BIGEarl
Well-known member
October 2, 2010: Waumbek and Cabot
Trails: Two Hikes…
Waumbek: Starr King
Cabot: York Pond Trail, Bunnell Notch Trail, Kilkenny Ridge Trail
Summits: Starr King, Waumbek, and Cabot
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
With a new month Sue and I have a new list of hike targets. Earlier in the week I sent Sue an email and made a suggestion for our Saturday hike. My suggested hike was Adams and Madison. Sue’s response “Is there a reason for the light day?”. She was serious. I went back to the list to see about other combinations and sent a few other suggestions with a little more distance, elevation, or both. Waumbek and Cabot combined came in at more of each. In addition to the hike time we had to plan for roughly eight hours of drive time in the course of the day. We had an early start to the day.
Maybe it was not being able to get real excited about hitting Waumbek early in the morning, maybe we were both just dragging a little, maybe we lost more time than expected on various stops while driving to Jefferson, and maybe it was something else. Whatever it was we started the hike to Waumbek a little later than planned. In the course of the day we were able to make up some of the lost time but still finished later than planned as well mainly due to the tough overall conditions.
Leaving Twin Mountain and headed for Jefferson we were in an area with a clear view to Waumbek and the Pliny Range. The summit, actually the whole of Pliny Range was hidden by a huge dark cloud. The general conditions weren’t bad but this one cloud formation was big and appeared unfriendly. When we arrived at the trailhead lot for Starr King Trail the first detail I noticed was the condition of the access road. From the final split in the road to the lot it appears the week’s rain did some damage. With care you can get in there with a car but beware – the road is a lot rougher than usual. One other vehicle was there when we arrived and the driver set off ahead of us. Eventually we managed to get ourselves focused on the hike, gathered our things, and set off for Waumbek.
Usually the Starr King Trail has a number of wet and muddy areas. In the first mile of trail we found sections where the trail was a running brook. I’m sure this was the normal condition everywhere. Along with the heavy rain, I read reports of high winds in the storms. This combination stripped much of the color from the trees and left everything covered in colorful, wet, slippery leaves. We carefully worked our way through the climb and managed to avoid the hazards that are hidden under the leaves – wet roots, wet rocks, and mud. I was pretty surprised with our progress. I felt great, had lot’s of energy, we stopped only a couple times on the initial climb to the summit of Starr King, and we were actually moving through the hike much faster than I expected.
We reached Starr King, got a couple quick pictures but the monster cloud still had control and there were no views at all. We kept moving and had a quick walk on to Waumbek. I think both of us managed to do a little dancing more than once when we stepped on slippery roots or other hazards but we stayed upright, and relatively clean. Sue started the day with a sore knee and one of the slips caused her to twist it and do additional harm. I was concerned about continuing but Sue insisted she was alright (usual story – Sue is always alright).
The final cruise to Waumbek was quick and we were soon at our first u-turn for the day. We got the summit pictures and re-traced our route to the trailhead. Considering the slippery trail conditions and Sue’s knee, our exit hike pace was a little relaxed but we still completed the hike in much less time than usual. We gained back some of our lost time.
Within a couple minutes we had our things packed, pulled out some refreshments to enjoy on the drive to the Berlin Fish Hatchery, and hit the road east. Fortunately, the roads were not clogged with leaf-peepers and we were able to make better time than planned. Again, we made up a little more lost time. Overall, the day is going well.
At the trailhead lot on York Pond Road the place was packed but I managed to locate an area of solid ground just off the entry road where I could pull the truck in to park. I added a quart of water to my reservoir and we were off. Across the road from the fish tanks the area at the start of York Pond Trail was also plugged with vehicles. There were definitely a lot of folks in the area.
The only real early obstacle is a stream crossing a short distance before the trail leaves the old logging road. The stream is running very high but roughly 150 feet upstream from the usual crossing are a couple blowdowns lying across the brook that work well as a bridge. We reached the point where the trail leaves the old logging road and started the climb. The lower part of Bunnell Notch Trail is nice. There is limited mud and the trail is solid with limited surface water. Roughly half way to Bunnell Notch and the junction with the Kilkenny Ridge Trail everything changed. We had mud everywhere, the trail surface was treacherous, and there were many small streams flowing across or along the trail. There were a couple choices; we could just charge through all of the mess and get really dirty, or, try to carefully work our way through this difficult section and try to stay clean. We decided clean was better, but paid a price in time.
From roughly a half mile before the junction with Kilkenny Ridge Trail all of the way through Bunnell Notch and on to the junction with Mt. Cabot Trail the conditions are terrible. Generally, the trail is a running brook, a huge mud pit, or an area of standing water with unknown water depth and mud depth underneath. Slowly we worked our way bouncing from one side of the trail to the other, and then back again, to stay on solid ground. We were moving slow but stayed clean all of the way through. There were no slips, falls, or steps into bottomless mud. Once we passed the Kilkenny Ridge – Mt. Cabot trails junction conditions improved. The final ~1000 feet in elevation to the summit went well.
Along the way we made a stop at Bunnell Rock to enjoy the afternoon views. The view to Terrace Mountain was interesting. It appeared the wind must have been at an elevation above ~3000 feet. Above this elevation the color is completely gone – stripped from the trees. Below and in the valleys, there’s plenty of entertainment left for the leaf-peepers to enjoy. We noticed this condition was common in many other areas that we could see.
After the brief stop we completed the final climb past Cabot Cabin where there was a group of four getting comfortable for the night, complete with campfire. On the way through the area we stopped to add a layer; it was getting cool and the wind had picked up. Finally, we completed the short walk to the Mt. Cabot summit and our usual pictures.
We reached our second u-turn for the day and set off on our exit hike. We knew two things for sure; the conditions were going to make the hike out much longer than initially expected, and we were going to need our headlights. We reached the Kilkenny Ridge – Mt. Cabot trail junction, the light was fading fast, and I suggested while we still has a little light and some dry ground to pull out our headlights. We stopped and prepared for the mess.
Hiking this route in daylight makes it easy to find short bypass routes to the mud and water hazards along the way. It’s a little more difficult with headlights. We took the time needed to pick our way through. Eventually, we had Bunnell Notch far behind us and we were back on relatively clear and dry trail approaching the old logging road. And, we were still clean. We hit the logging road with only one more obstacle to get past – the stream crossing. We headed for the trees and were able to once again cross without falling into the stream; still clean, still dry, and still happy. We completed the short remaining walk to the trailhead where we found many vehicles gone but still many remained.
It didn’t take long to get packed, cleaned up, changed into our traveling clothes, and on the road. On the drive south we made a couple quick stops, Sue made sure I didn’t take any naps, and we found our way back to the Exit 6 Park & Ride a little later than originally planned but still on the same day that we initially left.
It was a long day but a good one. Thanks Sue – I hope your knee recovers for next week. I know; it’s alright.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
Trails: Two Hikes…
Waumbek: Starr King
Cabot: York Pond Trail, Bunnell Notch Trail, Kilkenny Ridge Trail
Summits: Starr King, Waumbek, and Cabot
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
With a new month Sue and I have a new list of hike targets. Earlier in the week I sent Sue an email and made a suggestion for our Saturday hike. My suggested hike was Adams and Madison. Sue’s response “Is there a reason for the light day?”. She was serious. I went back to the list to see about other combinations and sent a few other suggestions with a little more distance, elevation, or both. Waumbek and Cabot combined came in at more of each. In addition to the hike time we had to plan for roughly eight hours of drive time in the course of the day. We had an early start to the day.
Maybe it was not being able to get real excited about hitting Waumbek early in the morning, maybe we were both just dragging a little, maybe we lost more time than expected on various stops while driving to Jefferson, and maybe it was something else. Whatever it was we started the hike to Waumbek a little later than planned. In the course of the day we were able to make up some of the lost time but still finished later than planned as well mainly due to the tough overall conditions.
Leaving Twin Mountain and headed for Jefferson we were in an area with a clear view to Waumbek and the Pliny Range. The summit, actually the whole of Pliny Range was hidden by a huge dark cloud. The general conditions weren’t bad but this one cloud formation was big and appeared unfriendly. When we arrived at the trailhead lot for Starr King Trail the first detail I noticed was the condition of the access road. From the final split in the road to the lot it appears the week’s rain did some damage. With care you can get in there with a car but beware – the road is a lot rougher than usual. One other vehicle was there when we arrived and the driver set off ahead of us. Eventually we managed to get ourselves focused on the hike, gathered our things, and set off for Waumbek.
Usually the Starr King Trail has a number of wet and muddy areas. In the first mile of trail we found sections where the trail was a running brook. I’m sure this was the normal condition everywhere. Along with the heavy rain, I read reports of high winds in the storms. This combination stripped much of the color from the trees and left everything covered in colorful, wet, slippery leaves. We carefully worked our way through the climb and managed to avoid the hazards that are hidden under the leaves – wet roots, wet rocks, and mud. I was pretty surprised with our progress. I felt great, had lot’s of energy, we stopped only a couple times on the initial climb to the summit of Starr King, and we were actually moving through the hike much faster than I expected.
We reached Starr King, got a couple quick pictures but the monster cloud still had control and there were no views at all. We kept moving and had a quick walk on to Waumbek. I think both of us managed to do a little dancing more than once when we stepped on slippery roots or other hazards but we stayed upright, and relatively clean. Sue started the day with a sore knee and one of the slips caused her to twist it and do additional harm. I was concerned about continuing but Sue insisted she was alright (usual story – Sue is always alright).
The final cruise to Waumbek was quick and we were soon at our first u-turn for the day. We got the summit pictures and re-traced our route to the trailhead. Considering the slippery trail conditions and Sue’s knee, our exit hike pace was a little relaxed but we still completed the hike in much less time than usual. We gained back some of our lost time.
Within a couple minutes we had our things packed, pulled out some refreshments to enjoy on the drive to the Berlin Fish Hatchery, and hit the road east. Fortunately, the roads were not clogged with leaf-peepers and we were able to make better time than planned. Again, we made up a little more lost time. Overall, the day is going well.
At the trailhead lot on York Pond Road the place was packed but I managed to locate an area of solid ground just off the entry road where I could pull the truck in to park. I added a quart of water to my reservoir and we were off. Across the road from the fish tanks the area at the start of York Pond Trail was also plugged with vehicles. There were definitely a lot of folks in the area.
The only real early obstacle is a stream crossing a short distance before the trail leaves the old logging road. The stream is running very high but roughly 150 feet upstream from the usual crossing are a couple blowdowns lying across the brook that work well as a bridge. We reached the point where the trail leaves the old logging road and started the climb. The lower part of Bunnell Notch Trail is nice. There is limited mud and the trail is solid with limited surface water. Roughly half way to Bunnell Notch and the junction with the Kilkenny Ridge Trail everything changed. We had mud everywhere, the trail surface was treacherous, and there were many small streams flowing across or along the trail. There were a couple choices; we could just charge through all of the mess and get really dirty, or, try to carefully work our way through this difficult section and try to stay clean. We decided clean was better, but paid a price in time.
From roughly a half mile before the junction with Kilkenny Ridge Trail all of the way through Bunnell Notch and on to the junction with Mt. Cabot Trail the conditions are terrible. Generally, the trail is a running brook, a huge mud pit, or an area of standing water with unknown water depth and mud depth underneath. Slowly we worked our way bouncing from one side of the trail to the other, and then back again, to stay on solid ground. We were moving slow but stayed clean all of the way through. There were no slips, falls, or steps into bottomless mud. Once we passed the Kilkenny Ridge – Mt. Cabot trails junction conditions improved. The final ~1000 feet in elevation to the summit went well.
Along the way we made a stop at Bunnell Rock to enjoy the afternoon views. The view to Terrace Mountain was interesting. It appeared the wind must have been at an elevation above ~3000 feet. Above this elevation the color is completely gone – stripped from the trees. Below and in the valleys, there’s plenty of entertainment left for the leaf-peepers to enjoy. We noticed this condition was common in many other areas that we could see.
After the brief stop we completed the final climb past Cabot Cabin where there was a group of four getting comfortable for the night, complete with campfire. On the way through the area we stopped to add a layer; it was getting cool and the wind had picked up. Finally, we completed the short walk to the Mt. Cabot summit and our usual pictures.
We reached our second u-turn for the day and set off on our exit hike. We knew two things for sure; the conditions were going to make the hike out much longer than initially expected, and we were going to need our headlights. We reached the Kilkenny Ridge – Mt. Cabot trail junction, the light was fading fast, and I suggested while we still has a little light and some dry ground to pull out our headlights. We stopped and prepared for the mess.
Hiking this route in daylight makes it easy to find short bypass routes to the mud and water hazards along the way. It’s a little more difficult with headlights. We took the time needed to pick our way through. Eventually, we had Bunnell Notch far behind us and we were back on relatively clear and dry trail approaching the old logging road. And, we were still clean. We hit the logging road with only one more obstacle to get past – the stream crossing. We headed for the trees and were able to once again cross without falling into the stream; still clean, still dry, and still happy. We completed the short remaining walk to the trailhead where we found many vehicles gone but still many remained.
It didn’t take long to get packed, cleaned up, changed into our traveling clothes, and on the road. On the drive south we made a couple quick stops, Sue made sure I didn’t take any naps, and we found our way back to the Exit 6 Park & Ride a little later than originally planned but still on the same day that we initially left.
It was a long day but a good one. Thanks Sue – I hope your knee recovers for next week. I know; it’s alright.
I’ve posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
Straight to the slideshow
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