una_dogger
Well-known member
Who: Eric Rathbun, Madison and Terra the traildoggies
When: Saturday, May 28, 2011
Trails and Conditions:
Ethan Pond Trail to Shoal Pond Trail jct : clear of blowdowns. Bog bridges very slippery right now. Many trillium and false solomon seal.
Shoal Pond Trail to Stillwater Junction: many many many Trillium! Some bridges badly deteriorated, one or two floaters, but overall they are in good shape. WICKED slippery!! A few blowdowns along the way, mainly in the third and fourth mile of the trail.
Desolation Trail to Mt Carrigan: no blowdown. Snow free to the summit. A bit of ice remains on the rockier pitches.
Signal Ridge trail to FR85: no blowdown, no snow. Nice "running into" Farmer and Dangergirl on thier way up Carrigan.
A HUGE beaver damn and ponding has formed just before the large crossing (before the jct of the Carrigan Notch trail if coming down from summit). The beavers have been very busy since I was here last!
FR85: provided a nice relief after the rocky descent of Signal Ridge. Clear except one very large blowdown at approx 1.25 miles in.
We reached Signal Ridge Rd, 18 miles and 9 hours into our day at 5pm. Having not hiked in 6 weeks (!!!???), I guess I'm a bit out of shape. The original idea was to continue to redline the Sawyer Pond Trail a mile or so past the shelter, pick up a bike path to take us across to the Brunel Trail, take Brunel to Owl Cliff spur, visit Owl Cliff, then head up and over Tremont. Alas, we should have started earlier or in the reversed direction -- not knowing the exact location of the bike path -- trying to find it/follow it in the dark lost its appeal and we decided to walk the road to car B at Tremont TH.
Just as we were discussing how nobody would pick up two mudrats and their dawgs, friends Laurie and Ross stopped and offerred us all a ride AND a cold vitamin water!!!! We happily accepted, on both accounts.
Now, ahead of schedule, at Car B, and shy of 20 mile minimum for Long Way Summit Series, Eric pulled out the map and found a redline that would :
a. bring us to 20 miles
b. utilize our most excellent car A at the Ethan Pond TH.
So we pulled into Dry River Campground, and hiked the campground connector to the Dry River Trail, then continued West on the Saco River Trail to the Webster Cliff Trail, where we turned south, crossed the road to car A.
(note, Princess Buttercup, the 0.1 mile initial stretch of your adopted trail is clear and open)
All in all, a GREAT day in the woods with really great hiking friends!
When: Saturday, May 28, 2011
Trails and Conditions:
Ethan Pond Trail to Shoal Pond Trail jct : clear of blowdowns. Bog bridges very slippery right now. Many trillium and false solomon seal.
Shoal Pond Trail to Stillwater Junction: many many many Trillium! Some bridges badly deteriorated, one or two floaters, but overall they are in good shape. WICKED slippery!! A few blowdowns along the way, mainly in the third and fourth mile of the trail.
Desolation Trail to Mt Carrigan: no blowdown. Snow free to the summit. A bit of ice remains on the rockier pitches.
Signal Ridge trail to FR85: no blowdown, no snow. Nice "running into" Farmer and Dangergirl on thier way up Carrigan.
A HUGE beaver damn and ponding has formed just before the large crossing (before the jct of the Carrigan Notch trail if coming down from summit). The beavers have been very busy since I was here last!FR85: provided a nice relief after the rocky descent of Signal Ridge. Clear except one very large blowdown at approx 1.25 miles in.
We reached Signal Ridge Rd, 18 miles and 9 hours into our day at 5pm. Having not hiked in 6 weeks (!!!???), I guess I'm a bit out of shape.
The original idea was to continue to redline the Sawyer Pond Trail a mile or so past the shelter, pick up a bike path to take us across to the Brunel Trail, take Brunel to Owl Cliff spur, visit Owl Cliff, then head up and over Tremont. Alas, we should have started earlier or in the reversed direction -- not knowing the exact location of the bike path -- trying to find it/follow it in the dark lost its appeal and we decided to walk the road to car B at Tremont TH. Just as we were discussing how nobody would pick up two mudrats and their dawgs, friends Laurie and Ross stopped and offerred us all a ride AND a cold vitamin water!!!!
We happily accepted, on both accounts. Now, ahead of schedule, at Car B, and shy of 20 mile minimum for Long Way Summit Series, Eric pulled out the map and found a redline that would :
a. bring us to 20 miles
b. utilize our most excellent car A at the Ethan Pond TH.
So we pulled into Dry River Campground, and hiked the campground connector to the Dry River Trail, then continued West on the Saco River Trail to the Webster Cliff Trail, where we turned south, crossed the road to car A.
(note, Princess Buttercup, the 0.1 mile initial stretch of your adopted trail is clear and open
)All in all, a GREAT day in the woods with really great hiking friends!
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