Bear canister

Are bear canisters required in the Sewards area? I have one and usually use it but it is a small one and am concerned I won't be able to fit all my food in it.

Also, last time I hike the Sewards we went up one way and down another. Can't remember names of what we took. Just remember a long steady up on the way out. Any thoughts on doing them. I would like to stay at the lean to and do the Sewards one day and then Seymour the next day.

You do not need a bear canister in the Western High Peaks Zone, where the Sewards lie.

There are two readily accessible lean-tos, near Blueberry Pond and further along near Ward Brook.

Most people ascend to the ridge on the Calkins Brook herd path, go over to Edmonds, backtrack to Donaldson, and then over to Seward and back.

If you want to include Seymour, the Ward Brook lean-to is closer to its trail head. We climbed the Sewards last fall, and if I were doing them again I would go clockwise, starting with Seward and descending Calkins Brook at the end of the day. That would make Seymour more difficult, however.

Daniel Eagan said:

We climbed the Sewards last fall, and if I were doing them again I would go clockwise, starting with Seward and descending Calkins Brook at the end of the day.

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Why would you prefer doing the loop clockwise? I might have a chance to do this loop next month and so I would love to know... Also, where were you able to park? Tks!

Here is the map I looked at: http://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=13/44.1637/-74.2214&layers=C

I was thinking of doing the Sewards day 1 and camp at lean to and Seymour next day.

iAmKrzys said:

Why would you prefer doing the loop clockwise? I might have a chance to do this loop next month and so I would love to know... Also, where were you able to park? Tks!

Here is the map I looked at: http://www.openstreetmap.org/#map=13/44.1637/-74.2214&layers=C

Click to expand...

I've done the Sewards a few times. Descending Calkins Brook herd path at the end of the day is nice, soft, not too steep, plus you end up closer to the trailhead. (Not a consideration if you're camping.)

Last fall we went counter-clockwise thinking we might add on Seymour. Descending the Seward herd path was tough after three peaks, lots of rock to negotiate. Plus a longer way out to the parking lot.

There is a large parking lot about six miles in from Corey's on Route 3. Trail starts at its western end.

When hiking these four over two days, another option is to car camp at one of the free designated sites along Coreys Road, and drive to the trail head each day. That adds about two easy miles to the total, but you're only carrying a day pack, and there'll be ice cold beverages waiting for you when you get back to camp!

Daniel Eagan said:

Last fall we went counter-clockwise thinking we might add on Seymour. Descending the Seward herd path was tough after three peaks, lots of rock to negotiate. Plus a longer way out to the parking lot.

Click to expand...

Thanks for the info. I found this gps track for the loop on AllTrails.com: https://www.alltrails.com/explore/recording/fri-12-jun-2015-16-10--2 and it appears that the whole loop is 17.2 miles, so it makes sense to ascend on steeper side of the mountain and have more moderate descend afterwards. The length of the loop surprised me a bit as I thought it to be shorter and suitable for more leisurely pace. In that context staying at a lean-to may be a good idea as it would give some control over distance & start time but I 'm not sure if it will work for me during this trip as my wife may not appreciate me disappearing for more that a day hike...