Mt. Flume bushwhack from FVC

[AndyF]

It seems like a bushwhack from the Flume Visitor Center could be done that would save about 1.2 miles each way on a hike to Mt. Flume.
From the FVC you could follow the Flume Path to Rim Path to the Ridge Path. From there the bushwhack would start. It would follow the bank of Flume Brook to where it meets the Flume Slide Trail 1.9 miles from where it starts off of the Liberty Brook Trail.
To get to this point by Whitehouse/Liberty Brook/Flume Slide is about 3.3 miles. By the bushwhack I estimate 2.1 miles. Then it is 1.5 mile to summit of Mt. Flume. That is 9.6 miles round trip verses 7.2 miles round trip. Seems a worthwhile bushwhack. So has anyone else had the same idea and has anyone done this? If so what was it like? Was it in winter or some other season?

I can see from old AMC map that there was a trail that followed the south bank of Flume Brook and crossed to the north bank just south of this same point. This is the original route of the Flume Slide Trail until 1972. The original route of the Liberty Springs Trail branched off of here.

Another alternate route would be to find and follow the original path of the Liberty Springs Trail which left the original path of the Flume Slide Trail to where it joins the current path of the Flume Slide Trail.

 

[DougPaul]

Some friends trail to follow the old FST from the current trail down to the Flume several years after the changes. IIRC, they reported it was difficult to follow. Don't recall the time of year.

Recent related thread: http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=26528

Doug

 

[peakbagger]

Several years ago we bushwhacked out after going down flume slide in the winter. It was open hardwoods and we came out close to the bridge over the gorge.

 

[RoySwkr]

I have done this bushwhack several times in both directions (including Liberty Spring variation), as noted there have been definite attempts to obscure the former trail so it should be considered a bushwhack. It's OK for explorers but most people will find it faster to go by the trail.

 

[bcskier]

It's quite easy

On a Flume to Liberty circuit about three winters ago we did the bushwack and it saved time and was fairly straightforward. Our jumping off point was the bus shelter. Here is an excerpt from the t.r. I wrote then:

"We reached the Top O’ Gorge shelter. Having never been to the F.G. in the summer I can only surmise that this shelter is a bus stop for folks whose constitutions are not adequate to make a completely self-propelled round trip and must wait for a shuttle to return them to the visitor’s center. Its construction certainly suggests that use. We used it to temporarily rest and hydrate before launching off in an easterly direction through the woods.

I wasn’t sure how thick the woods would be, but we were at a fairly low elevation and so my supposition that it would be a walk through hardwood forest fortunately proved correct. I counted paces to help ensure against missing the Flume Slide Trail and was pretty close to my estimate of .75 mi. when we found it, blue blazes and all."

Our return route was off of Liberty Spring trail at an obvious dogleg. The bearing that I followed deposited us back at our starting point at the shelter without any noticeble thrashing, although it's a longer walk from that point back.

I didn't make any attempt at finding the old trail. It didn't seem obvious and was much easier to follow a compass bearing.