WeRmudfun
New member
On our continuing quest to hike to the 92 sites on the fire tower list, we hiked up Mt Israel, #56 for us on the list. This mountain is also the 52 with a View list. We did three hikes on Sunday, this is the first. We parked at Mead Conservation Center in Center Sandwich, NH. We were the first ones there other than maintenance people who had spent the night. We started on the Wentworth Trail, which is only a 2 mile trail to the summit. Of course we explored and searched for Geocaches (found both that we were looking for), so our mileage was slightly higher. LOL
The Wentworth Trail starts out going up right away. What was lacking though was the roots and boulders on the trail, so it was a quite pleasant hike. There was a really nice stone staircase built on the trail, that help hiking up one of the steeper areas. Gotta love Trail Maintenance Crews! We had a total of three water crossing, the first 2 were basically step overs. The third one was the most significant one (I use the term loosely) and that was an easy rock hop. After that crossing it the trail follows the brook for a while then veers off to the right.
At the first ledge area there were greats views of Red Hill and the fire tower along with some views of Winnipesaukee and Squam Lake. Leaving the ledges the trail has a steep ascent, but it was short lived. We soon found ourselves walking along the ridge that was almost flat. At around 1.8 miles, we came to what we found out was the SW summit with a cairn off to the right. This is not the true summit. The views from here were OK, but we figured seeing how the true summit was only another 75 Yards, the views would be better from there. We did catch a glimpse of what we believe where the wind turbines in Groton, NH.
Once on the summit, we had it to ourselves for a few minutes before another couple came up. We searched for the Geocache and found it, took a small break and then headed back down to the parking area. Overall this is not a difficult hike in our opinion. There is a mixture of up and flat spots. The views make it worth the trip.
We did take the side trip over to explore Beede Falls and Cow Cave, but that will be a separate TR. It would have made the video too long.
Speaking of the video, it is posted for anyone interested in seeing it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XcA5gf12jI&list=UUvonD5mWIH03yQY3eosLwcQ
The Wentworth Trail starts out going up right away. What was lacking though was the roots and boulders on the trail, so it was a quite pleasant hike. There was a really nice stone staircase built on the trail, that help hiking up one of the steeper areas. Gotta love Trail Maintenance Crews! We had a total of three water crossing, the first 2 were basically step overs. The third one was the most significant one (I use the term loosely) and that was an easy rock hop. After that crossing it the trail follows the brook for a while then veers off to the right.
At the first ledge area there were greats views of Red Hill and the fire tower along with some views of Winnipesaukee and Squam Lake. Leaving the ledges the trail has a steep ascent, but it was short lived. We soon found ourselves walking along the ridge that was almost flat. At around 1.8 miles, we came to what we found out was the SW summit with a cairn off to the right. This is not the true summit. The views from here were OK, but we figured seeing how the true summit was only another 75 Yards, the views would be better from there. We did catch a glimpse of what we believe where the wind turbines in Groton, NH.
Once on the summit, we had it to ourselves for a few minutes before another couple came up. We searched for the Geocache and found it, took a small break and then headed back down to the parking area. Overall this is not a difficult hike in our opinion. There is a mixture of up and flat spots. The views make it worth the trip.
We did take the side trip over to explore Beede Falls and Cow Cave, but that will be a separate TR. It would have made the video too long.
Speaking of the video, it is posted for anyone interested in seeing it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XcA5gf12jI&list=UUvonD5mWIH03yQY3eosLwcQ
