Ray
New member
The nice weather on Saturday provided a good window of opportunity to tag the Hancocks. I arrived at the parking lot at about 7:45am, geared up and hit the Hancock Notch Trail at about 8. Temps were probably in the 40's which made for a chilly but pleasant start. The Hancock Notch Trail is quite easy, just a little muddy in the trail depressions due to the previous day's rain. Autumn colors are starting to come in nicely in the hardwoods. The Cedar Brook Trail is also quite straightforward. There were no problems at the stream crossings.
Upon reaching the junction of the Hancock Loop Trail I chose to go clockwise to North Hancock first. In retrospect I would probably have chosen to go the other way around. This would have been in keeping with the general practice of ascending via the steepest route first although the ascent up the North Link is certainly no slouch. Also the descent from the South Link made for much wetter conditions and, as the guidebook says, the trail is "unrelievedly steep."
There are gorgeous views of the Sandwich Range and the Osceolas from the N. Hancock outlook. The autumn paintbrush is certainly being applied all around. After a few pleasant exchanges with some fellow hikers I headed over the Ridge Link towards South Hancock. Muddy conditions were somewhat of a problem on this part of the Loop. At times I had trouble planting my poles firmly and the logs provided for your footsteps are pretty inadequate at times. One fellow sank up to his knee!
The South Hancock Summit is wooded although there is a limited outlook with views toward Signal Ridge and Carrigain. I cautiously descended the South Link, picked up the previous trails and headed back to the parking lot thinking of that great Dunkin' Donuts Latte which I usually enjoy after a hike. It had been a great hike and a beautiful day to tag #43 and #44.
Ray
.
Upon reaching the junction of the Hancock Loop Trail I chose to go clockwise to North Hancock first. In retrospect I would probably have chosen to go the other way around. This would have been in keeping with the general practice of ascending via the steepest route first although the ascent up the North Link is certainly no slouch. Also the descent from the South Link made for much wetter conditions and, as the guidebook says, the trail is "unrelievedly steep."
There are gorgeous views of the Sandwich Range and the Osceolas from the N. Hancock outlook. The autumn paintbrush is certainly being applied all around. After a few pleasant exchanges with some fellow hikers I headed over the Ridge Link towards South Hancock. Muddy conditions were somewhat of a problem on this part of the Loop. At times I had trouble planting my poles firmly and the logs provided for your footsteps are pretty inadequate at times. One fellow sank up to his knee!
The South Hancock Summit is wooded although there is a limited outlook with views toward Signal Ridge and Carrigain. I cautiously descended the South Link, picked up the previous trails and headed back to the parking lot thinking of that great Dunkin' Donuts Latte which I usually enjoy after a hike. It had been a great hike and a beautiful day to tag #43 and #44.
Ray
.
Last edited:
