Ghost Trail: Crawford Notch to Carrigain Notch

 

Starting at the Cohos trailhead...
but walking south down the highway 

Let the Ghost Trail hiking begin! After a couple rainy days of being a lazy tourist in Lincoln, we spotted my car on the Kancamagus Highway at Lily Pond and I was dropped off at the big parking lot off Rt 302 for the Davis Path (and Cohos Trail).  But instead of heading north up the Cohos, this time I headed south down the highway until I got to the Nancy Pond trailhead. The parking area for Nancy Pond Trail is pretty small. If you need to spot a car, the Davis Path lot is a better bet. 

Nancy Pond Trail, quite civilized

The first part of the trail seems to be a fairly popular day hike, with people going as far as the lower cascades and then turning around. This was a Sunday morning, and I saw maybe 4 or 5 groups of dayhikers. The trail heads moderately uphill, never far from Nancy Brook, and never difficult up to the Cascades, which are pretty far up the slope. 

Nancy Cascades, the lower section

Woolly Chanterelle

There are a lot of things up here named after Nancy Barton, including a mountain and a pond. Nancy, the story goes, got engaged to a coworker in Jefferson, gave her dowry to him, and then was abandoned. Nancy followed him to Crawford Notch in the middle of winter, but his campfire was cold. She continued searching in the snow and was found frozen to death beside the brook. Her lover then went insane and died a few years later. His ghost may still haunt the valley. So they say. 

Looking back at Stairs Mountain, 
where I tented along the Cohos a few days ago

The trail immediately gets much steeper and more difficult after Nancy Cascades. Glad I was going uphill. A pair of backpackers were coming down and taking it slow and easy.  Nancy Brook was still nearby, with some additional dramatic cascades that the dayhikers don't see. And there are glimpses through the trees back at the Montalban Ridge and the Cohos Trail where I'd been a few days earlier. Stairs Mountain was really distinctive and I used it repeatedly over the next few days to get my bearings. There was also cell phone reception for two seconds. 

Pretty steep above the cascades

After the steep section, the trail leveled off and the climbing was done for the day. The terrain on the high plateau was poorly drained, so typical of the White Mountains. Water can't get through the granite. Some areas had a lot of roots and others had bog walks. 

Bog walks on actual bogs

There are two lovely ponds up here, the first being Nancy Pond. The place was deserted. Didn't see a soul this entire stretch. It was great. 

Arriving at Nancy Pond

Nancy Pond

There were bogs near the pond with carnivorous Pitcher Plants and other classic bog plants like Black Spruce and Tamarack.  

Pitcher Plant

Nancy Cascades and Nancy Pond are located within the Nancy Pond Research Natural Area. The USDA website says this area has one of the largest tracts of virgin forest in the Northeast. 

Entering the Pemi Wilderness

And then the trail enters the Pemigewasset Wilderness. This area once had the largest logging railroad system in the White Mountains, with a billion board feet of timber removed.  Parts of the trail later on seemed to be following these old roads and railroad beds. No mechanized equipment is allowed in the Wilderness area, so no chain saws, and there are some special rules regarding camping. 

Norcross Pond, heading for the far side

The weather was getting a little dramatic as I came to Norcross Pond, windy and threatening rain. At the far end of the pond is an area where it looks like people camp, but there was a sign that said no camping. Maybe it used to be a legit site, they move the designated camping sites around to keep areas from getting overused. Or maybe people just don't follow the rules. The trail was a bit confused going through the no-camping area, but after checking the map, the trail clearly crossed the pond outlet. At the outlet, the mountains off to the west were suddenly obscured and you know what that means. Rain is about to hit. Which it did. 

Far side of Norcross Pond, at the outlet, 
incoming rain obscuring the mountains

I ducked back into the trees, which stopped most of the rain, and the trail from this point was super easy. It went gradually downhill for a few miles through beautiful forests, often on old roads or railroad beds from back in the day, now seasoned with moose poop. The rain didn't last long, and then the sun was back out. 

Just me and the moose on this trail

Woolly Chanterelle

Before long I came to the junction with Carrigain Notch Trail, where I had read there were tent sites. There was nothing designated per se, but walking into the woods in this area revealed a number of  workable tent sites. One was already taken, so I found another and set up my tent. And then, of course, found a better site while looking to hang my bear bag. No one else came to camp in the area and it was wonderfully peaceful. Overall, a great day. 

Following old roads/railroads made this part easy