Cohos Trail: Stairs Mountain to Dry River

Sunrise on Stairs Mountain

What an amazing start to the day! Sunrise at Stairs Mountain, just a few steps from my tent. Just amazing. It doesn't get any better than this. 

Mt. Crawford (middle) with Mt. Nancy (right), separated by 
Crawford Notch. Mt. Carrigain is beyond Mt. Nancy, in clouds.

One more perfect weather day to take advantage of. Not too hot or cold, no bugs, and the trail is relatively dry. The forecast called for possibly heavy rain in the evening and all the next day. That's the way it goes. Enjoy the good stuff while it lasts. 

Back on the Davis Path

This section of the Davis Path was delightfully rustic. Note in the above photo the dense spruce-fir forest. The ridge was covered with this and if you have a traditional ground tent like I do, it's impossible to set it up in a spot not cleared out for tents. Hammock tents definitely have the advantage here. 

Hobble Bush

Mostly the trail was easy to follow, although there were a few sections that were a bit overgrown. But in a fun way. There's no real possibility of going the wrong way for long in the dense Spruce-Fir forest. And the trail goes back to 1845! How cool is that?

Moose Poop

The Guthook app with a map of White Mountain National Forest had marked a reliable water source, before heading up Mt. Isolation, and it proved to be good. There isn't much water up on the Montalban Ridge and I was still using what I had carried up from Crawford Notch. I had lost cell phone reception, so while I was at it, I turned on my new Garmin InReach, which I'd recently purchased so that I could let my loved ones know where I was and that I was OK once out of cell phone range. It also has an SOS button. I wasn't sure if the Garmin InReach would work down in the Dry River Valley, surrounded by rock, but it did. It also worked well throughout the White Mountains later in the season. 

Cut with an axe

Blowdowns had been cleared recently using an axe.  A million thanks to whoever this was. 

Amanitas

Beautiful forest

The ridge hike was a pleasant trek. Nothing too steep. I didn't see or hear a soul. I soaked up the good weather while I could, expecting the next day to be a washout. 

Old corduroy road emerging from the moss

A section of old corduroy that had been buried and then exposed again begged the question of how long again the logs had been stacked along the trail. It could have been 10 years ago. Or fifty. Maybe even older. Things probably don't rot very fast up there. 

Heading up Mt. Isolation

Northbound, the Davis Path up to Mt. Isolation isn't much of a climb. The spur to the summit was a bit more than I expected, with a few steep spots. 

Do you see the trail?

I only saw one pair of hikers all day. Guess where I saw them. The top of Mt. Isolation. Of course. I did get a useful tip from them when I asked about which mountains I was seeing in the distance. They recommended downloading the app Peakfinder, which I did. Took quite awhile to download there and I discovered that I had good phone reception if I was facing Mt. Washington, but lost the connection if I turned my back to Mt. Washington. Apparently that is were the cell tower is.  

The Presidential Range from Mt. Isolation

That one moment the clouds lifted from Mt. Washington

The pair of mushrooming dayhikers left after a bit and I had Mt. Isolation to myself. Spectacular. The clouds over Mt. Washington lifted briefly. 

And it's the dry season

The path north of Mt. Isolation was much more tedious with mud, and this was a pretty dry time of the year. People who wear light hikers designed to just get wet and dry off fast will be at an advantage on the Davis Path. I cannot wear them due to problems with my feet, but I would if I could. 

Farewell, Davis Path

After heading up North Isolation (no real views), it was time to say farewell to the Davis Path and head down into the Dry River Valley via the Isolation Trail. The first part of this was quite pleasant as the trail headed down the hill at a gentle grade. About half way down, it came alongside a tributary to the Dry River, and at this point things got more interesting because the stream had devoured the trail in half a dozen spots.  There was typically a very steep embankment down into the river bed, some rock hopping down the river following the cairns, and then the trail bed would resume after the washout. I don't know what you do if the water is high. The last washout just before the junction with the Dry River Trail was confusing and I had some trouble finding the trail again. It was frustrating because the weather had turned and felt like rain. I just wanted to get my tent set up before it started pouring. 

The brook ate the trail
(see the cairn)

I had hoped to visit the Dry River Falls, but it was not to be. It was more important to get across the Dry River before it rained. People have died trying to cross the river. So I took off my boots, waterproofed my load in case I fell in, and forded the river.  Glad the water was low. 

On the other side, I found a spot to get my tent set up as soon as I could. Although there was an area down by the water where it looks like people camp, it wasn't designated as a tenting area, and I don't like being next to a river when storms are predicted.  Instead, I found a spot above the trail at the top of the first steep rise, a few hundred feet in, where the ground was level and not packed down (better drainage). Perfect for the coming rain. 

Dry River