AntlerPeak
New member
So this was not an easy one as the mountains threw it all at us. Monday morning's early start should have served as a warning. But then again when did old mountain goats ever heed warnings? Our seven am launch from Poultney Vt turned into an eleven am start. Flat tire which ended up as needing a new tire replacement. We limped into a campground in Littleton NH around 1pm. A bit late to head up to the north country. So we took an afternoon warmup on Artists Bluff and Bald Mt, not exactly a poor choice.
Tuesday we drove up to Groveton where we found the Nash Stream road still gated as suggested by many here that it likely would be. A retreat to Rte 110 found us at Stark and the Lake Christine trailhead where all the fun began. The Old Summer Club Trail is not a trail at all but a series of old roads that wind through the forest to a jct with the CT.
A word of warning, there are no blazes and all of the signs mentioned in the AMC guide are missing. So you have to use care to follow the route through the maze of roads. If you choose correctly the first confirmation you find is at one mile where your road crosses a bridge. The second is three tenths later where you will see a few blue blazes signifying you have reached the Nash Stream Forest. No signs, but if you read the book you know the blazes signify the forest boundry. Let us hope nothing else is marked by blue blazes.
At one point seven miles you find your first markings, the yellow blazed CT and a CT sign. That was the first concrete confirmation we had where we could say, "Oh yeah this is it." Above the trail jct for Victor Head at two miles things get nasty. The CT is loaded with blowdown, not enough to lose the trail as it is well marked but more than enough to take its toll.
We spent considerable time and energy climbing through, over and under the stuff where we were really begining to feel it. We had been moving much faster than guide book time until the Victor Head jct. Above that things really slowed down. So if you go, ( trip well worth it even with the beating you take ) pay close attention to the early maze of roads. And allow extra time from victor Head to the col because of the tons of blowdown. It's not the Sentinal Range but this comes close to being considered a bushwhack over the nearly two miles from VH to the col.
Tuesday we drove up to Groveton where we found the Nash Stream road still gated as suggested by many here that it likely would be. A retreat to Rte 110 found us at Stark and the Lake Christine trailhead where all the fun began. The Old Summer Club Trail is not a trail at all but a series of old roads that wind through the forest to a jct with the CT.
A word of warning, there are no blazes and all of the signs mentioned in the AMC guide are missing. So you have to use care to follow the route through the maze of roads. If you choose correctly the first confirmation you find is at one mile where your road crosses a bridge. The second is three tenths later where you will see a few blue blazes signifying you have reached the Nash Stream Forest. No signs, but if you read the book you know the blazes signify the forest boundry. Let us hope nothing else is marked by blue blazes.
At one point seven miles you find your first markings, the yellow blazed CT and a CT sign. That was the first concrete confirmation we had where we could say, "Oh yeah this is it." Above the trail jct for Victor Head at two miles things get nasty. The CT is loaded with blowdown, not enough to lose the trail as it is well marked but more than enough to take its toll.
We spent considerable time and energy climbing through, over and under the stuff where we were really begining to feel it. We had been moving much faster than guide book time until the Victor Head jct. Above that things really slowed down. So if you go, ( trip well worth it even with the beating you take ) pay close attention to the early maze of roads. And allow extra time from victor Head to the col because of the tons of blowdown. It's not the Sentinal Range but this comes close to being considered a bushwhack over the nearly two miles from VH to the col.
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