WeRmudfun
New member
Sunday morning we drove up to Gorham, NH to hike our 91st peak on the NH Fire Tower list of the '92' obtainable towers that are standing, once stood or were proposed. We have decided to drop Croydon due to it being inaccessible, hence '92' total now.
Going through Franconia Notch we saw that they had gotten some snow that was enough to plow earlier in the week. For any skiers reading this, Cannon had one trail open for skiing.
We parked off of Pinkham B Road, it is a rough road, use caution if your vehicle is low to the ground. There is a small parking area across from the entrance road to the Horton Center where we parked. From there we followed Pine Mountain Road to the Ledge Trail. The trailhead sign states the Ledge Trail is 0.9 miles, but it is only 0.6 miles from the Ledge Trail back to the trailhead on Pinkham B road according to the sign at the Ledge Trail, someone was off.
The Ledge Trail leads to some really nice views even before hitting the south cliffs. We did run into some snow and ice in spots, but traction was not necessary. We had one spot that was a scramble right before we hit the cliffs, but it wasn't too bad. The cliffs had great views even though it wasn't a perfect day, we had clouds and some overcast.
Up on the cliff there are visible signs of glacial striations. That is where rocks embedded in glaciers are dragged across surfaces and leave grooves. The cliffs are also where the memorial bench for Carol Horton is located. The original marble bench was destroyed by weather or vandals, so the family craved a new one in to the rock. There is a nice view when sitting there too.
Leaving the cliffs we connected to the Pine Mountain Trail which leads to the fire tower remains. All that is left is the footings and history. In 1965 a couple of fugitives hid up in the tower and were captured by the FBI. The trail continues along and passes 3 more lookouts before joining a trail junction to get to Chapel Rock.
On our way to Chapel Rock, we found a cave/rock formation to play in first, then continued on our way. There are bog bridges that lead to a landing /platform that will take you into Horton Center one way and Chapel Rock the other, we went to Chapel first. Once we arrived at that summit we saw the big cross and a smaller one. We climbed to the top and took in the views. That is a real nice place that the Horton Center has up there and we are thankful they allow hikers to hike there. They were able to purchase 95 1/2 acres back in 1944 for a $1.00 as long as it was used for religious purposes.
We walked back down and took a look at the rest of the Horton Center, then we took the road back down to the trailhead. Overall it was a really nice hike and not a tough one to do, IMHO.
Going through Franconia Notch we saw that they had gotten some snow that was enough to plow earlier in the week. For any skiers reading this, Cannon had one trail open for skiing.
We parked off of Pinkham B Road, it is a rough road, use caution if your vehicle is low to the ground. There is a small parking area across from the entrance road to the Horton Center where we parked. From there we followed Pine Mountain Road to the Ledge Trail. The trailhead sign states the Ledge Trail is 0.9 miles, but it is only 0.6 miles from the Ledge Trail back to the trailhead on Pinkham B road according to the sign at the Ledge Trail, someone was off.
The Ledge Trail leads to some really nice views even before hitting the south cliffs. We did run into some snow and ice in spots, but traction was not necessary. We had one spot that was a scramble right before we hit the cliffs, but it wasn't too bad. The cliffs had great views even though it wasn't a perfect day, we had clouds and some overcast.
Up on the cliff there are visible signs of glacial striations. That is where rocks embedded in glaciers are dragged across surfaces and leave grooves. The cliffs are also where the memorial bench for Carol Horton is located. The original marble bench was destroyed by weather or vandals, so the family craved a new one in to the rock. There is a nice view when sitting there too.
Leaving the cliffs we connected to the Pine Mountain Trail which leads to the fire tower remains. All that is left is the footings and history. In 1965 a couple of fugitives hid up in the tower and were captured by the FBI. The trail continues along and passes 3 more lookouts before joining a trail junction to get to Chapel Rock.
On our way to Chapel Rock, we found a cave/rock formation to play in first, then continued on our way. There are bog bridges that lead to a landing /platform that will take you into Horton Center one way and Chapel Rock the other, we went to Chapel first. Once we arrived at that summit we saw the big cross and a smaller one. We climbed to the top and took in the views. That is a real nice place that the Horton Center has up there and we are thankful they allow hikers to hike there. They were able to purchase 95 1/2 acres back in 1944 for a $1.00 as long as it was used for religious purposes.
We walked back down and took a look at the rest of the Horton Center, then we took the road back down to the trailhead. Overall it was a really nice hike and not a tough one to do, IMHO.
