BIGEarl
Well-known member
May 5, 2012: Moriah
Trails: Stony Brook Trail, Carter-Moriah Trail
Summits: Moriah
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
After several months of back-to-back hike weekends it seems a little strange to head to the mountains for an up-and-back day hike. That’s what we’ve got for this week with Moriah. Initially, I was thinking Rattle River Trail would be a good change for this hike but I had not seen any trail report on its condition and was a little concerned about possible winter damage. I knew Stony brook was in good shape. We headed for Stony brook.
The trailhead was completely empty when we arrived. Evidently it was going to be a quiet day. The forecasts from the National Weather Service and Weather.com predicted partly cloudy conditions by ~8:00am but we still had complete overcast conditions. Clearing was expected to approach from the northwest; we were watching and hoping. The images I looked at on-line earlier (~3:00am) showed Quebec and Ontario completely in the clear and it was headed our way.
We grabbed our things and got started. The spring thaw is nearly done in the area and the trail is now starting to dry out a little but there is still plenty of standing water and mud to deal with along the way. The initial ~mile of Stony Brook leading to the first crossing is generally clear and dry. We reached the crossing and found a couple places where a rock-hop crossing was possible. On the opposite side with dry feet we set off for the upper crossing of Stony Brook.
In the general area of the lower crossing we found a large number of painted trilliums along the trail. The recent rain has also gotten the green-up process moving in great shape. The trail leading to the upper crossing has a fair amount of mud and running water in the trail. All of it is relatively easy to get through and stay clean and dry. In a short time we were clearing the upper crossing and starting the climb to the ridge and junction with Carter-Moriah Trail. There was a vegetation change we noticed in the area; the trilliums changed from painted variety to purple. I’m sure there’s a good reason for this but don’t know what it is.
The climb was more water. There are a number of rocky sections of trail that lead to the ridge. In nearly all of these the trail is a running brook right now. There are always adequate high rocks to work with in staying out of the messy conditions. We approached the ridge and started to enjoy sunny breaks in the overcast. Looking over our shoulders to the northwest we could see lots of blue sky starting to make a move on the area.
One of the small details that I always find amusing is the difference in trail signs for the area; from the Carter-Moriah Trail junction with Stony Brook Trail to the Kenduskeag Trail junction is listed on the trail sign as 1.3 miles, from the Kendiskeag junction to Stony Brook is listed on the sign as 1.4 miles. Downhill must be further. (The White Mountain Guide shows 1.4 miles in each direction)
We passed the CMT – Stony Brook Junction and started into the final climb. This section is always a treat. Climbing the open slabs offers a number of great viewpoints along the way. The distance and elevation seem to take care of themselves as we climb from viewpoint to viewpoint. The clearing conditions provided really nice views in all directions. The comfortable conditions with a relatively light breeze and warm temperature allowed us to make stops along the way for as long as we wanted to enjoy the views without the need to keep moving to stay warm. Eventually, we hit the top open area and started into the pits. There are a great amount of mud pits and standing water between the open slabs. Some areas are difficult to get past due to the thick growth bordering each side of the trail. On a couple, if you look closely the herd path through the dense growth will be visible.
We made our way through this gauntlet and on to the actual high point of Moriah. Below the summit near the final short scramble we found a nice area of soft, wet snow. Suddenly, it’s snowman time! Sue dropped her pack and went to work. I think Sue may have been a little worried about finding snow for a snowman. On the earlier climb through the open slabs we could see there was still plenty of snow on The Presidentials and I was a little worried we might end up over there before the day ended. No need to worry for either of us. The snowman came together, we both got our pictures, Sue sent a picture to family and friends, and we continued to the summit.
On the summit we found the best conditions you could want; sunny, light breeze, moderate temperature, and just enough clouds to dress up the pictures. We got our usual summit pictures and then hung around for an extended time to enjoy the views, etc. Many times we have reached the summit of Moriah in conditions that drove us away as fast as we arrived, but this time was different and we decided to stick around for a while.
Eventually, it was time to go. As we were leaving the area there were three hikers and a very large Labrador retriever working their way up the final scramble. Actually, the three hikers were dragging the dog up the sections it was unable to climb on its own. After we left, Sue made the comment “I wonder how the dog will get down. Poor thing.” Perhaps a short bushwhack around the scramble might have been a better approach, but that would have been uncomfortable for the humans.
Our exit hike went without any surprises. After we cleared the area of mud pits on top it’s generally a downhill run to the trailhead with some areas more downhill than others. We were able to get through all of the water, mud, dry trail, and water crossings and stay dry and relatively clean in the process. At the trailhead we found exactly the same conditions we left earlier in the day; ours was the only vehicle in the lot. It didn’t take long to pack and hit the road south.
Thanks Sue for another fun hike to Moriah. That’s our fourth month in a row for Moriah – time for some variety.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Stony Brook Trail, Carter-Moriah Trail
Summits: Moriah
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
After several months of back-to-back hike weekends it seems a little strange to head to the mountains for an up-and-back day hike. That’s what we’ve got for this week with Moriah. Initially, I was thinking Rattle River Trail would be a good change for this hike but I had not seen any trail report on its condition and was a little concerned about possible winter damage. I knew Stony brook was in good shape. We headed for Stony brook.
The trailhead was completely empty when we arrived. Evidently it was going to be a quiet day. The forecasts from the National Weather Service and Weather.com predicted partly cloudy conditions by ~8:00am but we still had complete overcast conditions. Clearing was expected to approach from the northwest; we were watching and hoping. The images I looked at on-line earlier (~3:00am) showed Quebec and Ontario completely in the clear and it was headed our way.
We grabbed our things and got started. The spring thaw is nearly done in the area and the trail is now starting to dry out a little but there is still plenty of standing water and mud to deal with along the way. The initial ~mile of Stony Brook leading to the first crossing is generally clear and dry. We reached the crossing and found a couple places where a rock-hop crossing was possible. On the opposite side with dry feet we set off for the upper crossing of Stony Brook.
In the general area of the lower crossing we found a large number of painted trilliums along the trail. The recent rain has also gotten the green-up process moving in great shape. The trail leading to the upper crossing has a fair amount of mud and running water in the trail. All of it is relatively easy to get through and stay clean and dry. In a short time we were clearing the upper crossing and starting the climb to the ridge and junction with Carter-Moriah Trail. There was a vegetation change we noticed in the area; the trilliums changed from painted variety to purple. I’m sure there’s a good reason for this but don’t know what it is.
The climb was more water. There are a number of rocky sections of trail that lead to the ridge. In nearly all of these the trail is a running brook right now. There are always adequate high rocks to work with in staying out of the messy conditions. We approached the ridge and started to enjoy sunny breaks in the overcast. Looking over our shoulders to the northwest we could see lots of blue sky starting to make a move on the area.
One of the small details that I always find amusing is the difference in trail signs for the area; from the Carter-Moriah Trail junction with Stony Brook Trail to the Kenduskeag Trail junction is listed on the trail sign as 1.3 miles, from the Kendiskeag junction to Stony Brook is listed on the sign as 1.4 miles. Downhill must be further. (The White Mountain Guide shows 1.4 miles in each direction)
We passed the CMT – Stony Brook Junction and started into the final climb. This section is always a treat. Climbing the open slabs offers a number of great viewpoints along the way. The distance and elevation seem to take care of themselves as we climb from viewpoint to viewpoint. The clearing conditions provided really nice views in all directions. The comfortable conditions with a relatively light breeze and warm temperature allowed us to make stops along the way for as long as we wanted to enjoy the views without the need to keep moving to stay warm. Eventually, we hit the top open area and started into the pits. There are a great amount of mud pits and standing water between the open slabs. Some areas are difficult to get past due to the thick growth bordering each side of the trail. On a couple, if you look closely the herd path through the dense growth will be visible.
We made our way through this gauntlet and on to the actual high point of Moriah. Below the summit near the final short scramble we found a nice area of soft, wet snow. Suddenly, it’s snowman time! Sue dropped her pack and went to work. I think Sue may have been a little worried about finding snow for a snowman. On the earlier climb through the open slabs we could see there was still plenty of snow on The Presidentials and I was a little worried we might end up over there before the day ended. No need to worry for either of us. The snowman came together, we both got our pictures, Sue sent a picture to family and friends, and we continued to the summit.
On the summit we found the best conditions you could want; sunny, light breeze, moderate temperature, and just enough clouds to dress up the pictures. We got our usual summit pictures and then hung around for an extended time to enjoy the views, etc. Many times we have reached the summit of Moriah in conditions that drove us away as fast as we arrived, but this time was different and we decided to stick around for a while.
Eventually, it was time to go. As we were leaving the area there were three hikers and a very large Labrador retriever working their way up the final scramble. Actually, the three hikers were dragging the dog up the sections it was unable to climb on its own. After we left, Sue made the comment “I wonder how the dog will get down. Poor thing.” Perhaps a short bushwhack around the scramble might have been a better approach, but that would have been uncomfortable for the humans.
Our exit hike went without any surprises. After we cleared the area of mud pits on top it’s generally a downhill run to the trailhead with some areas more downhill than others. We were able to get through all of the water, mud, dry trail, and water crossings and stay dry and relatively clean in the process. At the trailhead we found exactly the same conditions we left earlier in the day; ours was the only vehicle in the lot. It didn’t take long to pack and hit the road south.
Thanks Sue for another fun hike to Moriah. That’s our fourth month in a row for Moriah – time for some variety.
Pictures will follow.
