Mt. Watatic
Where: Mt. Watatic, Wapack/Midstate Trail
When: 25 March, 2021
With: Solo
I had a new pair of hiking boots to break in, and this seemed like a good place to go. I last visited in 1984, when I was breaking in a new car. Then, I was driving from the outskirts of Boston. Today's ride was some 30 miles shorter, and took about an hour. The remains of an overnight storm were still around, which worried me a bit because I hadn't brought rain gear, but it cleared up by the time I reached the trailhead.
The parking area was different than I recalled - a full-on parking lot vs. the roadside pull-off in the picture from the 1984 hike. I figured I'd either missed the old lot, or my recollection of the location of the old hike was wrong, or perhaps things had changed over the past 37 years, but no matter. I pulled in to a rather muddy spot, laced up my new boots, and was on my way within a few minutes.
There were maybe a half dozen other vehicles sharing the lot, and two more came in as I prepared to get going. I snapped some pictures, mostly for the timestamps, and headed for the trail. A family group with a number of kids was getting ready to go, and I wanted to get out ahead of them.
I'd be walking the combined Wapack/Midstate Trail. The Wapack Trail runs 21.5 miles from the Mt. Watatic parking area up to North Pack Monadnock in New Hampshire. The 92 mile Midstate Trail starts in Rhode Island and runs up through Central Mass, joining the Wapack at the parking lot and sharing the path up to the New Hampshire border
The trail started as a wide dirt road, with scattered patches of ice. I'd brought microspikes, but they wound up staying in my backpack the whole day. A short distance past the parking area, the trail crossed a wet area on a board bridge, then began to climb. Soon after, I came to a junction. The trail I was on continued as the Midstate Trail Bypass, rejoining the Wapack/Midstate Trail North of Watatic and offering a route to the summit from that direction. The Wapack/Midstate Trail departed to the right, and that's the way I went.
No longer following an old road, the path became more like a traditional trail. After the junction, it dropped to a stream crossing, then began climbing in earnest. This is a very popular hiking area, and the trail was heavily eroded and quite wide in spots. At times it was just a broad gap through the forest, full of rocks and roots. There were still occasional patches of ice, and sections of wet stone slabs, but overall the hiking wasn't difficult.
The trail climbed steadily, then after one final set of slabs it leveled off and began an arc around the side of the hill. Shortly afterward, trail signs began to appear and soon the summit was in sight. I exchanged greetings with a small group of older gentlemen who were descending as I approached, then made my way to the top. It was marked by a large cairn and a date carved in the rock. The remains of footings for summit structures were scattered around nearby. There was formerly a ski area on the east side of the mountain, so presumably those footings were for lifts and summit buildings. A low cloud layer obstructed any views of the distance, but it was still pretty in its own way.
I only stayed long enough for a few pictures, then thought about what to do next. Since the new boots were feeling okay, and it had only taken me a half hour to climb the 1.1 miles to the summit, I decided to head for the NH border, as I'd done in 1984. A few steps back the way I'd come brought me to the section of the Wapack/Midstate Trail heading north.
The trail dropped down more rock slabs, and the patches of ice were a bit more extensive. My microspikes still stayed in the pack though. I passed a pair of hikers just below the summit, coming up, then the large family group from the parking lot further down, also ascending. They'd all taken the Bypass trail.
The trail continued to descend a bit, then began a gentle climb up Nutting Hill. I met up with the older gentlemen again as I approached that hilltop, passing them as they took a break to rest on the rocks. There were a series of cairns along the trail, so it's not really clear where the actual top of the hill was, but I passed it at some point.
Shortly afterward, I came to another trail junction. The Midstate Bypass came in from the left, where a large sign pointed the way to the parking area, and the Wapack/Midstate Trail continued its yellow-blazed way North toward NH. I went North. The trail at this point was clearly the remains of an old road, which continued South as the Bypass trail. Now, instead of ice, mud began to become an issue. The ground was still somewhat frozen, but the recent warmth and rain were changing that. In the coming days, sections of that trail will be boot-sucking mud pits.
It was just a short walk from that junction to the NH border, marked by a low stone wall and some more trail signs. The Wapack & Midstate Trails parted company at this point, with the Wapack continuing North while the Midstate ran West a short distance to its terminus. I followed the Wapack a bit, just as far as a side trail that could serve as an access route for a Midstate through-hike, then returned to the border and headed West on the Midstate Trail.
I recalled a stone state border marker, but hadn't seen it yet. Soon, a small marker appeared, but it had "Borden 1834" carved into it. Turns out it was a border marker, set by Simeon Borden, a renowned surveyor. However, the official state border marker, the one I recalled, was a few steps further along the trail. A large stone monument, with MA & NH carved on opposite sides. It also marks the junction of the borders of the towns of Ashby and Ashburnham, MA and New Ipswich, NH.
After taking the requisite pictures, I began heading South, back toward my car, following the State Line Trail. It parallels a portion of the Midstate Bypass Trail, but it's a pretty path through the woods versus the remains of an old road. I stopped to take a few pictures along the way, including one of a rather large paw print, but mostly just put one boot in front of the other until I arrived at the Midstate Bypass Trail. Surprisingly, I had the trail to myself as I continued South, eventually rejoining the Wapack/Midstate Trail for the final few steps back to the parking area.
All in all, a nice day, despite the lack of summit views. A little over 3.5 miles, an hour and 45 minutes of walking, and the summit of 1832 foot Mt. Watatic. The new boots got a good workout, too.
Final note: As I headed back toward home, I spotted the pull-off parking area I'd remembered. I did a quick U-turn, parked the car, and got a picture to match the one from 1984 before resuming my journey home.
