SRK Greenway: Mt. Sunapee & Lake Solitude

 

Kings Hill Road

This was the last day of hiking New Hampshire's "Ghost Trail" route between Crawford Notch and Mt. Sunapee. The original plan for the day was to stop at the foot of Mt. Sunapee and save that for the following morning prior to heading home. But I made great time and finished up early. I parked at the hiker lot on Kings Hill Road "Maple Leaf Natural Area" (thank you Sutton Conservation Commission) and headed west up the narrow gravel road. 

Also Kings Hill Road (extra points if you see a dog)

About half way up the hill, the drivable gravel road split, with the 'maintained' road going off to the left and the SRK Greenway continuing straight up the hill on a deeply eroded road bed.  This seemed to be a very old road that's been more or less abandoned, but has a nice historic feel to it. Stone walls on either side, and old ruins at the top of the hill. Very New England. Back in the day, maybe it was one of the major roads in the area.

Looking back at an easily missed junction westbound - 
Trail goes into the woods left of the gate

On the way back down the hill, there's a spot that hikers heading in the opposite direction (east) could easily miss. In the above photo, the SRK Greenway heads into the woods to the left of the gate. 

Road walks can be nice

After some more quiet road walking, the SRK Greenway took up with Stoney Brook Trail, which I enjoyed. No complaints there. It was pretty easy and I was making fast time with little effort. 

Stoney Brook Trail

After passing through a big empty trailhead parking lot, the trail came out near Chalk Pond. The pond was a bit disappointing, since you get but a brief glimpse of the pond between private dwellings. 

Coming out onto Chalk Pond

Then there was more wood-road walking up a good hill leading to Fishersfield Trail. This part of the hike was the slowest and most tedious, with uneven footing, but eventually the trail came to the last of the woods before heading down the road towards Sunapee, and I stopped for a break. It was only 11:00 am. How did that happen? It was too early to stop for the day. Also, my husband was in the middle of an 18-hole round of golf. So what the heck, I decided to go up Mt. Sunapee. 

Deer and Turkey registration stations below Mt. Sunapee

It was amazingly hot under the sun for mid-October in New Hampshire, near 80-degrees. I sort of wanted to go for a swim in the lake. And I had pictured temps in the fifties. Ha! You just never know. 

Public dock at Lake Sunapee

Don't do it. 

I couldn't stop anywhere for refreshments since I had a dog in tow, so I grabbed some drinking water at the end of a public pier on the lake instead. (I later replaced that with water from a stream on Mt. Sunapee). There was public parking at the pier, but it's not the closest parking to the Mt. Sunapee trailhead, which is "at the caboose." I mention this because we did have some confusion when it was time for me to get picked up. 

The SRK Greenway follows Newbury Trail up Mt. Sunapee, but there is strictly no parking on Lake View Avenue where the trail begins. People need to park at the caboose. That's right, and if you don't know where the caboose is, just head back down Lake View Avenue until you get to Lake Sunapee and it's right there. Hard to miss. 

"Park at Caboose"

Back at Lake Sunapee: Here's the caboose where you park.

Lake Sunapee at the Caboose. It's a nice spot.

At any rate, I was rather hot and tired before I even started up Mt. Sunapee, but eager to arrive back at the M-S Greenway and see Lake Solitude once again. It was back in 2018 that I first came through on the M-S Greenway, heading north towards Canada. I remember having such a wonderful and peaceful backpacking trip up Mt. Sunapee (pretty sure I heard a moose trot past my tent at night) until I arrived at Lake Solitude, when all the sudden there were noisy hikers yelling about what they were going to have for lunch. On the opposite side of the lake. And I could hear every word they were saying. I finally had to put ear plugs in. Hopefully Lake Solitude would live up to its name this trip. 

Heading up Mt. Sunapee on the Newbury Trail

The trip up was pretty good as the weather started to change and get a little dramatic. Low clouds skimming by, and thankfully cooler. There were a few dayhikers here and there and issues with us trying to keep our dogs apart. But overall, not too bad. 

A look back

Part way up was a nice overlook back towards Lake Sunapee. It was the only vista on the hike up to Lake Solitude. There are overlooks if you go all the way up to the summit of Mt. Sunapee, but that wasn't my plan since I'd already done that in 2018. 

Fall color heading up Sunapee

And finally I reached the "Jack & June Junction" where the SRK Greenway and M-S Greenway meet. I'd been here before and had just completed one very big circle. North to the Appalachian Trail at Moose Mtn in 2018, the A.T. to Bretton Woods in 2019, and then heading back south in 2021 from Bretton Woods to Sunapee via the Cohos and Ghost Trail.  So cool. 

Jack & June Junction

I could have stopped there, but I really wanted to continue to nearby Lake Solitude, and so I did. In my mind, this was the point where the New Hampshire "Gap" alternatives diverge, although technically the routes diverge at the Jack & June Junction. From this point, you can head north on the SRK Greenway and then follow some snowmobile trails towards Moose Mountain, the fastest way to the Appalachian Trail.  Or you can go east on the SRK Greenway over Kearsarge and Ragged Mountains to Mt. Cardigan. From there, some people head north towards Mt. Moosilauke and the Appalachian Trail. And others might head east from Cardigan along the "Ghost Trail" through Hebron and Plymouth and on to the trails of White Mountain National Forest by way of Whiteface and Carrigain Mountains. All routes lead to the Cohos Trail near Bretton Woods, which takes you to the Canadian border. 

Lake Solitude

This time, when I reached Lake Solitude, all was still. 

SRK Greenway: Mt. Kearsarge

 

Heading up Barlow Trail

Mt. Kearsarge looks like it gets mobbed, but I can say that if you go on a weekday morning in mid-October, it is deserted. Wonderful! The vast parking lot for Winslow State Park had only a few cars at 8:00 am. 

Quinn's overlords beam down a message

That parking lot is high up the flanks of the mountain, so it's a pretty quick climb up to the top. The SRK Greenway follows Barlow Trail up the mountain, the longer and easier route. It clearly gets a lot of use. I passed a nice woman coming down the mountain early on, and then a couple of jerks with two off-leash bully-breed dogs that charged my leashed terrier and caused a kerfuffle because terriers will raise hell protecting themselves. And that can lead to a fight, and my dog could be seriously hurt or killed. This happened to someone I know. So there were some words exchanged. But after that, I had the mountain to myself. It was amazing. 

Looking back at Ragged Mountain, with Proctor Academy
and Bradley Lake below

Very old grafitti at the top of Kearsarge

The mountain is high enough above the surrounding terrain that everything seems to flatten out. Not quite as much as at the top of Mt. Monadnock, but it was the same effect. The summer-like haze also washed out the colors. But it was clear! So often you climb up a peak on a cloudy day and see nothing. 

Mt. Kearsarge summit

I enjoyed looking back at Ragged Mountain, and used the Peakfinder app to identify what else I was looking at. Such as Mt. Cardigan, Mt. Monadnock, Mt. Sunapee, Smarts Mountain, and even Mt. Washington. Quite the view. 

Mt. Sunapee on the horizon (far right)

I was hoping to meet my husband up at the top. He had decided to park at the big Mt. Kearsarge State Forest parking lot on the south side of the mountain and hike up. But he got a late start and the drive up the park road was much slower than anticipated. After hanging out at the top for twenty minutes or so, I figured I catch him on the way down. And I thought I heard his voice at one point, but it turned out that he was going up a different trail than the one I was taking down. Like two ships in the night. 

Lincoln Trail started out steeper than expected

The SRK Greenway follows the Lincoln Trail down the mountain, which turned out to be quite steep at the beginning. I would have preferred taking the Rollins Trail if I'd known the trail was a cliff. I didn't have a heavy pack, but I did have a leashed nut job of a terrier. Going downhill can be pretty nerve wracking with a leashed dog, especially when there are a lot of chipmunks. The rodents were forever trolling my dog, just begging to be chased. They were everywhere.

The rest of Lincoln Trail was pretty gentle

I never actually saw the parking lot for the state forest, because the trail goes near it but not right to it. But immediately after the parking area, the trail narrowed, the grade eased, and it was pleasant walk down the mountain. This would be a great spot for the state to open up a primitive camping area. 

Private lands managed for timber near Baker Ledge

Eventually the trail leaves the state forest and enters private lands being managed for logging, which opened up a nice view back towards Kearsarge. It was in this area that I accidentally dropped the dog's training collar remote. Didn't realize it until further down. I use the remote to chime a bell when the dog starts pulling me down a hill. Works pretty well when I don't lose the remote. Coming out at the bottom, I ran into my husband coming in from the road, just getting back from his hike up the mountain and long drive down. He was game and willing to head up the hill and find the lost remote...and take the dog. Whoohoo! (He did find it after a good long hike. My hero!). I continued along the SRK Greenway and crossed under I-89. 

Crossing under I-89

The SRK Greenway between Kearsarge and Sunapee is a patchwork affair. There will be a minor road walk, and then a trail, then another road walk, and another trail, and so on. All in all, there was less road walking than expected, though, because many of the "roads" on the maps aren't streets per se. Nothing most people can drive on. First up was Shadow Hill State Forest featuring Gile Pond. This was a peaceful place to take a break and collect some water. 

Gile Pond, Shadow Hill State Forest

Next up was Wadleigh State Park and Kezar Lake, where I had planned to stop for the day because there was good parking where I could leave my car the next morning. My husband was still up on Mt. Kearsarge gamely looking for the lost dog remote, however, and I didn't feel like waiting around, so I continued down the road along the shore of the wonderfully named Kezar Lake and hoped I'd find a spot where I could leave a car the next day. 

Walking along Kezar Lake 

This was a fun road walk. Penacook Road closely follows the shoreline of the lake and is lined with well-maintained cottages.  It was full of people walking and running and riding bikes and felt more like a multi-use trail than a road. Part way down the road I got a text that my husband had found the dog remote that I'd lost and that made the road walk even better. 

Looking back at Kearsarge from Kezar Lake

After Kezar Lake, I started looking for some place I'd be able to leave a car, but it wasn't looking good. The trail turned onto Kings Hill Road, and there were signs telling people they couldn't park there. Hmm. The sun was surprisingly hot for mid-October. 

Kings Hill Road

As the road headed up the hill, Kings Hill, the road began to narrow and I was really starting to worry that I wouldn't find a good stopping place where I'd be able to park the next the day. And then all the sudden I came upon a hiker lot for the King Hill Reservation Maple Leaf Natural Area.  Yay! 

Hiker parking lot on Kings Hill Road

I sat down at the kiosk to wait for my husband. I was sitting there playing Sudoku on my phone when some guy walked by and exclaimed with excitement "ARE YOU LOST!" Really? Actually, I get asked this question a lot. If I stop to pull an apply out of my pack, or check a text message on my phone, or pull out some letterboxing clues, or step off the trail with my psycho dog to avoid dog-drama, some guy will ask if I'm lost. Sigh. 

SRK Greenway: Ragged Mountain

 

SRK Greenway - let's get started!

Great to be back on the SRK Greenway, this time doing the part between Mt Sunapee and Ragged Mountain. There's no backpacking allowed on the Greenway, which runs through private property, although in reality there are a few overnight options for backpackers. That includes my starting point for the day, the New Hampshire Mountain Inn, located on New Canada Road, which is part of the SRK Greenway on the north side of Ragged Mountain. We were checking out, but the Inn owner let me leave my car there for the day so I could hike the Greenway. It was nice to just walk straight out of the hotel and onto the trail, freshly showered, and with a dog instead of a heavy backpack. 

"Go faster, boss!"

The north side of Ragged Mountain was a delightful climb, with lots of terrain changes. It was not a slog, and it was never boring. Mostly it was gradual, occasionally steep, and it would often level out on some plateau for a bit, as it twisted and turned up the mountain. 

Nice variety going up Ragged Mountain

Part way up, a view opened up towards a second peak to the south called "the Pinnacle" on some maps. I believe this is the third spot called "the Pinnacle" along the overall route up from Long Island Sound, the other two being in Connecticut. This second peak is the same height as the Ragged Mountain peak. It's not clear if both peaks are considered part of Ragged Mountain or what. 

View towards Ragged Mountain's sister:  "the Pinnacle"

Eventually I heard some heavy equipment up ahead, and it turned out to be some work at the top near the ski facilities, close to the trail.  So I didn't get to explore the top at all, just pausing to snap a couple photos. Thankfully, the trail turn in the clearing was marked very well and I didn't have to worry about wandering around a moving backhoe to find the turnoff. 

Top of Ragged Mountain

It was an enjoyable walk between the two peaks. There was a one steep spot where instead of a heavy backpack pulling me back, I had an enthusiastic terrier pulling me up. 

"Do not ski this trail alone"

In the low area between the two peaks, the trail comes to a junction with a wider trail called Wilson's Wonder according to the sign on the ground. A ski trail. This isn't one of the Ragged Mountain ski resort trails. Instead, it heads to the south towards Proctor's Academy. The markings were confusing here. Fresh leaves covered the narrow SRK Greenway tread, so I needed the markings. 

Confusing markers at a trail junction. Do I go straight or left??

But there were two markings, one pointing ahead into the woods and another pointing left up the Wilson's Wonder ski trail. After some meandering about looking for the next marker, I finally figured out that what they meant was to first go straight, then go left. Better to get people through the intersection first with one blaze, then put a second blaze where the trail bends to the left. 

Looking back at Ragged Mtn from the Pinnacle overlook

The overlook at the Pinnacle was fantastic and a great place to have a break. The moody low clouds of the previous days had been replaced with summer-like conditions. It was warm and hazy, not the cool, clear October weather I was expecting. Mt. Kearsarge was right in front of me. That would be the next day's hike. Mt. Sunapee was on the far horizon, the last point on the right along a long ridge. That would hopefully be the day after. 

Mt. Kearsarge on the left. 
Mt. Sunapee is the right end of the ridge on the horizon.

The trail down the mountain followed ski trails and was super easy. 

Easy ski trails all the way down

This side of the mountain is the domain of Proctor Academy, a boarding school that got its start in 1848. Wikipedia says Proctor Academy is for grades 9-12 and has about 370 students with lots of dorms. The campus includes 2500 acres, including part of the SRK Greenway and some old ski paths. So the land is private and there is strictly no backpack camping. Having said that, at least one thru-hiker has received permission to reserve the Proctor camping facilities. There is a lean-to at Mud Pond (see map below) as well as a small cabin. Contact the Academy if you are interested in that. 

Old-timey skiers at Proctor Academy

Potential for camping permission at Mud Pond
(Click to enlarge)

Looking back across Route 4 at Proctor Academy

After wandering through the Academy parking lot and crossing Route 4, the trail markers directed me onto the Northern Rail Trail for a spell although I later noticed the SRK trail map shows their trail crossing the rail trail and then following the river. Always follow the blazes, not the map, because trails can be relocated after the map is published.  And then the Greenway comes to the Keniston Covered Bridge over the Blackwater River. This is the first water I remember seeing since New Canada Road on the far side of Ragged Mountain. By this point is was downright hot and the dog was eager for a swim. I refilled my water bottles, though the water was a bit murky (I found better water later on). 

Keniston Bridge over the Blackwater River

I was expecting a lot of street walking between Ragged Mountain and Mt. Kearsarge based on what the trail looked like, but most of the "roads" are nothing a car can go down. Maybe the occasional 4WD. 

I didn't have a designated stopping point, other than it had to be a place I could leave a car the next day. I just love the flexibility of slackpacking.  I was able to keep going up one old road after another, making fast time and gradually gaining elevation. 

Easy woods roads heading up the flanks of Kearsarge

Near a 4-way junction, I almost missed some old ruins with twin chimneys. Must be some pretty old roads. The dog loved running back and forth and I didn't have to worry about his leash getting tangled in the brush (I use an extend-leash that is bungee chorded to my pack shoulder strap). 

Random chimneys along the way

Roadwalk with views of Mt. Kearsarge

Eventually the trail came out onto actual streets with houses for a short spell before turning up the paved road leading up to Winslow Park. Part way up the road, my husband came by in his SUV. We're able to track each other with our phones, so he knew where I was. I gave him my pack and he gave me something icy cold to drink. How's that for service? This was not a good stopping point, however, so I continued up the hill to the big parking area, where I could leave my car the next morning. 

Winslow State Park entrance,
Mt. Kearsarge peak above

Winslow Park was nearly empty, but it clearly gets some big crowds, and the park website had urged people to get reservations.  There was no need for that on a weekday in mid-October. There had been an attendant at the gatehouse a bit earlier in the day, according to my husband, but the attendant was gone by the time I got there. The park fee, which they call a "donation", is $4 for each adult. So have some cash handy. 

Bring cash

It was a great spot to end the day. The park facilities are pretty far up Mt. Kearsarge, so there were some great views, and the top of Kearsarge was readily visible above the picnic grounds. 

Winslow State Park

We then headed back to the New Hampshire Mountain Inn to pick up my car, and on to an Airbnb called the Mountain House that was just perfect for us. It had a view of Mt. Kearsarge right outside the window, and a little fenced area for the dog. Perfect!