This small NH mountain has a 4.8 mile loop trail with great views of nearby Passaconaway, Chocorua, Paugus, Square Ledges, Potash, the Sleepers, Tripyramid, Green Cliffs, and Carrigain.  You can also see Mt. Washington off in the distance.
     It was surprising how many people were on the trail, since it is not described in any of the 50 hikes type guidebooks.  It is described in the all-encompassing guidebook.  On the trail the three of us met a yellow lab named Chester and a white poodle named Kashi.
     Photos of the hike are in the "Pruneface" photo album.  We proceeded at a leisurely pace, starting at 10:35 AM and proceeding on the easterly part of the loop, which has water sources, thence to the westerly side of the loop, which has no water sources.  Although the weatherman predicted it would be 68 degrees, I think it was more like 75 degrees with a nice breeze.   There were a few gnats but the breeze kept them away while we were up on the ledges.  We were out at 3:00 PM.
     Although this is a very enjoyable hike, I would not recommend it in wet conditions because there is a lot of scrambling up slanted rock which would be hard to do if the rock were wet and slippery. 
     Near the start of the trail there is a small pond which was full of toad tadpoles. 

     My brother Fenster and I, Dickens, are two Welsh terriers who are very happy that the 2008 hiking season has finally begun.  It is not possible to do much hiking when the snow is three feet deep, as it was at our home for most of the long winter.
     The Holyoke Range in Massachusetts is a great place to hike in the spring, with lots of great views. 
 The trail is fairly well drained and does not fill up with mud as badly as many other trails.  Bruce's plan today was to take a trail, called the Black Rock trail, which does not show up on the Holyoke Range map in 1994 but does show up on the 2005 map.  Black Rock is a lookout on a spur coming off the range to the south.
      We wanted to start on Pearl St. but evidently that trail has been closed off.  Instead, we went over to the southwest trailhead for the Metacomet Monadnock trail and started up that trail.  Soon, we turned off the MM trail onto the Dry Brook trail.  Here we met a bicyclist who had gone up the road to the top of Mt. Holyoke and then took the Dry Brook trail downhill to here. 
      We continued along the Dry Brook trail.  The Holyoke Range has some nice stands of hemlocks which supply pleasant shade.  We two dogs often bathed in Dry Brook which was gushing along very strongly.  We then turned off onto the Lithia Springs trail, and then onto the Black Rock trail. 
      We  arrived at the top of Black Rock at 12:33 PM and had lunch.  Bruce  gave us each a roast beef sandwich and a bite of his ham and cheese sandwich.  It was a good 80 degrees and Bruce hung his shirt up to dry in the breeze (that's it in the photo).  There was a delightful view of Lithia Springs Reservoir down below and you could see out to the far horizon off to the south and east. 
     On the way back we heard a chickadee and saw a few crows.  Most of the wildlife seemed to be out of sight on this warm, sunny day.    No flowers were out yet and only a few bugs.  The whole range is made of basalt and has a wonderful supply of interesting, symmetrical rocks.  It was a very pleasant hike to begin the season with.

     The fall is beautiful but I , Dickens, a devoted hiking dog, am sorry to see the hiking season drawing to a close.  Bruce, Fenster and I arrived at the trailhead at the south end of the Wapack trail at 12 noon.  There was space there in the parking lot, but a very long line of cars out on Route 119.  Tons of people were taking the relatively short hike to Mt Watatic, many of these being families with children. 
     To avoid these large crowds, we took the Mid State Trail north to Mt Pratt, thereby bypassing the closer and easier Mt Watatic.  Bruce had climbed Mt Pratt twice before and it is his favorite mountain on the Wapack trail.  One time he was there he saw two swooping peregrine falcons.
     The weather was perfect for hiking:  71 degrees, sunny, with a pleasant breeze.  There were some muddy rain puddles in the trail from rains on the preceding three days, but overall, due to a dry August and September, the trails were in pretty good condition and not muddy or soggy.
     When we got to the intersection with the Wapack trail and turned left, we met a man and woman from Lowell MA who were coming down off Watatic and heading north.  They only went as far as Binney Pond and then turned back.
     At 1:15 PM we arrived at Binney Pond which had a fairly high water level.  Continuing uphill we met a few people coming down off Pratt, including two women from Massachusetts, one of whom told us, "I painted the leaves today just for you."
     We arrived at the lookout on Pratt at 1:50 PM.  This is about 70 feet below the actual summit which is 1817 feet high.  There were two men already there, about 60 years old, wearing orange jackets and caps.  After they finished eating lunch they wandered off east to look for a geo cache token, but they never did find it. 
     There is a beautiful view here down to Binney Pond to the south and then on to Mt Watatic behind that.  You can also see the Boston skyline off in the distance.  The fall colors today were very pretty.   We had lunch including one roast beef sandwich for each dog, and Bruce also gave us each a bite of his ham and cheese sandwich.  He also gave us a dish of water. 
     As we got up to leave a large group of all ages came up the trail.  They had a dog named Pax, who looked like a yellow lab with creamy colored fur and pointy ears.  Fenster wanted to stay with this happy crowd, but we persuaded him to come along further north.  Crossing over the actual summit we came to a lookout north with a good view of Mt Monadnock and Stratton Mtn in Vermont.  There was also a pretty view of a pond which could have been Island Pond.  After taking in this view, we started back at 2:39 PM.
     We had an adventure on the way down.  Right before we came to the State Line trail, a very large, fat and very spiny porcupine crossed the trail ahead of us, heading east.  Bruce rushed the two of us along the trail so that we didn't have any time to meet and socialize with this ambling personage.
     Further along on the way out we met many families with children and a few couples and others coming down off of Watatic by way of the loop north over Nutting Hill.  People petted us doggies and called us "cute" and "puppies" .  Once Bruce said, "Watch out, they are kind of muddy.  A woman replied, "So are we all after this climb." 
     But the trail was not really muddy at all.  It was just that we doggies waded in a few rain puddles which were not exactly crystal clear. 
     Near the bottom on the way down we met a collie named Prue.  We were back out at 4:47 PM.

    Hello out there in internet land, this is your favorite Welsh terrier and mine, Dickens, here to tell you about a wonderful hike in the White Mountains.  As you may have noticed, my website was not working for the last two weeks due to a French hacker destroying it, but I have now repaired the damage and we are up and running! 
     Mt. Tom is a 4051' high mountain which rises above Crawford Notch across from majestic Mount Washington.  In past years it had no view, but then a large spruce wave caused the summit trees to die off, opening up some of the most marvelous views in all of the White Mountains.
     Bruce drove Fenster and I  up to Crawford Notch depot on October 5, a sunny and warm day.  Due to all the fall foliage tourists, the parking lot was almost full.  We started out down the trail at 10:38 AM.  Bruce had packed three bottles of Crystal Lite and one bottle of water for us in case Crawford Brook was drying up due to a dry August and September, but the worthy brook wasn't drying up at all, not even near its source high on the mountain. 
     The lower trail is very beautiful, going through glades of paper birches and past a series of scenic waterfalls.  We had been on this part of the trail before, when we climbed Mt Avalon last year.
     We came to a place where the trail crosses over to the south side of Crawford Brook.  Here we met two pretty young ladies from Keene, NH, which I will call "the Keene ladies."  They were very friendly to us doggies and we like that a lot!
     By 11:32 we reached the fork where the trail to Mt Avalon goes left.  We went right to go to the higher summit, Mt. Tom.   The trail then gets steep with many stone steps to help prevent erosion. Many bearded trees  are here , with beards resembling Spanish moss,  and Bruce took photos of a few of them.   At 12:08 we crossed Crawford Brook again near its headwaters, and we were happy to see that it was still flowing away.  By 12:37 we reached the top of the ridge and turned right towards the summit.
     The map makes this area look gradual but actually there is a fairly steep section here climbing up through some large boulders.
     We met a man and a woman coming down off the top who told us that we are getting close and that when we get there, a trail to the left goes to the summit with views west, and a trail to the right goes to a lower lookout with views to the east.   They said there were a lot of people on the top.
     There was a crowd on the top, but they all came down before we got there.  The Keene ladies also came down and told us they were going on to climb Mt Field which is on the same ridge just south of Mt Tom.  When we arrived at the summit at 1:05 PM we were the only ones there. 
     The lookout to the west has a great panorama of Mt Hale, North Twin, South Twin, Mt Bond, Bondcliff, the Handcocks, Mt Carrigain, and Mt Field, as well as the wild headwaters of the Pemigewasset River.  The lookout has a cairn and a small wooden bench to sit on.
     After this, we went over to the lookout east, which was even more impressive.  Here we saw an outstanding view taking in Mt Jefferson, Mt Washington, Mt Monroe, Mt Eisenhower, Mt Pierce, Mt Jackson, and Mt Webster.  You can also see Mt Avalon like a little stepping stone down below.
     Of all of these mountains noted, I had climbed two, but Bruce had climbed 12.  The view was so gorgeous Bruce couldn't resist taking many pictures of it.
     Hey, all right all ready, it's time for us doggies to eat!  Bruce got the message and we had a very delicious lunch, as we always do.  Bruce also gave us a dish of water. 
     We left the top at 1:44 and passed by two backpackers going on to Zealand hut.  We also met up with the Keene ladies again.  One of them took a picture of us two doggies licking the face of the other one.  What nice hikers!  They know what we doggies like!
     As we got down into lower areas Bruce stopped and took photos of the yellow leaves on the paper birches.  We were back out at 4:20 PM.  A gorgeous day and a gorgeous hike.

     We found a map for the trail to Pocumtuck Mtn. online at the franklinsites website.  Since it was a trail we had never climbed, it was nearby, and it looked interesting, we decided to try it, even
though there would be no water for most of the route.  Because of this, Bruce carried two bottles of water for me (Dickens) and my thirsty brother Fenster.
     When we arrived at the trailhead on South Catamount Hill Road at 11:43 AM it was sunny and about 68 degrees.  We were the only ones there.  The dirt road to the trailhead is pretty steep and probably not feasible without four wheel drive and a high ground clearance.  Some people park at the bottom and walk up, which does not seem like much fun.
     We started down the trail, which is the same one we had taken before to get to McLeod Pond.  We were looking for a left, but when we saw it, we weren’t sure if it was the right one.  All of the trails in this area of the world are old jeep and ATV trails.  These vehicles were banished some years ago because of all the erosion they caused.  Although the area is now very friendly to hikers, there
still are no signs or blazes to serve as a guide.  
     The trail to our left had a small yellowish diamond-shaped sign saying “State Lands Boundary”.  It looked somewhat overgrown but we took it anyway.  We saw a fallen birch tree which had been chainsawed out of the trail, and this gave us some reason to be optimistic about our choice. Proceeding up this new trail, we soon crossed power lines at 12:05 PM.  At 12:16 we came up to a sunny knoll.  Although it had rocks and grass on its summit, the views all around it were blocked by trees.  If one chopped only a few trees in one area, there would be some nice views off to the north.  
     A man and a woman about 45 years old came down the trail from the north.  He was wearing an Australian outback type hat and she had dark brown hair.  He took a picture of us doggies and Bruce (which is in the photo section).  He said there used to be a boy scout camp nearby and there was an old chimney just beyond this clearing.  
     When Bruce asked him how to get to Pocumtuck, he said that you need to always bear left at every fork between different jeep/ATV/snowmobile trails ahead.  He thought it was about two miles beyond this knoll.
     Since the knoll appears to be unnamed on the maps we have, we decided to name it Chimney Knoll after the interesting ruins of the chimney nearby.
     The advice to keep to the left was very timely and a bit of trail magic from two trail angels.  If we had not known this, we likely would have taken one or two wrong turns.  At 12:40 PM we hit a big zigzag to the left and then back to the right.
     Not far from the summit we rested and Bruce gave Fenster and I a dish of water.  He didn’t realize we were almost there.  Near the summit is an area full of shagbark hickories and we saw a lot of wild
hickory nuts.  We also saw one hawthorn tree.  I think there may be some hophornbeams along the trail.  Near the summit is a large standof red oak.
     We arrived at the south ledges(which are immediately below the summit of Pocumtuck) at 1:10 PM and we had lunch.  Pocumtuck is 1872 feet high.  The ledges are spacious and full of rock areas to rest
on.  There is a fine view of Mt Greylock in the distance.  We could also see the Shelburne Falls area, the Deerfield valley, and out to the southeast towards Amherst.
     Besides our usual sandwiches we had another dish of water and Bruce took a few photos.  At 1:35 PM we left the top and arrived back at Chimney Knoll at 2:14.  Just beyond the powerlines on the way down we met the man and woman again, who were heading back from a trip tothe north shore of McLeod Pond.  They had started on a trail north of Pocumtuck and it was good for us that our paths overlapped.  
     Despite the absence of water this was a very enjoyable trail and the views made it well worthwhile.  We were back out at 2:58 PM.

     The Attitash trail goes from Bear Notch Road over the summit of Table Mtn (2675') and then theoretically on to Big Attitash Mtn.  I say theoretically because after the 1.9 mile hike to the beautiful ledges of Table Mtn, the trail is full of downed spruces and is pretty much impassable.
     Although the trail to Table Mtn is not featured in any guidebooks, it should be better known.  The trail goes by a series of attractive small waterfalls, pools, and flumes in Louisville Brook.  The ledges on the top of Table Mtn have wonderful panoramic views. 
     At 11:15 AM, Bruce, Fenster, and I (Dickens) started this hike.  We never met any other hikers all day, although we did pass quite a few runners in a race along the Cankersore Highway (Kancamagus Highway to all you laymen).   Fenster and I had fun bathing in the Louisville Brook, which is a tributary of the Saco River.  After that, the trail started ascending more rapidly.  Bruce thought there would be more water, but the last three watercourses were dry. 
     Once we got a short ways past the Louisville Brook, the trail was much in need of trimming.  The forest was full of beech and maple, but we also saw a cherry tree higher up, as well as oak, hemlock and birch.  The higher parts of the trail are surrounded by spruce.  There is a spot where the trail is full of basaltic rocks which have geometric shapes, reminiscent of rocks on the Holyoke Range MA or the traprock mountains in CT. 
     By 12:15 PM we reached the first of a long series of ledges.  The highest ledge, which is about 20 feet below the true summit, has the best views.  We went beyond the last ledge where the trail was very hard to follow.  We saw six or more spruces whose tops had been sheared off by wind or ice; these tops were now blocking the trail.  We came to an area where downed spruces made further progress impractical, and we turned back at 12:55 PM.  We really didn't want to go all the way to Big Attitash Mtn anyway.  We just wanted to see what was out that direction.
     Returning to the top ledge, we had lunch and took pictures.  It was about 75 degrees and sunny,  with a very strong wind on the top ledges to help keep us cool.  The wind was very pleasant.    From left to right in the distance we could see the Moats, lowlands out to the coast, some unidentified lakes, Chocorua peeking up past intervening mountains,  Paugus, the 3 peaks of Square Ledges (and especially the big square monolithic summit in the middle), Passaconaway, and other high peaks out to the west, possibly Tripyramid and Osceola.   In front of those views, we could see the Swift River, the Cankersore highway, Falls Pond, unnamed cliffs on an unnamed mountain ridge coming off of Bear Mtn, and the five pointed peaks of Bear Mtn itself.
     At 1:20 PM we left the top ledge.  The way down near the top  is tricky because it is steep and loose gravel fills the slippery trail.  I would not recommend this hike after a rain because the upper parts involve a lot of walking on slanted rock ledges which would be hard to do if they were wet.
     When  we finally got down to Louisville Brook, we stopped for a snack of potato sticks.  At 2:40 PM we were out.  A more beautiful short trail would be hard to imagine.  On a hot day, you could even take a dip in a pool on the way out. 

     This is a low, wind-blown  mountain in the southern Adirondacks with gorgeous views of nearby Pharoah Mtn and Pharoah Lake.  Hiking to the 2248 foot summit is a long 3.9 mile trek, but there are water sources en route for thirsty doggies.
     Bruce first climbed this mountain on 8/20/94 with Carol, Erica and his Skye terrier Skipper.  (Compare the photo of Erica on the summit in 1994 to the same view today in the photo gallery). En route they saw red efts, toads, frogs, and two green snakes.   Today Bruce climbed the mountain with me, Dickens, and my brother Fenster. 
     We started out at 11:05 AM and took a side trail to catch a view of Putnam Pond.  You can save a lot of hiking if you have a canoe, but we didn't and had to hoof it.  Despite a dry August and early September there was one refreshing stream running pretty well.  Once the  trail gets away from Putnam Pond it runs past two large swamps.  We saw  a chicken mushroom and two frogs.
     After that the trail climbs for awhile and eventually goes up and over two rocky knobs.  Here the trail is marked with many artistic small cairns.  There is a small rockface which we leaped and scrambled up.  By 1:38 PM we arrived at the summit where there was a very delighful wind to cool us off.  We had lunch and Bruce gave us both a container of water which was very welcome. 
     The view on top makes the long trip here worthwhile.  There are many interesting rocky knobs to explore.  You can see Pharoah Mtn and Lake and other remote bodies of water such as Crab Pond, Glidden Marsh, and parts of the secluded Whortleberry Pond.    We also saw some very high peaks far off to the north.   I don't know how Erica balanced standing on that boulder in 1994.  Even us sure-footed doggies wouldn't attempt that.  We left the top at 2:20 PM.
     Not too far down from the last rocky knob, our superior noses detected a small pool of water in a mostly dried-up stream.  What a relief on a hot day!  After that, it was a long way (past two swamps) before the next non-muddy water appeared, the stream that comes out of Grizzle Ocean. 
     By the way, we were happy to find that the many gnats present in this area on our spring trip to Grizzle Ocean have all gone away at this late point in the season. 
     On the way back, we took another side trail to look at Putnam Pond.  After getting back to the main trail, we heard the call of a loon.  With the two side trails and other wanderings our trip was about 8 miles total.  We were back out at 5:07 PM. 
     The summit is so enjoyable that it makes the long hike worthwhile, but they really ought to trim some of the trees which have grown up since 1994 and which increasingly  hinder the expansive vistas that are still available.
    

     It was sunny, about 75 degrees, with a light breeze, a perfect day for a hike.  McLeod Pond is relatively undiscovered and uncrowded  because it is not in any guidebooks that I know of, and it does not have any descriptions in the Massachusetts state websites.  Fortunately Bruce found a description of it and a very helpful map at a site called www.franklinsites.com, a site well worth visiting for useful hiking information.
     We parked near the gate on South Catamount Hill Road and started out at 12:17 PM.  Our expedition consisted of Bruce, Carol, Dickens and Fenster.    The trail was in good condition and we saw an interesting fern that seemed to grow fronds around in a circle.  We arrived at the monument and flag, in the middle of nowhere, where a flag was flown over a US schoolhouse for the first time in the early 1800's. We had lunch here.  Beyond this area were beaver ponds and swamps where a group of young people and 2 dogs were exploring. 
     We then met a man and a woman about 45 years old who went along with us on a side trail heading east to the pond.   The woman had been here as a youngster and recognized the forest of high trees leading up to the lake.
     McLeod Pond is gorgeous.  It is a large body of sparkling blue water, with green forested hills all around.  It contains rocky islands with high pine trees, and it had many areas with flowering waterlillies.  The lake water was clear and we could see quite a few small fish swimming there.
     Exploring the lake shore we saw many pretty boulders, some flowering cottony plants, and a small bridge.  We dogs had a refreshing dip in the water, and we shared a snack of potato sticks with Bruce. We left the lake at 2:15 PM and started down the easterly trail to complete the loop.  We passed a garter snake and a large cellar hole.  We were back out at the car at 2:45 PM.
     Everyone had a wonderful time.  This is a place we will want to visit again.

     This is a fun and adventurous hike for doggies and humans alike.  We arrived at 10:30 AM and met no other hikers all day.  It was partly cloudy with a high of about 81 to 84 degrees.  There were many places for us dogs to bathe in streams and cool off. 
     We started off through a high pine forest.  We saw some white violets, gaultheria, a spring peeper and a chickadees.  There were a number of vacant unofficial camp sites along the Oliverian Brook.  We reached the Passaconaway Cutoff at 11:24 and took this trail.  It is well-constructed and not overly steep. In its upper reaches it badly needs trimming, since the plants on both sides meet and completely cover the trail below. It is a "road less traveled" so to speak.   Near the top there is a dramatic lookout to Passaconaway, which Bruce has climbed.  It would be tough to climb it from this direction, though, because it is very steep.  In one mile it goes down into a col, then goes back up for a net of 1500 feet. 
     It seemed to us that the summit has one cone-shaped peak, then a separate, very large rectangular rock (which is obviously the famous "Square Ledge"), then a couple of lower dome areas.   The trail  on the top zigzags around so much that  (it being near noon) we had no idea what direction we were facing half of the time.   At 1:00 PM we reached the summit, the first dome, where there is a small lookout with no boulders to rest on and a view of what I believe was Hedgehog, Green's Cliff and Tremont.
     The trail then zigagged down and then around the enormous cliffs of a huge stone monolith.  At one point the trail went up high enough that it looked like maybe you could climb up to the top of the monolith for a view around.  This looked 98% like a bushwhack and 2% like a trail someone had once used back in the 1930's but was now overgrown.   I, Dickens, and then Bruce, got the idea to try it.  (I always want to go on top of boulders -- that's where the fun is). 
     On the top there was an old, totally overgrown trail which led to a slanted cliff with far ranging views.  We were very impressed by a pretty lake in the distance, possibly Chocorua Lake (?) (We explorers don't always know these things right off the bat).   We had lunch at 1:16 PM.  We doggies each had a roast beef sandwich and Bruce had half of one. 
     The way down was very challenging, descending steeply through boulder fields alongside long sections of huge cliffs from Square Ledge.  It was so huge one could only photograph 0.01% of it.
At one point we passed a "navel" where some rockhound had bored two deep holes into the cliff.  We didin't see any valuable stones there, but what do doggies know about gems?  Our gems are the mountain lakes and the sun and sky, not to mention dog biscuits.
     At 2:13 we reached a stream which made us doggies happy.  We took the Oliverian trail down, completing a loop.  The guidebook says that this trail is very wet, but it was dry enough at this time of year for us to pass through OK.  Some of the brook crossings would have been hard if the streams had been running stronger.   At 3:25 we reached the junction with the Passaconaway Cutoff and at 4:25 we were out.   The entire loop was about 9.5 miles.
     Don't follow the markers for the ski trail at the start of this hike!  The Oliverian Brook trail is unblazed and goes along the stream.  We didn't take the ski trail off to the right, but if we had done so we would still be out in the woods looking for chairlift home.
     Overall, fun and adventurous are the words we would use to describe this hike.

     Erica was here all week from Ohio helping her brother Brian prepare for his wedding August 18.  On Tuesday August 14 Erica, Bruce, Dickens and Fenster climbed Mt. Cardigan.  It was the 3rd ascent for Erica and Bruce but the first ascent for us doggies.
     We started at 10:25 AM on the West Ridge trail.  Along the way we met some families with children and the kids enjoyed meeting two friendly doggies.   Dickens and Fenster appreciated the two streams we crossed with cool water to keep them fresh. 
     At 11:40 AM we hit the top and had lunch.  There were incredible views of Killington, Pico, Camel's Hump, Moosilauke, Lafayette, Lincoln, Mt Monadnock, Ragged Mtn, Mt Sunapee, and Newfound Lake.  It was quite breezy up at the top but calm elsewhere.    There were about 20 other hikers (and two other dogs) up at the summit.
     When we were approaching the summit we met a man from Sylvania, Ohio who noticed that Erica was wearing a Toledo Mudhens cap. 
     On the way down we took the South Ridge trail which goes over South Peak and Rimrock.  This was a lot of fun.  The way off the mountain heads steeply down a long slope of bare slant rock.  It was adventuresome and exciting to negotiate this slope.  Once down to the lower ridge, there were many beautiful lookouts to enjoy.  Near Rimrock we saw some lichen with miniscule red flowers or fruits on them.
     The trail into the woods was also enjoyable.  Dickens and Bruce climbed up onto a high, steep boulder and Erica took their picture (which is now posted in the My Family photos).  In the woods we saw some flowering whorled wood asters, a sure sign of late summer.  We were back at the parking lot by 2:30 PM, plenty of time for Erica to get back and help with more pre-wedding activities.