Monadnock Mountain, NH, 09/16

[threecy]

Monadnock Mountain, NH

Date Hiked: 09/16

Trails(s) Hiked: Halfway House Trail to Do Drop to Cliff Walk to White Arrow

Total Distance: A bit under 5 miles

Difficulty: Difficult

Conditions: Overcast, then sunny, then increasingly cloudy as a small group of clouds passed through the mountain

Special Required Equipment: None

Surprisingly the trails we took weren't too crowded, however the summit was definitely busy (as usual). The best views were from Bald Rock due to the lack of clouds and crowds at that point.

At the Monadnock summit as the clouds start to pass through

 

[MichaelJ]

You took a good route. The Dot and Cross trails are always mobbed, the others usually deserted.

I also recommend the long route from the north: the Pumpelly Trail. It has a little of everything. There's also a way to start up from the state park main parking area but then shift off to the right (away from the crowds) and meet the Pumpelly up on the ridge.

 

[jack97]

I also recommend the long route from the north: the Pumpelly Trail. It has a little of everything. There's also a way to start up from the state park main parking area but then shift off to the right (away from the crowds) and meet the Pumpelly up on the ridge.

Thats our favorite and the way we normally go. From the main HQ, go up on the main trail, look for Cascade Link on the right on the first or second trail crossing. It will eventualy cross onto Pumpelly.

Its a longer and less steep ascend but Cascade Link has two or three points where you can look down and see the ponds/lakes. Very scenic especially during foilage season.

 

[thetrailboss]

Monadnock is a very nice mountain. I really dug it. Thought it would be overrun with tourists and junk, but it is a serious mountain with good trails and a good view. It hurts that it is so close to Boston, but oh well.

If you want to avoid crowds, take the entire Pumpelly Trail from Dublin Lake. It's a 9 mile rt day, but you feel like you're in the Whites and alone until you get to the last push to the summit.

I think I need to get back down there soon....

 

[threecy]

Monadnock is a very nice mountain. I really dug it. Thought it would be overrun with tourists and junk, but it is a serious mountain with good trails and a good view. It hurts that it is so close to Boston, but oh well.

If you want to avoid crowds, take the entire Pumpelly Trail from Dublin Lake. It's a 9 mile rt day, but you feel like you're in the Whites and alone until you get to the last push to the summit.

I think I need to get back down there soon....

We were eyeing that trail, if our schedules all open up again, we're either going to do Equinox, VT or do Monadnock again via the trail...or might do the two car thing and hike the whole ridge, from there to the southern part of the mountain.

 

[thetrailboss]

We were eyeing that trail, if our schedules all open up again, we're either going to do Equinox, VT or do Monadnock again via the trail...or might do the two car thing and hike the whole ridge, from there to the southern part of the mountain.

I seriously recommend this hike. It is the anti-Monadnock hike. Why? Trail access is free and in fact a bit tricky to find...the trailhead literally is not even a pull-off. Park carefully by the lake and begin the hike. Much of it is flat, until you begin to climb the ridge and then it picks up pitch for about .5-1 mile or so. From there, it is a beautiful, quiet ridge walk.

 

[threecy]

Thank you for the information, I think it'll either be a late fall or early spring hike...looked very nice from the summit.

 

[thetrailboss]

Thank you for the information, I think it'll either be a late fall or early spring hike...looked very nice from the summit.

No problem. Feel free to PM me for more info, as I don't believe I have filed a trip report for this hike, which I did in April 2004.

 

[MichaelJ]

BTW - I have a photo album from the full-length Pumpelly hike, but it's this shot that really shows the entire trail, working its way down Dublin Ridge and out to the lake. We did it on May 1; it was muddy in spots down low but a good early-season hike. Depending on how quickly the foliage colors move southward it could be an amazing trip in a few weeks, too.

 

[threecy]

Nice, thanks for the link