Secluded Mountain Pond on a Chilly November Day, 11/21

[Stets]

My Dad suggested a nice afternoon hike to remote Mountain Pond. So off we went.

It was one of the most peaceful places in The White Mountains that I have visited.

Simply wonderful!

The Mountain Pond Loop also takes you very close to the Maine border and offers a lean to and firepit to cook your brook trout.

It is always a fun day when I get to hike with my Dad to a new destination.






http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mXyWeAQI/AAAAAAAADUI/30uaEfPX-AY/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20070.JPG




Beavers at Work:



http://lh6.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mZxcNnfI/AAAAAAAADUU/G2r3youQhtQ/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20077.JPG




Interesting place for a tree:



http://lh4.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mY-03-2I/AAAAAAAADUQ/sxyx8JqLP4c/s512/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20076.JPG



Mountain Pond:



http://lh4.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2makXAqaI/AAAAAAAADUY/lkOIpaZJLdU/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20080.JPG



Peaceful:




http://lh6.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mcodW7nI/AAAAAAAADUg/aX8xhNOjidM/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20085.JPG




Doubleheads over almost frozen Mountain Pond:



http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mewwuX4I/AAAAAAAADUw/DZVTGQsWCL8/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20090.JPG




Nice place to spend the night:


http://lh6.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mgBJQoLI/AAAAAAAADU0/YNwFqnX1MCE/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20095.JPG




Pretty rustic accommodations:




http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2miF2V2lI/AAAAAAAADU8/btwkJbaOQHc/s640/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20104.JPG




Maple Popsicles:




http://lh4.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TO2mi_y3sBI/AAAAAAAADVA/i9RN_SH_c40/s512/NH%20%20November%20%202010%20106.JPG



Reverse view of Mountain Pond from North Doublehead Summit,
taken from a November trip a few years back:



http://lh5.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TPWQEj7VgqI/AAAAAAAADW4/90fTCbSPAMg/s720/Mountain%20Pond.jpg



Mountain Pond and looking east into Maine:




http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TPWQD8MSxhI/AAAAAAAADW0/12SB64dNRVs/s720/View%20from%20Doublehead.jpg




Top of Doublehead Ski Trail:



http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TPWQE0faCFI/AAAAAAAADW8/Qotjntq7PSY/s512/Doublehead%20Ski%20Trail.jpg



Doublehead Cabin:




http://lh3.ggpht.com/_Gwldd1ohs-w/TPWQFl2LPCI/AAAAAAAADXA/5-dDWLDopfE/s720/Doublehead%20Cabin.jpg




Two wonderful places to visit and spend the night:

Mountain Pond and Doublehead Cabin.



Cheers,

[ow2010]

Nice photos! The 21st was definitely a nice day to be out for a hike (I was up in Franconia at the time). Looks like you had a nice trip and it just goes to show that you don't need to do any major hiking/peak-bagging to enjoy what the mountains have to offer.

[Snow Miser]

Very nice photos and report. It looked like a great day to be out there. Thanks for sharing!

[KSearl]

Hey,

Thanks for posting this. About a month ago, I was actually looking for info or a trail report on the Mountain Pond Loop and couldn't find much on it. The photos you have are great and I will definitely be making the trip up there soon.

Thanks,
Karl

[JimS]

Great slideshow of a really nice place. The hike around it in autumn is beautiful, and late summer, sunrise over the misty pond from the shelter can't be beat!

[KD Talbot]

More great stuff! Nice job posting and great TR and photos, Hunter! Emma has been out to this pond and loves it there!

KDT

[krummholz]

Beautiful! Thanks so much for introducing me to an area I haven't explored! I love the "looking east to Maine" photo.

[Jimmy Legs and Little d]

Very nice pictures and report. We discovered Mountain Pond 2 years ago looking for a hike on a rainy day. A beautiful and secluded area. Say hi to your dad for us.

Donna:)

[Stets]

Hey everyone!

Thanks for the nice comments.

ow2010:

I will always take what the mountains have to offer and keep learning and exploring.
Also, where were you hiking in Franconia?


Karl:


Glad you finally found a trail report on this area and I hope you will get out there soon.



Jim:


I would love to see some of your images from Mountain Pond (especially a sunrise).


Kevin:

Hunter and I are not surprised to hear that Emma loves Mountain Pond.


Donna:


I sure will say hello to my Dad for you and they loved the photos from Acadia when you guys met on the trail.


Brad:


I was surprised not to see you out there waterskiing!




Cheers,

[ow2010]

ow2010:

I will always take what the mountains have to offer and keep learning and exploring.
Also, where were you hiking in Franconia?


Bagged North & South Kinsman

[Stets]

Hi Owen,

You think I would have noticed your report on North and South Kinsman.

Nice job!

We experienced some of that ice and snow up on Hale that weekend.

[KSearl]

Hi Doug (or anyone else who may be able to answer this question),

I was wondering how the trailhead parking and even the road to the trailhead is, this time of year? It looks like it is in Slippery Brook Road, which says "closed in the winter time" on my map...

I was hoping to hike the Mountain Pond Loop on Friday this week (Dec. 10). Should I plan something else out? Will I see a giant barrier if I drive down this way?

Thanks,
Karl

[Stets]

Hi Doug (or anyone else who may be able to answer this question),

I was wondering how the trailhead parking and even the road to the trailhead is, this time of year? It looks like it is in Slippery Brook Road, which says "closed in the winter time" on my map...

I was hoping to hike the Mountain Pond Loop on Friday this week (Dec. 10). Should I plan something else out? Will I see a giant barrier if I drive down this way?

Thanks,
Karl



They will plow Town Hall Road for about three miles from Route 16A.

After that the road could be closed at this point due to snow and ice. The road gets a lot of snowmoblie use. It would be another three to four miles to the trailhead.

There is around 1,000ft of vertical over the six plus miles on the road. It climbs steadily, but nothing like Hurricane Mountain Road.

You might also consider North Kearsarge in that area (lower Hurricane Mountain Rd). Could be icy on the trail but at least you can get to the trailhead.

South Moat could be another option.

Good luck and keep us posted.

[KSearl]

Thanks Doug, I appreciate the information.

I'll be hiking with my pregnant wife, so I'm looking for something in the area that has minimal elevation so that the risk of slipping and falling downhill is minimized. I figured Mountain Pond Loop would have been perfect. I think I may try Cave Mountain up near the Crawford Notch. It has a bit of elevation, but doesn't look like much. We'll bring our Yak Traks to be safe.

Thanks again for the info. I'll be hitting up Mountain Pond Loop in the spring for sure.

Karl

[mtruman]

Nice TR and pics Doug and Hunter. Somehow I missed this when you first posted it. Really good job of showing off the route and views around the pond.

The Mountain Pond loop could be tough for your pregnant wife anyway Karl. When we did it in the spring two years ago there were a number of very tight squeezes through the trees and bushes and a bunch of "step overs". The trail around the eastern side of the pond doesn't seem to get much use (other than by what looked like quite a number of moose) and isn't particularly well maintained. It's a lovely little hike though. There are a few spring pics of Mountain Pond at the end of this album: http://picasaweb.google.com/mtruman42/NewHampshireSpringWeekend09?authkey=Gv1sRgCKyJ07OC yOC4Hw&feat=directlink#. I particularly like the views of the Baldfaces across the pond.

[KSearl]

Ah, that's good to know. Thanks Mark! From the map it looks like a fairly level loop, so I figured it was an easy round-about the pond...you're right, I'm just looking for something without much elevation, not much to step over/squeeze through...you know, a nice "walk" in the woods...preferably good views, but not a must. I will post a new thread to ask for some suggestions...and stop hijacking this thread (sorry Doug)!

Thanks,
Karl

[Stets]

I agree with Mark, as The Mountain Pond Loop has its tricky sections even if the hike is on level terrain.

My hiking poles came in handy a few times while rock hopping.

Karl, there is no such thing as hijacking, just good info.

Thanks, and we are all learning and experiencing this stuff together.