Pig Pen's day off; 8-1-2007 Bemis etc...

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Pig Pen

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Despite some begging, none of my hiking buddies were willing to quit their jobs to hike with me. So no adult supervision for me on this day.

Bemis;
Took Nancy Pond trail to the illegal Bemis Trail. Of all the illegal trails that I have been one this one has received some of the best illegal maintenance. The treadway is good with fine side cutting. There is an inconvenient set of blowdowns at about 3000 feet, but with what they pay illegal trail maintainers these days, what do you want? The tower wreckage is a pile of lumber that smells like creosote. I whacked to the true summit but didn't find a jar. I did a "GPS Verification" (Sorry Albee!) which confirmed that I was at the summit.

South Hale;
Hiked into Zealand Hut, had a little lunch and headed up the Lend A Hand trail. I've heard that its best to do this one from the Hale/South Hale col, but I decided to throw caution to the wind and go right at it from where the LAT turns north just above the hut. The woods were mostly open and it was a little steep making the ridge. This summit had a first class PVC cannister with most of the usual suspects inside. I returned sort of the same way.

Rosebrook:
This mountain is home to the Bretton Woods ski area. I started up at around five PM in very pleasant late afternoon temperatures. On Bemis I did a GPS summit verification, on South Hale I didn't use GPS at all, so on Rosebrook I decided to use GPS only navigation (Sorry Albee!). This is like a video game. There is a little pointer that represents me, and a little square that represents the mountain. When the little pointer covers the little square, you win the game! I wandered around some ski trails trying to make the little pointer move toward the little square until I finally won the game at around six PM. I signed in at the jar while enjoying what is possibly the finest Jefferson to Jackson presidential range panorama that I have ever seen. On the way down I used another form of navigation. I call it "Chair Lift Only" navigation. For this you keep following chair lifts down until you end up at the base lodge.

So that's how spent my day off, back to the coal mine tomorrow.
 
No Bemis Jar on True Summit

marchowes said:
Does anyone know if there -is- a jar up there? I'm hiking Bemis in August probably, so I'll bring a jar if there isn't (probably will bring one anyways -- just in case!):eek:

Marc

Did Bemis on 7/4/2007. There is a jar next to the fire tower (such as it is). Most have treated this as the summit.

However, after the short b/w, Albee showed 10 ft higher and I showed 20 ft higher. Let us know what you find.

I kicked myself for leaving my spare jar in the car, but I had not expected to do this peak on this hike. So, do bring and hang a jar if you show higher, as well.
 
JimC said:
Marc

Did Bemis on 7/4/2007. There is a jar next to the fire tower (such as it is). Most have treated this as the summit.

I didn't even look for a jar at the tower, what a loser. :(

My theory was that I was either an idiot or someone took it down. I know the ranger people are a little sensitive about that trail so maybe they removed the jar. But it looks like me being an idiot is the more likely possibility. (as usual)
:rolleyes:
 
I've been up to the wreckage of the Bemis Fire Tower twice, and I pretty much only noticed the jar by accident on my second try, despite its obvious location above a rusty old barrel right next to the tower.

There should be a jar hung on the other bump, and there are 2 outcrops in the same general area that are good candidates. The other bump is probably less than 100 yards from the tower.


On another note - there is a jar on Mt Rosebrook?!? I found the USGS benchmark at the highest point, but no jar. It was a little ways back over an outcrop behind the highest ski lift, right near the property boundary blazed trees. Certainly appeared to be the highest point.. You gotta be kidding me if there is a jar now... or if I missed it. Either way, it is probably less than 2 miles up the ski trails, a 90 minute round trip if it comes to that. Man, why do I even care if I find the jars? ;)
 
Pig Pen said:
This is like a video game. There is a little pointer that represents me, and a little square that represents the mountain. When the little pointer covers the little square, you win the game! I wandered around some ski trails trying to make the little pointer move toward the little square until I finally won the game at around six PM.

I'm glad they let the canary out of the coal mine for some fresh air so that you could write this funny thing. I am at my coal mine and it made me laugh out loud...not like a rolling barrel laugh or an evil maniacal laugh. More like a little guffaw I guess. Did you have cool sound effects too? And could you use the GPS to shoot lasers at the evil blow downs?

Happy whackin'!
jen
 
the Bemis tower "jar" is white pvc attached to a tree just a few feet from the tower wreckage. At least it was there last December.
 
bigmoose said:
the Bemis tower "jar" is white pvc attached to a tree just a few feet from the tower wreckage. At least it was there last December.
I think that the fact that I didn't see it provides very little evidence as to whether it's there or not. I think I was having an bad attack of ADD at that time.
 
Toe Cozy said:
I am at my coal mine and it made me laugh out loud...not like a rolling barrel laugh or an evil maniacal laugh. More like a little guffaw I guess. Did you have cool sound effects too? And could you use the GPS to shoot lasers at the evil blow downs?

Happy whackin'!
jen

I'm glad it didn't make you laugh maniacally, they throw people out of coal mines for that.

A brief shin inspection reveals another victory for the blowdowns. (But at least I bagged the peaks though)
 
Pig Pen said:
I think I was having an bad attack of ADD at that time.

Yeah, sometimes I start doing math in my head while I'm bushwhacking, too.
 
CRAP, must have missed it :mad:

I've seen the rusty old barrel but I don't recall seeing the canister above it. Went to the true summit as well and nothing there either. Circled around the tower a great deal of time.

I hope it's been removed like the ones in the area so I have the peace of mind that I would have find it if it was there :rolleyes: Nah ! I hope it's still there and that I was blind enough not to see it.

Shame on me !!! Especially having found Clough canister so easily earlier in the morning :D
 
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