Mount Major
Where: Mt. Major, NH
When: 7/6/03
With: Solo
I'd volunteered to drive Andy and his friend Don to Boy Scout camp up in NH and figured I'd try to get in a little hiking while I was in the area. Pickup the following Saturday was at 9AM and I considered driving up Friday and camping out over night, so I wanted to check out the possibilities for campsites ahead of time. The camp is in Gilmanton, just west of Lake Winnipesaukee and at the southern end of the Belknap Mountains. I checked some maps and noted Mt. Major, rising above the shore of the lake at the northern end of Alton Bay. I'd heard of it, and it seemed like it might offer some easily accessible yet sufficiently isolated spots to suit my purpose.
Dropping the boys off took longer than I expected since I wound up carrying their gear to the campsite for them, and I got a late start toward the trails, but I still had plenty of day to work with. It was a fairly direct route to the Lake and then up the western shore of Alton Bay to the well-marked parking area. A number of cars were there already and a few folks were also preparing to hike. I grabbed my gear (a hydration pack with some snacks and a camera), laced up my boots, decided to leave the poles in the car and departed.
I headed to the obvious trailhead and quickly came to a trail map. Three routes led to the summit. The trail I was on was the most direct route and a second path departed from it about halfway up to offer a slightly different approach to the peak. The third trail was the longest, and it started from a different spot back at the parking area. I decided to continue on the trail I was on and then take the back route to the top. I'd pick a return route later.
The area reminded me of Mt. Monadnock. Wide, well-travelled paths showed evidence of heavy usage. The routes were all short, the summit offered awesome views and the trailhead was right on a major highway near a popular vacation area. Lots of families and kids versus "serious" hikers. The trail at the beginning followed an old roadway, and split briefly soon after the start before combined to a single walkway again. It climbed at first, then levelled off to curve around the back of the mountain. At the end of this stretch the "backdoor" route I planned to take left to the right while the main trail forked off to the left and started to climb. My route - a much smaller, less travelled path now - dropped for a bit then curved to the left and began to climb. I noted a some small streams and overgrown side paths...all good options for campsites. A man and a boy appeared and asked how much further it was to the trail junction. I assured them it was very close and continued on with the woods to myself.
The trail still curved around to the left and climbed steadily, then made a sharper left turn and got steeper. Before too long I'd gained some good altitude and began to sense I was approaching the top. Soon afterwards I emerged from the woods and found myself walking through a scrubby open area. A trail sign pointed the way to Straightback Mt. and the third route. I briefly considered making the walk to check out Straightback but decided I didn't have the time and just kept heading for the summit. The top was fairly broad so it took a while before I finally scrambled up the last few rocks to gain the view of the lake. A small roofless stone structure marked the top and I made my way over to it, then moved a bit further along to find a place to sit. There were probably another 10-12 people sharing the summit with me as I settled into a crook in the rock, checked out the view and pulled out my cell phone to give Jane a call.
I stayed up there about 1/2 an hour, resting , taking pictures and exploring the summit. A plaque explained the history of the stone structure. It had been built by the former owner of the land as a courtesy to the hikers. He attempted unsuccessfully to donate the mountain to the state but was stymied when abutting landowners refused to join in. Eventually though it did become a NH state park. Somewhere along the way though some vandals managed to topple some of the shelter's stones and it had never been repaired.
By this time it was getting late so I decided to just follow the main trail back to the car. It dropped fairly precipitously off the summit and made for some tricky moves to get down a series of steep rock faces, but then it levelled off and turned back into a regular trail just after passing through an obvious campsite. The path continued a steady drop through the woods before returning to the trail junction. From here back to the car I was on the same trail I'd taken up.
More pictures
When: 7/6/03
With: Solo
I'd volunteered to drive Andy and his friend Don to Boy Scout camp up in NH and figured I'd try to get in a little hiking while I was in the area. Pickup the following Saturday was at 9AM and I considered driving up Friday and camping out over night, so I wanted to check out the possibilities for campsites ahead of time. The camp is in Gilmanton, just west of Lake Winnipesaukee and at the southern end of the Belknap Mountains. I checked some maps and noted Mt. Major, rising above the shore of the lake at the northern end of Alton Bay. I'd heard of it, and it seemed like it might offer some easily accessible yet sufficiently isolated spots to suit my purpose.
Dropping the boys off took longer than I expected since I wound up carrying their gear to the campsite for them, and I got a late start toward the trails, but I still had plenty of day to work with. It was a fairly direct route to the Lake and then up the western shore of Alton Bay to the well-marked parking area. A number of cars were there already and a few folks were also preparing to hike. I grabbed my gear (a hydration pack with some snacks and a camera), laced up my boots, decided to leave the poles in the car and departed.
I headed to the obvious trailhead and quickly came to a trail map. Three routes led to the summit. The trail I was on was the most direct route and a second path departed from it about halfway up to offer a slightly different approach to the peak. The third trail was the longest, and it started from a different spot back at the parking area. I decided to continue on the trail I was on and then take the back route to the top. I'd pick a return route later.
The area reminded me of Mt. Monadnock. Wide, well-travelled paths showed evidence of heavy usage. The routes were all short, the summit offered awesome views and the trailhead was right on a major highway near a popular vacation area. Lots of families and kids versus "serious" hikers. The trail at the beginning followed an old roadway, and split briefly soon after the start before combined to a single walkway again. It climbed at first, then levelled off to curve around the back of the mountain. At the end of this stretch the "backdoor" route I planned to take left to the right while the main trail forked off to the left and started to climb. My route - a much smaller, less travelled path now - dropped for a bit then curved to the left and began to climb. I noted a some small streams and overgrown side paths...all good options for campsites. A man and a boy appeared and asked how much further it was to the trail junction. I assured them it was very close and continued on with the woods to myself.
The trail still curved around to the left and climbed steadily, then made a sharper left turn and got steeper. Before too long I'd gained some good altitude and began to sense I was approaching the top. Soon afterwards I emerged from the woods and found myself walking through a scrubby open area. A trail sign pointed the way to Straightback Mt. and the third route. I briefly considered making the walk to check out Straightback but decided I didn't have the time and just kept heading for the summit. The top was fairly broad so it took a while before I finally scrambled up the last few rocks to gain the view of the lake. A small roofless stone structure marked the top and I made my way over to it, then moved a bit further along to find a place to sit. There were probably another 10-12 people sharing the summit with me as I settled into a crook in the rock, checked out the view and pulled out my cell phone to give Jane a call.
I stayed up there about 1/2 an hour, resting , taking pictures and exploring the summit. A plaque explained the history of the stone structure. It had been built by the former owner of the land as a courtesy to the hikers. He attempted unsuccessfully to donate the mountain to the state but was stymied when abutting landowners refused to join in. Eventually though it did become a NH state park. Somewhere along the way though some vandals managed to topple some of the shelter's stones and it had never been repaired.
By this time it was getting late so I decided to just follow the main trail back to the car. It dropped fairly precipitously off the summit and made for some tricky moves to get down a series of steep rock faces, but then it levelled off and turned back into a regular trail just after passing through an obvious campsite. The path continued a steady drop through the woods before returning to the trail junction. From here back to the car I was on the same trail I'd taken up.
More pictures
