Wilderness Trail Suitable for Biking?

[Double Bow]

Actually they have, a few times on the AMC BBS. Gene was very clear about the issue with bikes. I understand the confusion and I agree that the FAQ could be clearer, but they have talked publicly about this several times. I wish I had saved the thread from over there, alas the archives are long gone.

Since Eric Savage is now the public face of the 4000'er Committee, perhaps we can get him to write up an official response.

Maybe a second-hand acount will do? Eric and I colead a trip to Owl's Head on 5/28 of this year. On the trip, we met some guys guys on the Owl's Head Path who told us that they had biked down the Wilderness trail and had stashed their bikes.

Eric asked them if they were working on the list and when they said that they were, he told them that they were going to have to do it again because it wouldn't count since they rode their bikes. They tried telling him that they were pretty sure that the website said that it was OK. He then explained who he is and they sort of gave up the arguement and moved on. While I doubt those guys are going to redo it, at least they heard the correct information directly from the source.

 

[chomp]

Stop! Owl's Head is my 48th... no one will want to go with me if they know about that 3 mile stretch!

Its not just that 3 miles stretch... its the fact that 16 of the 18 mile hike to do Owls Head is, for most people, uninteresting. And boring. And tedious.

But I am sure that YOU will love it. Really.

 

[NH_Mtn_Hiker]

Its not just that 3 miles stretch... its the fact that 16 of the 18 mile hike to do Owls Head is, for most people, uninteresting. And boring. And tedious.

But I am sure that YOU will love it. Really.

It is what you make it! The Owl's Head hike is one of my favorites.

 

[SAR-EMT40]

Stop! Owl's Head is my 48th... no one will want to go with me if they know about that 3 mile stretch!

Sorry to say, that secret is out. I can't tell you how many times (and I am sure I am not alone) I have done that stretch. I get to WANTING a rabid chipmunk to come out of the woods to savage me just to end the tedium.

Keith

 

[darren]

Stop! Owl's Head is my 48th... no one will want to go with me if they know about that 3 mile stretch!

I have done that stretch enough times to know that I could really do without ever walking it again. Ugh!!!!! Oh the humanity! What a miserable stretch of road!

- darren

ps: ditto on the Livermore Road!!!

 

[RGF1]

Mountain bike the Lincoln Woods Trail, do the 4000 footers and don't worry about the recognition.


Oh, and if you want a really fun mountain bike, try heading up to Greely Ponds from Livermore. You have to stop at the Scenic Area sign about .5 miles from the pond, but you can get most of the way in there. The ride down looks like great fun.

Chomp the Ride down is fun ! I have biked out to the Trypramid Slides on the road and to the pond as far as I can leagly take the bike. . Just be on look out for hikers and bikers as it is very popular. Not being a Knb head " that is about the extent of my so called Mt Biking.
For a realy hair raisng experince ( You probably have done this road Chomp) try Jefferson Notch Road .
The cars are what make it so Uh " interesting"

 

[David Metsky]

Stop! Owl's Head is my 48th... no one will want to go with me if they know about that 3 mile stretch!

Talk about poor planning.
I'm sure you will get folks to join you for this trip. Of course, we'll all be on bikes...

-dave-

 

[Tom Rankin]

Owl's head

Talk about poor planning.
I'm sure you will get folks to join you for this trip. Of course, we'll all be on bikes...

(That really is funny!)

No one ever talks about staying at the Galehead Hut and doing it from there.

It was about a 14 mile round trip from there. I'll admit it was a lot of down-up-down-up-down-up to get there. But you can spend one night in the hut, do the climb, come back and either have a party at the hut the 2nd night, or walk out.

I don't want to start an AMC debate, but I love the huts, and I used them quite a few times to facilitate peak bagging.

 

[Blue]

So you're basically saying that I need to provide rabid chipmunks and beer delivery to get people to ride their bikes next to me while I hike????

That's some trail.

 

[Papa Bear]

Stop! Owl's Head is my 48th... no one will want to go with me if they know about that 3 mile stretch!

Of course there is a much more interesting way to do Owls Head - via the Lincoln Slide. And I'd be happy to go along if you do it that way.

If you start at Lafayette Place, it's shorter (around 16 miles RT via the OBP) and you get to do Lafayette twice - coming and going. A perfect dayhike for a sunny summer day. So who's complaining about long boring walks with no elevation gain.

 

[sapblatt]

(That really is funny!)

No one ever talks about staying at the Galehead Hut and doing it from there.

....or doing a loop and spending the night at the 13 Falls tentsite...which is my plan.

 

[dr_wu002]

Of course there is a much more interesting way to do Owls Head - via the Lincoln Slide. And I'd be happy to go along if you do it that way.

If you start at Lafayette Place, it's shorter (around 16 miles RT via the OBP) and you get to do Lafayette twice - coming and going. A perfect dayhike for a sunny summer day. So who's complaining about long boring walks with no elevation gain.

I was going to suggest this so now I'm going to have to second it. Do it via. Lincoln Slide!!

-Dr. Wu

 

[chomp]

Of course there is a much more interesting way to do Owls Head - via the Lincoln Slide. And I'd be happy to go along if you do it that way.

I would totally join the hike if it involved Lincoln Slide. Of course, that just assured that this trip will NOT involve the Lincoln Slide.

 

[Double Bow]

....or doing a loop and spending the night at the 13 Falls tentsite...which is my plan.

From 13 Falls, you can make the rest of the trip go faster and be more interesting by teasing a bear and getting it to chase you the rest of the way! Just make sure you bring plenty of friends that you can run faster than!

 

[SherpaKroto]

Liza,
If I can make the date, I'll join you. When? I like the Black Pond bushwhack in, trail out. I'll take roller skates Just think of the fun we'll have watching chomp biking down the Lincoln Slide!

 

[sli74]

Stop! Owl's Head is my 48th... no one will want to go with me if they know about that 3 mile stretch!

I will be there Liza, don't you worry and I will bring something YUMMY for anyone else who shows up

Its not just that 3 miles stretch... its the fact that 16 of the 18 mile hike to do Owls Head is, for most people, uninteresting. And boring. And tedious.

But I am sure that YOU will love it. Really.

You cut it out Chompster, you mean mean boy
I LOVED Owl's Head, it was a beautiful Fall Foliage Trip with WONDERFUL friends so there, Don't listen to Chomp, he's taken one too many falls off that mountain bike of his (that was a joke for anyone who didn't get it)

sli74

 

[MadRiver]

If the water isn’t too high, I usually cross over the East Branch of the Pemi by the bridge and hike out the East Branch Road thus avoiding the dreaded railroad ties.

 

[dave.m]

I just think that if they want to run an official club with official rules, then they should post all the rules. You say they said those things, but there is no public record of it on their website. The verbage on their site does not mention anything about the road being legally drivable. If they have rules then they should make them public.

Shrug.

It's their club to do with what they wish.

I personally feel the same as you Darren but applied to moderated web/mail forums. I think if somebody is going to run a moderated forum, they ought to give clear and concise guidance on what is on and off topic and what will get posts and posters banned. I get concerned when I see moderation practices on forums that are clearly out of synch with their stated policy. My reading of the situation is that the "rules" have not been clearly enough articulated leaving big room for wildly varying interpretations which leads to 2 sets of rules: the publicly stated rules and the private rules that are actually enforced.

But like clubs, moderated forums belong to the folks who run them.

 

[forestgnome]

Its not just that 3 miles stretch... its the fact that 16 of the 18 mile hike to do Owls Head is, for most people, uninteresting. And boring. And tedious.

But I am sure that YOU will love it. Really.

Uninteresting, boring and tedious?

You hike 16 "tedious and boring" miles for what? To complete a list? I find it sad that anyone would be doing something they found boring while not on the clock.

Perhaps most of the list people find it boring, but list people are but a minority of the people in the forest. Most people who hike find the forest beautiful and special, not a labor camp.

 

[Tom Rankin]

You can do both!

Uninteresting, boring and tedious?

You hike 16 "tedious and boring" miles for what? To complete a list? I find it sad that anyone would be doing something they found boring while not on the clock.

Perhaps most of the list people find it boring, but list people are but a minority of the people in the forest. Most people who hike find the forest beautiful and special, not a labor camp.

Here is one 'lister' who finds the forest beautiful and special. Not just the forest, but the VIEWS FROM THE TOP, and everything in between: rocks, streams, waterfalls, lichen, moss, flowers, animal tracks, trees, birds, people, traces of what man has left behind, etc., etc., etc.

You can do both...