Success Pond Road Berlin side

[Lefty E]

In case anyone has the question about Success Pond Road, in Berlin, leading to the Mahoosucs, it was gated yesterday April 16, 2019..will refresh when it reopens, usually around May 23rd (could be earlier too)..Lefty E

 

[Lefty E]

Update sorry I was a day late but Success Pond Road Berlin side is open, do not know how beat up it is (usually rough!!); Nash Stream Road in Stark open today; Mill Brook Road in Stark open to backside of Unknown Pond, the Horn, Bulge and Cabot..hike safe

 

[Kimball]

@Lefty E,
I added these three roads to TrailsNH.
I guessed as best as I could on the gates locations. Can you tell me if they are pinned to the correct spots?

https://trailsnh.com/reports/Forest-Roads-Gates.php?road=success-pond-road#OPEN
https://trailsnh.com/reports/Forest-Roads-Gates.php?road=nash-stream-road#OPEN
https://trailsnh.com/reports/Forest-Roads-Gates.php?road=mill-brook-road-stark-nh-#OPEN


If you and other hikers on VFTT could help me keep this gate status up-to-date, that'd be great.

 

[Grey J]

Does anyone have a more detailed status update on the condition of Success Pond Rd from Berlin to the Success Trail trailhead? I probably won't get there till August but I'm just wondering how bad it is and also what to expect at the trailhead. Mt Success (+ crash site) is one of my goals for 2019. I do have a high clearance vehicle.

 

[Lefty E]

The first mile is pretty rough, going is slow..2nd mile also a little rough...around the 3 mile mark it improves, but of course can be rough in spots..you will be fine with your high clearance vehicle...things could change from now to August but generally it stays the same....limited parking at the Success trail head, as a washout occurred so parking is on the road itself and not up a few tenths of a mile in the field before the trail goes into the woods..have a good hike...

 

[Grey J]

Thanks Lefty. About what I expected based on what I've read last year. I'm not worried about my vehicle, I'm more concerned with time and speed. It's around 5.5 miles so if you can only drive around 5 mph it's going to take an hour just to get from Berlin to the trailhead. If you can go 10 mph, that gets you there in a half hour. What would you project as an average safe speed or approximate time?

I probably have an hour to an hour and a quarter drive from the cabin to Berlin and I'm trying gauge total drive time to the trailhead. Also, would you say there are 3 parking spots on the road near the trailhead? More? I know the Success Trail is not a popular trailhead because of this rugged road, but I will be there on a Saturday in August so I'd want to get there early to make sure I have a safe parking place. Thanks again. I appreciate your first-hand knowledge.

 

[Lefty E]

You are welcome! I think you should be able to get there in about 1/2 hour and there are a few parking spots..would recommend getting there early..a short distance before the trail there would be some more parking, on like a little turnout and another logging road goes off to the left...hope this helps!!

 

[Grey J]

Yes, very helpful on both counts. Last question if you're still with me; is there a sign or marker for the trail or will I have to guess the spot based on the mileage and your description?

 

[Grey J]

Success at last! I finally got there today and hiked the Success Trail and Mahoosuc Trail to the summit. I had planned this hike for last Saturday with my buddy but we paid too much attention to the forecast (early PM thunderstorms that never developed) and scaled it back to do Welch and Dickey which surprisingly neither one of us had ever done.

Success Pond Rd is pretty much as Lefty described it. The first mile is the worst but its mostly exposed rocks that are pretty easy to see. You have to go slowly through there. After that its more potholes and washouts to watch out for but there are also .25 mile stretches that are pretty smooth. I got it up to 20 MPH a few times but you have to be vigilant or you could wreck your suspension. The 5.5 miles takes about 20 minutes. There is room for just 3 cars at the trailhead which is now right at the road.

 

[Grey J]

I forgot to mention that the trailhead is indeed marked on Success Pond Rd. And this is why one has to to walk an additional .4m each way. A washed out culvert.

Interesting side note. The only other person I ran into on the Success Trail was a guy from Berlin whose father had participated in the rescue of the 5 survivors (there were 2 fatalities) from the 1954 plane crash.

 

[peakbagger]

Looks like an interesting culvert. The Success Pond road was the core of the Brown Company holdings and a railroad grade at one point, the woods crews would raid the mills scraps for any old lengths of pipe or equipment that would work as a culvert. Seeing the rivets in the culvert I expect it came out of the mill.

 

[Lefty E]

March 30, 2020, Success Pond Road is gated today...last year was April 16...usually reopens around OHRV spring season (mid May)...will update when the time comes...don't think the Mahoosucs were too busy this past winter...

 

[Lefty E]

The gate to Success Pond Road opened this morning..looks like the OHRV trail in that area is closed..Nash Stream Gate also opened this morning..have a good hiking season....