vegematic
Active member
We woke up to a sunny, breezy day and knew that Rt 113 had opened in the last week, making hikes south of Evans Notch more accesible. This short loop had been on my to-do list for a while and today seemed to be the day.
We got a little confused on the logging roads after turning off the Deer Hill Rd but after consulting the WMG we got it sorted out and found a place to park at a tiny 4-way intersection in the woods. A family of ATVers rode by as we changed into boots. The Conant Trail crossed a sort of causeway across a marshy area and continued to follow logging roads for about a mile. There were no markers except one indicating a right turn not long after the causeway. We guessed that in the absence of signs we should just keep straight and that seemed to work. We came to a stone foundation on our left and this was where the trail turned left off the logging roads.
The trail was quite nice but rather steep in places. The dry leaves were slippery, making the trail feel icy. In places we kicked the leaves away so we could get traction on the duff underneath. The black flies and mosquitoes took turns being awful...but mostly the black flies won that contest. It was one of those "hike with your mouth closed and don't stop" kind of days. We soon came to a ledge with an excellent view of the Baldfaces and somewhat later a view north over Speckled Mtn and the Royces. Somewhere along this section is where my husband thinks he left his prescription eyeglasses in a black case. If anyone hikes this loop in the near future and sees them, please pack them out and pm me!
Back into the woods we descended to a small stream crossing and then climbed up to the ledges on Lord Hill. Here we chanced a snack break overlooking Horseshoe Pond at the foot of the mountain. We each jammed an apple and an energy bar in our faces as fast as we could. Five minutes of being chewed by bugs was about all we could stand. We stayed on the Conant Trail, saving the Mine Loop for another day with fewer bugs. The remainder of the hike was uneventful. As we were re-crossing the causeway near our car we decided to explore an old dam that was visible to our left. There wasn't much more to see close up than what we could see from the trail...we each picked up several ticks in the process.
Many wildflowers were in bloom: Painted Trillium, Trailing Arbuttus, Gaywings, Star Flower, Violets, and others whose names I don't know.
-vegematic
We got a little confused on the logging roads after turning off the Deer Hill Rd but after consulting the WMG we got it sorted out and found a place to park at a tiny 4-way intersection in the woods. A family of ATVers rode by as we changed into boots. The Conant Trail crossed a sort of causeway across a marshy area and continued to follow logging roads for about a mile. There were no markers except one indicating a right turn not long after the causeway. We guessed that in the absence of signs we should just keep straight and that seemed to work. We came to a stone foundation on our left and this was where the trail turned left off the logging roads.
The trail was quite nice but rather steep in places. The dry leaves were slippery, making the trail feel icy. In places we kicked the leaves away so we could get traction on the duff underneath. The black flies and mosquitoes took turns being awful...but mostly the black flies won that contest. It was one of those "hike with your mouth closed and don't stop" kind of days. We soon came to a ledge with an excellent view of the Baldfaces and somewhat later a view north over Speckled Mtn and the Royces. Somewhere along this section is where my husband thinks he left his prescription eyeglasses in a black case. If anyone hikes this loop in the near future and sees them, please pack them out and pm me!
Back into the woods we descended to a small stream crossing and then climbed up to the ledges on Lord Hill. Here we chanced a snack break overlooking Horseshoe Pond at the foot of the mountain. We each jammed an apple and an energy bar in our faces as fast as we could. Five minutes of being chewed by bugs was about all we could stand. We stayed on the Conant Trail, saving the Mine Loop for another day with fewer bugs. The remainder of the hike was uneventful. As we were re-crossing the causeway near our car we decided to explore an old dam that was visible to our left. There wasn't much more to see close up than what we could see from the trail...we each picked up several ticks in the process.
Many wildflowers were in bloom: Painted Trillium, Trailing Arbuttus, Gaywings, Star Flower, Violets, and others whose names I don't know.
-vegematic
