CrazySage
New member
November 19, 2011
Trails: Caribou Valley Road, AT, Sugarloaf Side Trail, Spaulding spur path, bushwhack, Caribou Valley Road
Conditions: The Caribou Valley Road is in horrible condition. This was not a big surprise due to earlier trip reports, but the extent of the erosion is truly amazing. We parked at the 4 mile marker (the road is fairly well marked every mile) before the metal grate bridge, and walked the final mile to the AT crossing. The stream crossing is challenging (icy rocks with swift water), but manageable, just be careful. Trails are in pretty good shape and well-blazed. There were a few big, old blowdowns, that were hopped over, crawled under or walked around. There was about a half inch of snow on the ground at the road level, with about an inch or two of snow up on the ridge. All trail junctions are well-marked. We bushwhacked from the back of the shelter down to the CVR, initially passing through really thick spruce stands (where the bushes whacked back, HARD!) until we found a nice herd path/stream to follow down to the road.
Equipment: Microspikes were worn from the stream crossing all the way back to the car. The wind was bitter and cold on Sugarloaf, I wish I had packed a facemask. We could also have used eye protection for the bushwhack – those spruces whack back really hard.
Comments: It was a pleasant mid-November hike, with mostly clear skies and far too little day light. We started in the dark at 5:45 am and had a nice sunrise as we were climbing out of the cirque. Sugarloaf was wicked windy, with incredible views (I think we could even see Washington) and we hid in the summit building for a snack (later found out we were not supposed to be there – sorry). Spaulding had nice but limited views. I was tired when we reached the Spaulding shelter so I rested (and tracked a moose) while Anne high-tailed it to Abraham and back. We then double-checked our compass headings and headed out through the woods (darn spruce trees). Down we went and wound up in a big open, grassy area with the Caribou Valley Road in front of us. 4 miles or so of road walk and we were back in the car at 5:30 pm, again in the dark. Awesome day!
Jen English
jenglish1 at worcester dot edu
Trails: Caribou Valley Road, AT, Sugarloaf Side Trail, Spaulding spur path, bushwhack, Caribou Valley Road
Conditions: The Caribou Valley Road is in horrible condition. This was not a big surprise due to earlier trip reports, but the extent of the erosion is truly amazing. We parked at the 4 mile marker (the road is fairly well marked every mile) before the metal grate bridge, and walked the final mile to the AT crossing. The stream crossing is challenging (icy rocks with swift water), but manageable, just be careful. Trails are in pretty good shape and well-blazed. There were a few big, old blowdowns, that were hopped over, crawled under or walked around. There was about a half inch of snow on the ground at the road level, with about an inch or two of snow up on the ridge. All trail junctions are well-marked. We bushwhacked from the back of the shelter down to the CVR, initially passing through really thick spruce stands (where the bushes whacked back, HARD!) until we found a nice herd path/stream to follow down to the road.
Equipment: Microspikes were worn from the stream crossing all the way back to the car. The wind was bitter and cold on Sugarloaf, I wish I had packed a facemask. We could also have used eye protection for the bushwhack – those spruces whack back really hard.
Comments: It was a pleasant mid-November hike, with mostly clear skies and far too little day light. We started in the dark at 5:45 am and had a nice sunrise as we were climbing out of the cirque. Sugarloaf was wicked windy, with incredible views (I think we could even see Washington) and we hid in the summit building for a snack (later found out we were not supposed to be there – sorry). Spaulding had nice but limited views. I was tired when we reached the Spaulding shelter so I rested (and tracked a moose) while Anne high-tailed it to Abraham and back. We then double-checked our compass headings and headed out through the woods (darn spruce trees). Down we went and wound up in a big open, grassy area with the Caribou Valley Road in front of us. 4 miles or so of road walk and we were back in the car at 5:30 pm, again in the dark. Awesome day!
Jen English
jenglish1 at worcester dot edu
