Smarts Mountain – from the north and from the the south.
An obscure entrance to the Appalachian Trail offers quick access to the trail where it crosses Jacobs Brook, and climbs Eastman Ledges on its way up Mount Cube. It’s a short walk, perhaps a quarter mile along the brook and then a half mile up the A.T. to the ledges. I had not been along this section of trail since I backpacked this segment in 2012, and had not driven to this access point since before the turn of the century. I’d been eager to return, so today I visited at the end of fall foliage and the beginning of deer season. I got some great photos of the cascades along Jacobs Brook and had a nice view of Smarts Mountain.
View of Smarts Mountain from Eastman Ledges on Mount Cube.
Then I drove back to Lyme and hopped up to one of its favorite viewpoints to look back at the same mountain. Read on!
The Upper Valley Land Trust recently conserved a large area of forest on the slopes of Stonehouse Mountain in nearby Orford, NH. It’s not a well-known peak – indeed, its tree-covered summit doesn’t quite poke above 2,000′ and offers no views. But when I learned they had laid out a new hiking trail to its top, and realized it was a short drive from my home, I had the urge to investigate. The advent of fall leaf-season was the clincher. Read on.
It will come as no surprise to those of you who know me, that I was back out on the trail early on my second morning out of quarantine. Not long after sunrise, I drove north along the Connecticut River and then hanging a right through the morning fog toward Moosilauke, my spiritual home in the White Mountains. This route takes me from the town of Lyme north through Orford and northeast to Warren, past the barns and pastures of riverbottom farmland, past the B&B Inns and historic sites that normally draw tourists, past the auto-body shops and driveways filled with pickup trucks. Today it was also striking to drive left to right through the political spectrum, beginning with the Black Lives Matter signs in Lyme and transitioning to the Trump-Pence campaign signs in Orford and eventually to the Trump 2020: No more bullshit sign in Warren.
Moosilauke summit on a fine summer day.
I arrived early and parked at the satellite parking area – the road is gated because Moosilauke Ravine Lodge is closed due to the pandemic. Sigh; this adds a mile-and-a-half to the round-trip distance. Still, the sky was brilliant blue and the morning air was cool. I made quick time, up Snapper to Carriage Road, pausing to visit South Peak, and then on to the main summit. Only then did I see another person – after two hours and almost four miles of hiking. A light breeze blew across the summit, while the cool morning air forced clouds to form and then dissipate as the breeze passed over the higher peaks to the northeast. Four other hikers were already at the summit, sitting suitably far apart.
View from the Moosilauke summit on a fine summer day.
I didn’t stay long, and headed down the Gorge Brook Trail – thus completing the classic circuit in the opposite direction from my normal pattern. As expected, I encountered many more hikers on my way down. All were kind enough to step aside, or would thank me after I stepped aside; about a third would pop on a mask while passing by. (Personally, I don’t see a need for a mask while hiking outdoors, in a breeze, when the contact time is less than 10 seconds, and only make an effort to keep distance during passing.)
Moosilauke summit on a fine summer day.
The terrain here is so different than Switzerland, but so beautiful in its own way, and so full of memories. A wonderful day.
David Kotz 