1HappyHiker
Well-known member
My trek was launched from a Forest Road (FR 379) in the North Conway area. Access to this road is now gated at the north end of High Street. (During the summer months you can drive and park at an access point that is closer.) I don't know all the factors that trigger the closure of a road for winter travel. However, I can say that on the day of my hike, there was absolutely no snow on the roadways or surrounding forest floor.
The waterfall that I visited is called Thompson Falls. This one is located on Moat Brook at the base of the Moat Mountains, and is not to be confused with another Thompson Falls at the base of Wildcat Mountain.
There are two spots along FR 379 where you can leave the road and reach Thompson Falls via an unmarked trail. (My BLOG has a map which is my best attempt at describing the location of this unmarked trail.)
After visiting Thompson Falls, I returned to FR 379 and crossed to the other side of the road to begin a short (0.7 mile) bushwhack in a westerly direction to access some ledges at about 1,450 ft elevation. In planning for this hike, I had seen these ledges on Google Earth and thought they would make a nice addition to the trek to Thompson Falls.
Although my trek to the ledges was technically a bushwhack, I was able to move as quickly as I could on a hiking trail. The entire route up to the ledges consisted of open hardwood forest with very little undergrowth. I arrived at the ledges in less than 45 minutes from the time that I left FR 379.
My BLOG has photos from my trek to Thompson Falls + the unnamed ledge at the eastern base of the Moat Mountain range.
The waterfall that I visited is called Thompson Falls. This one is located on Moat Brook at the base of the Moat Mountains, and is not to be confused with another Thompson Falls at the base of Wildcat Mountain.
There are two spots along FR 379 where you can leave the road and reach Thompson Falls via an unmarked trail. (My BLOG has a map which is my best attempt at describing the location of this unmarked trail.)
After visiting Thompson Falls, I returned to FR 379 and crossed to the other side of the road to begin a short (0.7 mile) bushwhack in a westerly direction to access some ledges at about 1,450 ft elevation. In planning for this hike, I had seen these ledges on Google Earth and thought they would make a nice addition to the trek to Thompson Falls.
Although my trek to the ledges was technically a bushwhack, I was able to move as quickly as I could on a hiking trail. The entire route up to the ledges consisted of open hardwood forest with very little undergrowth. I arrived at the ledges in less than 45 minutes from the time that I left FR 379.
My BLOG has photos from my trek to Thompson Falls + the unnamed ledge at the eastern base of the Moat Mountain range.
