N & S Weeks via York Pond and Kilkenny Ridge Trails - 8/23/08

[marty]

Trail Conditions: lower portion of York Pond trail has some wet sections and lots of grass and weeds on the trail, which got me soaked from the overnight dew. One stream crossing was challenging. Another required some concentration. Upper portion of York Pond and Kilkenny Ridge Trails in fine shape. The only thing of note was the number of blowdowns on Kilkenny, from just south of N. Weeks all the way to S. Weeks. All were able to be climbed over, under and around without difficulty. Many of these blowdowns have been around a while, as there are well defined paths around them.

Special Equipment Required: bug juice was very nice to have during the return. The black flies were nasty in a few spots.

Comments: I was not planning to hike this weekend, but a family member up in Sugar Hill, NH needed help moving. I was able to squeeze this hike in before helping her out. Views were very sparse and always through the trees. Save this one for a rainy or cloudy day. Good workout of 12.2 miles and 3,900 feet vertical, though, and interesting woods and streams. Did not see anyone during the hike, but ran into a cow, calf and bull moose on York Pond Road. Never saw a trio like this together In fact, I am going to start a separate thread on that topic. The Weeks peaks make 90 out of the 100 highest in New England.

Marty