMC map nor the one I created using Topo! (not as up to date by far but some things don't change) indicated the presence of the wide logging road we hit. After we realized our mistake and went the other way I kept thinking "A road *this* wide should be on the map."

As to turning around at Cabot. I feel we made the right decision on several counts. Cabot was over the half way mark both on distance and elevation gain. Apart from the rise back up to the notch after dropping off Cabot it is pretty much all downhill. We had also experienced far less snow on the hike up towards Unknown Pond and expected, and indeed had, less snow on the way out via Bunnell Notch. Those of us without snowshoes had pretty much post holed from the north end of the pond all the way to Cabot. To retrace that route would have been pure torture.

I would certainly have never attempted the loop solo but the group we had provided enough pooled resources to cope with most circumstances. If we had taken a little more time to analyse all the information when we hit that road we would most certainly have made the correct decision to turn right and the trip would have been navigation error free.

Bob