Magalloway Mt.- Camp on Top!

New this year and managed by Lake Francis State Park in Pittsburg, NH. In cooperation with the NH Division of Forests & Lands the Firewatch cabin is now available for 'camping' stays by reservation. This is not the tower cab, but is the ranger cabin just below.

www.nhstateparks.org

Go to the Lake Francis page and the (Reserve America) campground info link for details.

Andrew said:

New this year and managed by Lake Francis State Park in Pittsburg, NH. In cooperation with the NH Division of Forests & Lands the Firewatch cabin is now available for 'camping' stays by reservation. This is not the tower cab, but is the ranger cabin just below.

www.nhstateparks.org

Go to the Lake Francis page and the (Reserve America) campground info link for details.

Click to expand...

Coincidentally we were just up there this past week. The climb is steep but short, with two trails to choose from. The ranger happened to be in the cab and was quite helpful pointing out things about the area. The cab has been newly renovated and is one of the nicest ones I have ever seen! A friend took some pictures, which I will try to post in a few days. The entire summit is open and "park-like", no views in the main area, but incredible ones from the tower. The tower has wide landings near the top for those who don't do well climbing towers. There are also a few paths to additional viewpoints as well. The ranger's place was open looks like a nice place to spend the night.

old VFTT thread:
http://www.vftt.org/forums/showthread.php?t=11709

Elsewhere on the internet:
http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/573757286OiTcxj
http://www.mountwashington.org/foru...y-Way-Up-North-to-Mt.-Magalloway-(26-Sep-2009)

I was telling my friend Mike about this not long ago. We did Magalloway a couple weeks ago and noticed some sleeping bags and other "overnight" equipment in the cabin (which was locked, but we would not have gone in and invaded someones space anyways.) It's pretty neat. Just seeing sunrise from the firetower cabin.....Marc Howes and Ethan Paquin were up there for sunrise the same day Mike and I did Magalloway and the pictures they took give me the impression it is superb!

Brian

NewHampshire said:

I was telling my friend Mike about this not long ago. We did Magalloway a couple weeks ago and noticed some sleeping bags and other "overnight" equipment in the cabin (which was locked, but we would not have gone in and invaded someones space anyways.) It's pretty neat. Just seeing sunrise from the firetower cabin.....Marc Howes and Ethan Paquin were up there for sunrise the same day Mike and I did Magalloway and the pictures they took give me the impression it is superb!

Brian

Click to expand...

The cabin was open the day we were there. I only took a peek in, but it looked quite nice. Our friends went in and took some pictures. I'll post them when I get them.

The tower cab was just replaced in 2006. Go to this page and scroll about halfway down or search for Magalloway to see a photo of it being airlifted into place:
http://www.firelookout.org/news.htm

MichaelJ said:

The tower cab was just replaced in 2006. Go to this page and scroll about halfway down or search for Magalloway to see a photo of it being airlifted into place:
http://www.firelookout.org/news.htm

Click to expand...

Yes, but the paneling on the inside is a work to behold!

Reserve America handles booking for state, federal and private campgrounds and cabins all over the country. Out west there are also firetowers available for rent. Some of their camps are deep in the backcountry, some in remarkable locations. A reference worth keeping.

A few years ago I attempted to book a specific site on Lake Umbagog but the website responded that it was either rented or unavailable. Instead, I called and was able to book the same site. So beware if there is something you really want.

Magalloway eh? Have to look into that one. Thanks for the tip.

Magalloway has the best summit in NH IMO. You can see Maine, Quebec, Vermont and on a very clear day Mt. Washington in the far distance.

I saw that cabin when I was there last month and would love to spend a night there sometime.

If you want spectacular fire-tower views and don't feel like making the trip all the way up to Pittsburg, NH, I highly recommend Signal Mountain. It is only 15 minutes from downtown Errol, NH, and less than 35 miles from Gorham, NH.

It would be hard to find a trail description in any guidebook, but the trail is about 1.5 miles long and the tower and cab are still intact. Be careful on the steps, as many are rotten, but if you proceed with care the view from the cab is one of the best in NH. You can easily see from Quebec to the Rangeley peaks, to the Mahoosucs, Carters, Presidentials, to a nice close-up view of where the wind towers will be on Mt. Kelsey.

There are a couple of places to camp on or near the summit where nobody will bother you - I guaranty you that less than 20 people per year climb this peak! (Feel free to email me if you want a trail description - the topo map linked above is way off in regards to the trail route and trailhead location.