North from Elephant Mountain / South Arm Road

[bikehikeskifish]

Posted for a non-member. When I did Elephant, I went back to route 17 via 120. Has anybody gone north on South Arm from Elephant Mountain Road?

After Elephant, on your way back up to 16, did you go north on S Arm along the east shore of Richardson Lake and then along the south shore of Mooselookmeguntic or did you go back south on S Arm to pick up Rte 17 via 120? I didn’t know if S Arm is drivable north to work all the way back up to 17?

Tim

 

[Daniel Eagan]

When we did Elephant we were staying in Rangeley.

We returned north on South Arm Road until it hit Beemis Track. (We stopped first to swim in Mooselookmeguntic Lake.) We turned left (north) on Beemis Track until it joined Route 17 in South Rangeley.

Road was graded gravel almost all the way. Only two minimally confusing spots. There's a fork soon after you head north on South Arm; left leads down to a marina. And then Beemis Track is the only other possible turning point.

 

[marty]

Agree with Daniel Eagan, with a few corrections/clarifications:

1. The road past Elephant Mt. Road is paved to the Richardson Lake public boat launch. It then turns to dirt. The road is always passable and is usually well-maintained by the State, which owns most of the road. There was some active logging on the road and there was some work being done clearing ditches. These have chewed up the road a bit, but nothing bad.
2. The South Arm Road becomes Shelton's Trail (formerly Upper Dam Road), a bit past the second public boat launch you pass. The second is on Mooselookmeguntic Lake. There are lots of lakefront camps on the left on Shelton's Trail.
3. Agree strongly that you turn left on the Bemis Road at the end of Shelton's Trail (there is a sign for Shelton's Trail/Upper Dam Road) where you turn the left. This is Bemis Road (not Track). Stay on it right to Route 17, as Daniel describes. By the way, The Bemis Track (also sometimes called Bemis Road, too) is the right turn. That road is in rough shape.

I have a camp in this area, so these roads are home turf for me. Taking these roads is definitely faster than going back to Route 120.

Marty

 

[KRobi]

Needing to do East Kennebago, and Elephant, this post really was timely. We took Marty's directions in the opposite direction as we did EK first. From Rt 16 in Langstown we hit 17 and then turned onto Bemis (one of the best dirt roads I've been on). It was basically a straight shot. Never felt like we missed a turn or anything. When Bemis became Sheltons Trail and then South Arm it was not as good, but still more than passable. Rocks were marked with orange paint and there were a few depressions but we maintained the speed limit easily. The logging was not going on, on a Saturday afternoon, but you would want to be careful during the week. We reached the road into Elephant in about 70 minutes (47 miles). Google maps puts it (by way of the paved route) at 1:40 and 66 miles without the trip up South Arm to the road to Elephant. Much better way although probably not in the spring. Coincidently, we ran into the couple that Tim posted the original question for. They live only one town over from us here in Central NH. Thanks Tim for posting and Thanks Marty and Daniel for the info. Those rides are long enough.