rocksnrolls
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A few weeks ago, Dugan and I convinced PoisonIvy to join us on a traverse of Blueberry Mtn. She had been thinking of hiking Mt Tremont that day, but was happy to join us on our hike as she had been wanting to hike Blueberry Mtn herself sometime soon. Last weekend she was at our house for a day of board gaming that we were hosting and I suggested a traverse of Mt Tremont would be a good plan for the next Saturday.
The weather gods cooperated, so a short time before 8am, we met at the Mt Tremont trailhead and all piled into Ivy's car for the trip south. After reading up on the two southern accesses, we decided to give the Sawyer Pond Tr a try, not wanting to risk the possibly muddy, beaver-swamped Roy Brook Tr. Thankfully, the icy waters of the Swift River were only about mid-calf deep, and not terribly swift, so our hiker-dog, Caboodle, was willing to be coaxed across (his first river crossing and he handled it quite well!).
From there it was a pleasant walk on an easy to follow woods path, eventually ending up at the lighter-used, but still easy to follow Brunel Tr. The short road walk along Roy Brook Rd did little to assuage the mosquito/black fly onslaught, but the slight breeze was well received. Back into the woods, it was on to Owl's Cliff! We had no trouble following the trail, despite the occasional blazing. With three experienced hikers along, the tread was easy to discern. The slope started mild, got moderate, and then kind of steep. It was hot, and buggy still, so we took our time and didn't push it. Ivy looked cute in her black bug bonnet
, though I understand it was sauna-like inside, so I guess I'm not sorry to have left mine at home. Along the way, we were passed by a pair of guys on the way up. We would meet them twice more during the hike, on the short spur to the cliff, and as we approached Tremont's summit. They were doing an out-n-back hike apparently, but I didn't find out which route in they took.
After we reached the cliffs, we took a break for snacking, resting, photos and viewing. On the short hike down to the cliff, there's a couple rocks to climb down off of that could give you pause. Anyways, the views to the south were well worth the effort. I just wish the sky had been more blue, instead being a white hazy color, but at least we were treated to fine views of the Sandwich Range, from Mt Paugus to Loon Mtn (and you could spy Chocorua through the trees from one vantage point). Especially nice was the close-up profile view of Green's Cliff! Looks like a fun place to whack to some day... It was also nice to look down on my nemesis, Church Pond.
Back on our way, it was down into the col. Much further down than any of us wanted to go, I'm sure. The bugs continued to assail us for our fluids and we eventually started the climb up to Tremont. This time it started moderate and quickly got steep, then very steep. 'Tougher than many 4Ks' was my reaction to this climbing of a 3371' peak.
After many pauses to catch our breath and reapply bug spray, we reached the summit. It's a bare rocky summit, but without too much space to spread out. A couple had just reached the top coming from the other side, and there was just enough space for us all to relax and enjoy the western views. Looking over to Mt Carrigain and it's neighbors really whetted my desire to get back there someday soon. I finished my 48 on that peak on a picture-perfect February a few years back, but haven't returned since.
[btw, under a tree near the summit, someone has left behind a wooden box containing the ashes of their pet. The lid is partially broken and the label is partially torn off. Now personally, I have nothing against scattering ashes somewhere outside, but this rubbed me the wrong way.]
Anyways, heading down the Mt Tremont Tr, I was reminded of my first trip to this mountain. 2 or 3 years ago I climbed it from the north along with dougeh and ScenicNH. We had followed the river (not sure what it's name is) from the trailhead for a few hours, enjoying the many small waterfalls and rock formations along the way. We had eventually whacked west to the trail for the rest of the climb. I had forgotten how steep the Mt Tremont Tr gets. Well, it is on the NEMost Prominent List after all. So we slowly made our way down. With Dugan's knees starting to complain, I was suddenly the fastest hiker of the group.
The woods are beautiful, and the bugs seemed to be less of a problem on this side of the mountain, so I was quite happy. I tried to spot the area where I had previously whacked to the trail, but my memory wasn't up to the task. When the trail eventually reached the brook, it was plain to see how the beautiful waterway had tempted us on my first visit
Happily finding our cars unmolested at the trailheads, our happy day in the mountains was complete. Except for the nearly 4 hour drive home
The weather gods cooperated, so a short time before 8am, we met at the Mt Tremont trailhead and all piled into Ivy's car for the trip south. After reading up on the two southern accesses, we decided to give the Sawyer Pond Tr a try, not wanting to risk the possibly muddy, beaver-swamped Roy Brook Tr. Thankfully, the icy waters of the Swift River were only about mid-calf deep, and not terribly swift, so our hiker-dog, Caboodle, was willing to be coaxed across (his first river crossing and he handled it quite well!).
From there it was a pleasant walk on an easy to follow woods path, eventually ending up at the lighter-used, but still easy to follow Brunel Tr. The short road walk along Roy Brook Rd did little to assuage the mosquito/black fly onslaught, but the slight breeze was well received. Back into the woods, it was on to Owl's Cliff! We had no trouble following the trail, despite the occasional blazing. With three experienced hikers along, the tread was easy to discern. The slope started mild, got moderate, and then kind of steep. It was hot, and buggy still, so we took our time and didn't push it. Ivy looked cute in her black bug bonnet
, though I understand it was sauna-like inside, so I guess I'm not sorry to have left mine at home. Along the way, we were passed by a pair of guys on the way up. We would meet them twice more during the hike, on the short spur to the cliff, and as we approached Tremont's summit. They were doing an out-n-back hike apparently, but I didn't find out which route in they took.After we reached the cliffs, we took a break for snacking, resting, photos and viewing. On the short hike down to the cliff, there's a couple rocks to climb down off of that could give you pause. Anyways, the views to the south were well worth the effort. I just wish the sky had been more blue, instead being a white hazy color, but at least we were treated to fine views of the Sandwich Range, from Mt Paugus to Loon Mtn (and you could spy Chocorua through the trees from one vantage point). Especially nice was the close-up profile view of Green's Cliff! Looks like a fun place to whack to some day... It was also nice to look down on my nemesis, Church Pond.
Back on our way, it was down into the col. Much further down than any of us wanted to go, I'm sure
. The bugs continued to assail us for our fluids and we eventually started the climb up to Tremont. This time it started moderate and quickly got steep, then very steep. 'Tougher than many 4Ks' was my reaction to this climbing of a 3371' peak. After many pauses to catch our breath and reapply bug spray, we reached the summit. It's a bare rocky summit, but without too much space to spread out. A couple had just reached the top coming from the other side, and there was just enough space for us all to relax and enjoy the western views. Looking over to Mt Carrigain and it's neighbors really whetted my desire to get back there someday soon. I finished my 48 on that peak on a picture-perfect February a few years back, but haven't returned since.
[btw, under a tree near the summit, someone has left behind a wooden box containing the ashes of their pet. The lid is partially broken and the label is partially torn off. Now personally, I have nothing against scattering ashes somewhere outside, but this rubbed me the wrong way.]
Anyways, heading down the Mt Tremont Tr, I was reminded of my first trip to this mountain. 2 or 3 years ago I climbed it from the north along with dougeh and ScenicNH. We had followed the river (not sure what it's name is) from the trailhead for a few hours, enjoying the many small waterfalls and rock formations along the way. We had eventually whacked west to the trail for the rest of the climb. I had forgotten how steep the Mt Tremont Tr gets. Well, it is on the NEMost Prominent List after all. So we slowly made our way down. With Dugan's knees starting to complain, I was suddenly the fastest hiker of the group.
The woods are beautiful, and the bugs seemed to be less of a problem on this side of the mountain, so I was quite happy. I tried to spot the area where I had previously whacked to the trail, but my memory wasn't up to the task. When the trail eventually reached the brook, it was plain to see how the beautiful waterway had tempted us on my first visit
Happily finding our cars unmolested at the trailheads, our happy day in the mountains was complete. Except for the nearly 4 hour drive home
