IQuest
New member
Having the week off means that I can hike durring a weekday rather than the weekend. That means less traffic for the drive and less traffic on the trails. I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and head up to Mt Cabot. I had wanted to arrive at the trail head by 5 am to be on trail at sunrise but that would mean a 2:30 am departure. :twisted: Despite my best efforts, I left the house at 4:50 am. It's very hard for me to leave early if I'm not meeting anyone. I passed through the open gate at the fish hatchery at 7:20 and we had boots/paws on trail at 7:40 am.
The objectives for the day would include Terrace Mtn, Mt Cabot, the Cabot Spring Spur, The Horn, and the Unknown Pond Tentsite Spur.
We started up the York Pond Tr and soon passed the start of the Bunnell Notch Tr, crossed the old dam and began to ascend. There were no other cars in the lot so Marlie had free reign to charge ahead. About 2 miles into the hike she would discover the highlight of the day. She was up a head and I noticed her very interested in something amongst the hobble bush. Fearing the worst (such as improperly burried poop) I went a few feet off the trail to see what was so interesting. Then I discovered that she had made a new friend.
The little guy couldn't have weighed more than 25 pounds and was very awkward on it's legs. I didn't know where it's mother was so we didn't linger long and once we gave it some space it trotted off through the forest.
Continuing on we soon made it to the Kilkenny Ridge Tr and headed north, past the abandoned portion of York Pond Tr and began the climb up to South Terrace Mtn. There are some nice birch glades in this area and the woods looked very nice. We followed the short spur to the summit of the south peak where there were some restricted views of the Presis over The Weeks.
After about 5 minutes of not moving the bugs were "bugging" me so we continued on. We crossed over a mostly viewless Middle and North Terrace Mtn before dropping down to Bunnell Notch. Along the way I spotted what I thought was the Kilkenny Monster.
After reaching the Bunnell Notch jctn, it was the usual grind up Cabot. We took a quick peek out from Bunnell Rock then continued our march up to the Cabin. A quick break inside and signing of the log book and we were back on the trail. I had never noticed before, but you can see the Franconia Ridge and Mt Garfield from the cabin's porch. About .1 miles from the summit of Cabot there is a sorry excuse for a spur trail to a sorry excuse for a spring. Redlining puts you on some less than desirable trails, and this is one of them. There is a sign at the start and the trail is marked by ax blazes, but it is very tight, had several blowdowns and drops at least 100' of elevation. There were two small pockets of water along the spur above the spring but I didn't need water, just to lay down red ink, so I kept going until the spur petered out and I found several trees with ax blazes surrounding the spring.
Cabot Spring
After climbing back up to the Kilkeny Ridge Tr, we tagged the summit of Mt Cabot and continued north over The Bulge and took the spur up to The Horn. One thing that I have noticed over the years is the amount of wear that the trails have been taking and the Horn Spur is no ecxeption. My first visit here was over 10 years ago and the spur was slightly difficult to follow. Now, although not blazed it is very well worn and easy to follow. I have also found that the scramble up the summit ledge is best done from the west. At least if you have a dog.
Marlie on The Horn
After about 5 minutes the black flies found us so we continued on our way. We returned to the Kilkenny Ridge Tr the made our way to Unknown Pond and checked out the tentsite. From the back of the site, I think it was site #4 there was an excellent view of King Ravine and the Northern Presis.
I imagine this would be an excellent spot to watch while the sun set. The black flies had caught up to us again so we heaed off down the Unknown Pond Tr and returned to York Pond Rd and walked the .1 miles to my truck. The second amazing part of the day...We saw no one the entire trip!
The pics: https://plus.google.com/photos/117581678131843187857/albums/6025985580375605681
NETC: http://www.newenglandtrailconditions.com/nh/viewreport.php?entryid=17108
The objectives for the day would include Terrace Mtn, Mt Cabot, the Cabot Spring Spur, The Horn, and the Unknown Pond Tentsite Spur.
We started up the York Pond Tr and soon passed the start of the Bunnell Notch Tr, crossed the old dam and began to ascend. There were no other cars in the lot so Marlie had free reign to charge ahead. About 2 miles into the hike she would discover the highlight of the day. She was up a head and I noticed her very interested in something amongst the hobble bush. Fearing the worst (such as improperly burried poop) I went a few feet off the trail to see what was so interesting. Then I discovered that she had made a new friend.
The little guy couldn't have weighed more than 25 pounds and was very awkward on it's legs. I didn't know where it's mother was so we didn't linger long and once we gave it some space it trotted off through the forest.
Continuing on we soon made it to the Kilkenny Ridge Tr and headed north, past the abandoned portion of York Pond Tr and began the climb up to South Terrace Mtn. There are some nice birch glades in this area and the woods looked very nice. We followed the short spur to the summit of the south peak where there were some restricted views of the Presis over The Weeks.
After about 5 minutes of not moving the bugs were "bugging" me so we continued on. We crossed over a mostly viewless Middle and North Terrace Mtn before dropping down to Bunnell Notch. Along the way I spotted what I thought was the Kilkenny Monster.
After reaching the Bunnell Notch jctn, it was the usual grind up Cabot. We took a quick peek out from Bunnell Rock then continued our march up to the Cabin. A quick break inside and signing of the log book and we were back on the trail. I had never noticed before, but you can see the Franconia Ridge and Mt Garfield from the cabin's porch. About .1 miles from the summit of Cabot there is a sorry excuse for a spur trail to a sorry excuse for a spring. Redlining puts you on some less than desirable trails, and this is one of them. There is a sign at the start and the trail is marked by ax blazes, but it is very tight, had several blowdowns and drops at least 100' of elevation. There were two small pockets of water along the spur above the spring but I didn't need water, just to lay down red ink, so I kept going until the spur petered out and I found several trees with ax blazes surrounding the spring.
Cabot Spring
After climbing back up to the Kilkeny Ridge Tr, we tagged the summit of Mt Cabot and continued north over The Bulge and took the spur up to The Horn. One thing that I have noticed over the years is the amount of wear that the trails have been taking and the Horn Spur is no ecxeption. My first visit here was over 10 years ago and the spur was slightly difficult to follow. Now, although not blazed it is very well worn and easy to follow. I have also found that the scramble up the summit ledge is best done from the west. At least if you have a dog.
Marlie on The Horn
After about 5 minutes the black flies found us so we continued on our way. We returned to the Kilkenny Ridge Tr the made our way to Unknown Pond and checked out the tentsite. From the back of the site, I think it was site #4 there was an excellent view of King Ravine and the Northern Presis.
I imagine this would be an excellent spot to watch while the sun set. The black flies had caught up to us again so we heaed off down the Unknown Pond Tr and returned to York Pond Rd and walked the .1 miles to my truck. The second amazing part of the day...We saw no one the entire trip!
The pics: https://plus.google.com/photos/117581678131843187857/albums/6025985580375605681
NETC: http://www.newenglandtrailconditions.com/nh/viewreport.php?entryid=17108
