RoySwkr
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After Erik Schlimmer visited all of the approximately 120 named points of the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness in New York and Marty Basch suggested that somebody might want to do a similar thing in the White Mountains, I decided to figure out how many named features were in the Pemigewasset Wilderness in New Hampshire. This was not an easy task for two reasons. First, although I could use the U. S. Board of Geographic Names website [ http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/ ] to find official feature names it did not indicate which ones were within Wilderness - the best I could do was to get the list for selected USGS quads and figure out myself whether they were in Wilderness. Secondly, the White Mountain National Forest did not answer my query as to the official Wilderness boundaries and what maps I found were often contradictory, so I had to make some assumptions as to the boundaries.
It is well-known that the Appalachian Trail and the summits it crosses on the West and North edges are outside Wilderness. Similarly the Wilderness boundary does not cross over the summit of Mount Carrigain but lies a little way down the Desolation Trail, and I have never seen any Wilderness markers on the Hancocks so it is reasonable to assume that the boundary also lies slightly down from the divide on the East and South. This greatly reduces the number of Summit features in the Wilderness.
Some features are point features such as Summit and Locale and it is relatively easy to decide that a visit means that you go to that point. Others are linear features like Stream, and an argument could be made that you should follow their entire length within Wilderness in waders or a kayak. But you would need some method to determine the upstream limit, and it would make the whole project orders of magnitude easier to allow just standing on the bank anywhere within Wilderness. Lastly there are area features such as Lake where you can bring skates or a float tube and cover the whole surface or just stand at one point on the shore.
I have deliberately excluded Range and Ridge features where the associated summit is outside Wilderness. One could say that the Franconia Range includes not just the summits but the lower slopes and hence nearly half is in Wilderness, to which I would reply that if someone said they hiked the Franconia Range that would suggest they hiked the Franconia Ridge Trail not the Lincoln Brook Trail.
Anyway my suggested list of 49 points is below, it is both much shorter and much less interesting than the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness. Due to the small number of bushwhacks it is quite possible somebody has been to them all, and a trail runner starting from scratch can probably tag them all in a couple of days. I am missing only a couple myself which I will pick up as I am nearby but don't expect to do that this year. I might as well say you should feel free to argue about inclusions/exclusions as people will anyway - there are some real experts here
POINT FEATURES
Name [# = off trail] ID Type Lat/Long USGS Quad
Thirteen Falls 873046 Falls 440953N 0713544W South Twin Mountain
Thoreau Falls 872805 Falls 441005N 0712833W Crawford Notch
Camp 16 Shelter 871604 Locale 440642N 0713222W Mount Osceola
Camp 9 Shelter 871605 Locale 440628N 0713427W Mount Osceola
Camp Nine Shelter 1916453 Locale 440628N 0713423W Mount Osceola
Thirteen Falls Campsite 1916856 Locale 440954N 0713542W South Twin Mountain
Stillwater 872738 Populated Place 440707N 0712810W Mount Carrigain
According to the database, Camp 9 and Camp Nine are not the same place but two different places 20 feet apart. Stillwater is not that densely populated, it is .2 downstream from Stillwater Jct and shown incorrectly on MyTopo. Somehow Desolation missed the list.
Mount Bond-4685 871556 Summit 440910N 0713152W South Twin Mountain
#Owls Head-3629 872449 Summit 440752N 0713559W South Twin Mountain
The Cliffs-4245 872785 Summit 440829N 0713225W South Twin Mountain
The number of official named summits is reduced by the boundary being below the divide. Note that the official Owls Head is the 3629 bump not the 4000-footer. West Bond is not an official name.
LINEAR FEATURES
Name [# = off trail] ID Type Lat/Long USGS Quad
Anderson Brook 871395 Stream 440721N 0712641W Mount Carrigain
#Birch Island Brook 871512 Stream 440557N 0713433W Mount Osceola
Black Brook 871518 Stream 440638N 0713215W Mount Osceola
Carrigain Branch 871622 Stream 440707N 0712810W Mount Carrigain
Cedar Brook 871648 Stream 440623N 0713327W Mount Osceola
Crystal Brook 871750 Stream 440654N 0712927W Mount Carrigain
East Branch Pemigewasset River 871826 Stream 440138N 0714056W Lincoln
Franconia Branch 871903 Stream 440603N 0713425W Mount Osceola
Hellgate Brook 872032 Stream 440809N 0713451W South Twin Mountain
#Jumping Brook 872118 Stream 440850N 0712942W Crawford Notch
Lincoln Brook 872173 Stream 440703N 0713456W Mount Osceola
Norcross Brook 872384 Stream 440717N 0712727W Mount Carrigain
North Fork East Branch Pemi R 872398 Stream 440708N 0713023W Mount Osceola
Notch Brook 872415 Stream 440717N 0712727W Mount Carrigain
Redrock Brook 872557 Stream 440850N 0713501W South Twin Mountain
Shoal Pond Brook 872659 Stream 440716N 0712812W Mount Carrigain
Twin Brook 872840 Stream 440938N 0713515W South Twin Mountain
Whitewall Brook 872925 Stream 441000N 0712844W Crawford Notch
Streams are the most common named feature in the Pemi, but most are crossed or followed by trails. Birch Island Brook is crossed by a trail outside Wilderness, to reach it within Wilderness requires a bushwhack.
Bondcliff Trail 871557 Trail 440800N 0713128W South Twin Mountain
Carrigain Notch Trail 871625 Trail 440531N 0712504W Mount Carrigain
Ceder Brook Trail 871650 Trail 440546N 0713203W Mount Osceola
Desolation Trail 871781 Trail 440604N 0712724W Mount Carrigain
Franconia Brook Trail 871904 Trail 440821N 0713446W South Twin Mountain
Lincoln Brook Trail 872174 Trail 440825N 0713655W South Twin Mountain
Nancy Brook Trail 873130 Trail 440656N 0712213W Bartlett
Shoal Pond Trail 872660 Trail 440857N 0712746W Crawford Notch
Stillwater By-Pass 872739 Trail 440750N 0712725W Crawford Notch
Thoreau Falls Trail 872806 Trail 440929N 0712920W Crawford Notch
Wilderness Trail 872944 Trail 440441N 0713459W Mount Osceola
Zeacliff Trail 873015 Trail 441044N 0712917W Crawford Notch
For some reason Mr. Schlimmer didn't count trails although he did lean-tos. Some trail names here vary slightly from the AMC White Mountain Guide, and the East Side Trail, Twin Brook Trail, and West Bond Spur aren't in the BGN database. Trail-baggers might consider it reasonable to hike the full length of all trails instead of just reaching one point, but the joker here is Stillwater By-Pass which may not have been cleared since the 1938 hurricane and may be tough to follow.
AREA FEATURES
Name [# = off trail] ID Type Lat/Long USGS Quad
#Town of Bethlehem 873546 Civil 441525N 0713506W Twin Mountain
Town of Franconia 873599 Civil 440939N 0713931W Franconia
Town of Lincoln 873646 Civil 440537N 0713438W Mount Osceola
Grafton County 873178 Civil 435700N 0714758W Mount Kineo
White Mountain National Forest 1851862 Forest 440800N 0712258W Crawford Notch
Pemigewasset Wilderness 2035247 Reserve 440742N 0713154W South Twin Mountain
One might wish to exclude political area definitions such as White Mountain National Forest [Forest] and Pemigewasset Wilderness [Reserve] as well as Civil divisions such as Grafton County, Town of Bethlehem, Town of Franconia, and Town of Lincoln. (State of New Hampshire and United States of America are not listed on these quads.) Most of these are gimmes anyway except for Town of Bethlehem which has only two small rarely-visited areas within Wilderness.
#Carrigain Pond 871627 Lake 440513N 0712739W Mount Carrigain
Norcross Pond 872385 Lake 440658N 0712424W Mount Carrigain
Shoal Pond 872658 Lake 440952N 0712726W Crawford Notch
Retrieve feature with ID=nnnnnnn with
http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:nnnnnnn
It is well-known that the Appalachian Trail and the summits it crosses on the West and North edges are outside Wilderness. Similarly the Wilderness boundary does not cross over the summit of Mount Carrigain but lies a little way down the Desolation Trail, and I have never seen any Wilderness markers on the Hancocks so it is reasonable to assume that the boundary also lies slightly down from the divide on the East and South. This greatly reduces the number of Summit features in the Wilderness.
Some features are point features such as Summit and Locale and it is relatively easy to decide that a visit means that you go to that point. Others are linear features like Stream, and an argument could be made that you should follow their entire length within Wilderness in waders or a kayak. But you would need some method to determine the upstream limit, and it would make the whole project orders of magnitude easier to allow just standing on the bank anywhere within Wilderness. Lastly there are area features such as Lake where you can bring skates or a float tube and cover the whole surface or just stand at one point on the shore.
I have deliberately excluded Range and Ridge features where the associated summit is outside Wilderness. One could say that the Franconia Range includes not just the summits but the lower slopes and hence nearly half is in Wilderness, to which I would reply that if someone said they hiked the Franconia Range that would suggest they hiked the Franconia Ridge Trail not the Lincoln Brook Trail.
Anyway my suggested list of 49 points is below, it is both much shorter and much less interesting than the Pharaoh Lake Wilderness. Due to the small number of bushwhacks it is quite possible somebody has been to them all, and a trail runner starting from scratch can probably tag them all in a couple of days. I am missing only a couple myself which I will pick up as I am nearby but don't expect to do that this year. I might as well say you should feel free to argue about inclusions/exclusions as people will anyway - there are some real experts here
POINT FEATURES
Name [# = off trail] ID Type Lat/Long USGS Quad
Thirteen Falls 873046 Falls 440953N 0713544W South Twin Mountain
Thoreau Falls 872805 Falls 441005N 0712833W Crawford Notch
Camp 16 Shelter 871604 Locale 440642N 0713222W Mount Osceola
Camp 9 Shelter 871605 Locale 440628N 0713427W Mount Osceola
Camp Nine Shelter 1916453 Locale 440628N 0713423W Mount Osceola
Thirteen Falls Campsite 1916856 Locale 440954N 0713542W South Twin Mountain
Stillwater 872738 Populated Place 440707N 0712810W Mount Carrigain
According to the database, Camp 9 and Camp Nine are not the same place but two different places 20 feet apart. Stillwater is not that densely populated, it is .2 downstream from Stillwater Jct and shown incorrectly on MyTopo. Somehow Desolation missed the list.
Mount Bond-4685 871556 Summit 440910N 0713152W South Twin Mountain
#Owls Head-3629 872449 Summit 440752N 0713559W South Twin Mountain
The Cliffs-4245 872785 Summit 440829N 0713225W South Twin Mountain
The number of official named summits is reduced by the boundary being below the divide. Note that the official Owls Head is the 3629 bump not the 4000-footer. West Bond is not an official name.
LINEAR FEATURES
Name [# = off trail] ID Type Lat/Long USGS Quad
Anderson Brook 871395 Stream 440721N 0712641W Mount Carrigain
#Birch Island Brook 871512 Stream 440557N 0713433W Mount Osceola
Black Brook 871518 Stream 440638N 0713215W Mount Osceola
Carrigain Branch 871622 Stream 440707N 0712810W Mount Carrigain
Cedar Brook 871648 Stream 440623N 0713327W Mount Osceola
Crystal Brook 871750 Stream 440654N 0712927W Mount Carrigain
East Branch Pemigewasset River 871826 Stream 440138N 0714056W Lincoln
Franconia Branch 871903 Stream 440603N 0713425W Mount Osceola
Hellgate Brook 872032 Stream 440809N 0713451W South Twin Mountain
#Jumping Brook 872118 Stream 440850N 0712942W Crawford Notch
Lincoln Brook 872173 Stream 440703N 0713456W Mount Osceola
Norcross Brook 872384 Stream 440717N 0712727W Mount Carrigain
North Fork East Branch Pemi R 872398 Stream 440708N 0713023W Mount Osceola
Notch Brook 872415 Stream 440717N 0712727W Mount Carrigain
Redrock Brook 872557 Stream 440850N 0713501W South Twin Mountain
Shoal Pond Brook 872659 Stream 440716N 0712812W Mount Carrigain
Twin Brook 872840 Stream 440938N 0713515W South Twin Mountain
Whitewall Brook 872925 Stream 441000N 0712844W Crawford Notch
Streams are the most common named feature in the Pemi, but most are crossed or followed by trails. Birch Island Brook is crossed by a trail outside Wilderness, to reach it within Wilderness requires a bushwhack.
Bondcliff Trail 871557 Trail 440800N 0713128W South Twin Mountain
Carrigain Notch Trail 871625 Trail 440531N 0712504W Mount Carrigain
Ceder Brook Trail 871650 Trail 440546N 0713203W Mount Osceola
Desolation Trail 871781 Trail 440604N 0712724W Mount Carrigain
Franconia Brook Trail 871904 Trail 440821N 0713446W South Twin Mountain
Lincoln Brook Trail 872174 Trail 440825N 0713655W South Twin Mountain
Nancy Brook Trail 873130 Trail 440656N 0712213W Bartlett
Shoal Pond Trail 872660 Trail 440857N 0712746W Crawford Notch
Stillwater By-Pass 872739 Trail 440750N 0712725W Crawford Notch
Thoreau Falls Trail 872806 Trail 440929N 0712920W Crawford Notch
Wilderness Trail 872944 Trail 440441N 0713459W Mount Osceola
Zeacliff Trail 873015 Trail 441044N 0712917W Crawford Notch
For some reason Mr. Schlimmer didn't count trails although he did lean-tos. Some trail names here vary slightly from the AMC White Mountain Guide, and the East Side Trail, Twin Brook Trail, and West Bond Spur aren't in the BGN database. Trail-baggers might consider it reasonable to hike the full length of all trails instead of just reaching one point, but the joker here is Stillwater By-Pass which may not have been cleared since the 1938 hurricane and may be tough to follow.
AREA FEATURES
Name [# = off trail] ID Type Lat/Long USGS Quad
#Town of Bethlehem 873546 Civil 441525N 0713506W Twin Mountain
Town of Franconia 873599 Civil 440939N 0713931W Franconia
Town of Lincoln 873646 Civil 440537N 0713438W Mount Osceola
Grafton County 873178 Civil 435700N 0714758W Mount Kineo
White Mountain National Forest 1851862 Forest 440800N 0712258W Crawford Notch
Pemigewasset Wilderness 2035247 Reserve 440742N 0713154W South Twin Mountain
One might wish to exclude political area definitions such as White Mountain National Forest [Forest] and Pemigewasset Wilderness [Reserve] as well as Civil divisions such as Grafton County, Town of Bethlehem, Town of Franconia, and Town of Lincoln. (State of New Hampshire and United States of America are not listed on these quads.) Most of these are gimmes anyway except for Town of Bethlehem which has only two small rarely-visited areas within Wilderness.
#Carrigain Pond 871627 Lake 440513N 0712739W Mount Carrigain
Norcross Pond 872385 Lake 440658N 0712424W Mount Carrigain
Shoal Pond 872658 Lake 440952N 0712726W Crawford Notch
Retrieve feature with ID=nnnnnnn with
http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:nnnnnnn
