New Hampshire 2013 Act 3

Near the summit of Mt. Whiteface

DJ asked me if we could go to New Hampshire this week so I jumped on the opportunity to hang out with my son.

An eighteen year old would much rather hang with their buddies, so I took advantage of some father-son time. We drove up on Thursday morning. We packed Wednesday night so we were ready to go at 6:30 am.

DJ loves hiking mountains. We are trying to complete all 48 mountains in New Hampshire over four thousand feet. We have been working on this goal for a decade. We decided to hike Mt Whiteface. This mountain is the southernmost 4000 footer. It faces the lakes region. We arrived about 10:30 am. We packed the backpacks and set off.

It took me less than half a mile to know my legs had nothing. You know those days when you go for a jog or the gym and you have no energy? That was what my legs felt like. Unfortunately for me I was with a kid that runs cross country and does “core exercises” with his friends for fun. So I pushed on. After about a mile and a half the trail got really steep. I let DJ go ahead of me and stop at the first good view. He took off like a rocket. I trudged on up the side of the mountain with no legs under me. For those counting, the trail up Mt Whiteface is 4.4 miles (one way) and 3000 vertical feet.

I realized quickly that I was doing something way past my physical fitness level. They say to “know your limits” I knew I was way past mine. However, since I let DJ go ahead I kept on. Finally I reached the first view. DJ had been there an hour. It was a nice view facing south. Twenty two miles away we could see Lake Winnipesaukee. From that view we could see we were another 500 vertical feet from the top. We went up a difficult trail. We scrambled up many rock ledges. Honestly, if I would have been in shape the last part would have been fun and challenging. At the top we ate lunch, took pictures and enjoyed the view. There were views both north and south. It was very hazy so the view wasn’t crystal clear. Yet we still could tell how pretty it was.

Campsite at Russell Pond

The hike down sucked as much as the hike up. My knees (and DJ’s for that matter) were shaking from the downhill. We didn’t get out of the wood until 5:50 pm.

After we left the wood we drove to Russell Pond campground. First we stopped at a store and we each bought chocolate milk. The drive to Russell Pond was almost an hour and a half. We set up the tent and walked down to the water. That was really all we had time for before dark. As you can imagine DJ said I snored really loud.

I got up and did some trout fishing in Russell Pond in the morning. I fished from shore for about an hour but didn’t get any. I did watch and listen to a loon so it wasn’t a waste of time. After fishing I got DJ up, packed the tent and took off. Of course DJ wanted to hike another mountain, since my plan was not to die of a heart attack; I chose something a little easier and just as rewarding. I have always wanted to do a trail in Waterville Valley that leads to some small waterfalls. I have put it off because the trail system and finding the trailhead seemed a bit confusing. Since we were near the area and it was plenty early if we got lost, it was worth going.



One of the Waterville Cascades







 

The loop hike has waterfalls, a short trail leading to giant white pines and another trail leading to a huge glacial erratic. I can tell you, this four and a half mile loop was awesome. Although the first quarter mile was steep it leveled off and was a very pleasant hike. It’s about 1.2 miles to the cascades. There are three or four waterfalls right above each other with big swimming pools in between.  They were all over ten feet. Although it was been dry, there was still enough water to make them attractive.

After we passed the waterfalls we walked over a bridge onto Livermore Road. We followed that down almost to the car. We stopped at the side trail for the big pines (Big Pines Trail- .2 miles) and the Boulder Trail (the large glacial erratic sits in the river just a minute from the main trail).

The absolute highlight was while turning a corner on Livermore Road we saw a young moose. It saw us and started trotting down the road. It stayed on the road about 40 yards in front of us for over a quarter mile. It would occasionally turn around and look at us. Sometimes it would stop and feed. Some points it would trot for 10 seconds. Finally at a clearing, it took a left onto another trail. As we passed it, it looked at us again. This moose could have cared less if we were using the same trail or not. Needless to say it was a memory I will have forever.



For .25 miles this moose walked with us

After our hike, we drove to Sandwich Notch Road. We stopped at Kiah Pond where we ate lunch. I fished for five minutes and caught a common shiner. After lunch we drove to Beede Falls. DJ had never seen this falls and it is one of my favorites. When we got done with our short hike to the falls we drove home.

 

For anyone that would like to do the hike to Waterville Cascades, here are the actual trails. I thought this was a great hike. It had a lot of reward for not too much effort.  The trailhead parking is at Snow Mountain. It is right next to the ski jump in town. Follow the Cascade Path for about a mile. It is well marked with yellow arrows and signs. You will come to a trail junction. Take the right trail, this is still Cascade Path. You will come to the waterfalls shortly. Below the first fall you can cross the river. The trail follows up the river on both sides and comes out the same place. We stayed on the right. Above the waterfalls is a bridge. This is Livermore Road. Take a left. This is almost completely downhill. You will come across some side trails. The trail to the Big Pines is an out and back. The Boulder Trail just beyond is a short trip to the glacial erratic. Once back on Livermore Road, take Greenly Path on your left (do not take Greenly Trail to the right or you will be heading deep into the woods. After a few minutes on Greenly Path you will come to a T intersection just called “the connector”. We had no idea which way to go. We took the left way (correct). Follow until you come to the main road. When you reach the asphalt road, go over the bridge to your left. This will bring you in front of some tennis courts, take a left here and you will see the lot your car is parked at in a minute.

It sounds really complicated, but it really is a big loop. Mostly you go counter clockwise. Total loop including side trip is an easy 4.5-4.7 miles.  

Totals for the trip

Animals- moose, loon, toads, newt, leeches, common shiner, DJ saw a spruce grouse

14 trail miles