| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
North Carter, Middle Carter, South Carter, Mt. Hight, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
Wild River Trail, Moriah Brook Trail, Carter Moriah Trail, Black Angel Trail, Highwater Trail |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, July 28, 2019 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at designated lot outside of Wild River campground. Could easily fit 20 cars. This is also the trailhead for Basin Trail. There is a $5 parking fee unless you have a pass. Nice kiosk and signs. Privy available across from the parking area. There is potable water from a spigot at the campground. This road is closed in winter. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Mud - Significant |
|
 | Recommended Equipment: |
|
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Large ford of the Wild River: thigh deep in some sections. Current medium strength. I was able to cross barefoot with care. Of note, follow the pink flagging tape (coming from Wild River campground side) to a large blowdown over the bank. Go down the bank to the right of the blowdown. Ford the river, facing upstream, moving towards your 4 o’clock position. Once to a large collection of rocks, there is a sizable carin. At the carin, face the bank you are heading to, and continue to move across the River slightly down and to the right. The trail moves up the bank to from an obscure entry into the tree line to a signed junction. I managed to find the trail by scaling directly up the bank to its high point and stumbled onto the trail. All other crossings had ample rocks to use to hop across. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Where do I begin? No blazing on the Wild River Trail but it was easy enough to follow, aside from the water crossing. There are 8-12 blue blazes on the Moriah Brook that randomly appeared then just as randomly vanished. Blowdowns on the Moriah Brook are all step overs. Moriah Brook is little used but there is a nice footbed to follow. You will have to walk through a tremendous amount of luscious understory that hangs into, over, and on the trail nearly the whole way but the footpath is easily seen through this. Black Angel has many blowdowns, some of which are very tricky to negotiate. Take care and weave up, over, or through these. Highwater needs help, see notes below.
|
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Yes, several out today. There is a steep rock scramble section ascending North Carter (heading south bound on Carter Moriah trail) that would pose a problem for smaller dogs. |
|
 | Bugs: |
Oh yeah. Lots. Bug spray only entices them... best of luck keeping the noseems out of your nostrils and ears. |
|
 | Lost and Found: |
Pink hat in tree on Carter Moriah, some kind of black cover on Highwater trail. Both left where they were found. |
|
|
|
|
 | Comments: |
Use your White Mountain Guide to read up on these trails. See water crossing notes above regarding Wild River Trail.
Moriah Brook is a hidden treasure. Cascades, pools, waterfalls, and Moriah Gorge. Plus you get this killer view of the cliff side of Mount Moriah. It’s just not travelled much because it doesn’t lead directly to the “more exciting†4000 footers. What a shame! I got off my timeline because I kept stopping and staring at all the water features... I found two stealth campsites along this trail. Man, these were some nice sites! One was nestled in a forest of old pine trees. Really gorgeous site. Again, the footbed is well established but it is really encroached on by the understory. You do have to pay attention to the trail or it will run off in the underbrush on you. As a moderate level hiker I was able to follow the trail with care. The grade is so gentle that I worried if I was going to have to scramble 1000 feet of elevation in 0.2 miles at the end or something. But no, I was moving up the mountain the whole time. It was that imperceptible. There were a couple of bolder climbs towards the col.
Carter Moriah is the Appalachian Trail and is amply blazed in white. Several thru hikers out today.
Black Angel is not blazed at all. It is a more travelled trail as it accesses Carter Dome and Mount Hight. The footbed is well established and simple to follow. It has a steeper grade than Moriah Brook but it is not ever very steep. It is sheltered all the way to the junction with Carter Moriah (if traveling up from WildRiver). The blowdowns are the major issue. They are numerous and at time pose a serious obstacle.
I don’t recommend taking Highwater Trail. The footbed (moving from the junction with Black Angel towards the Moriah Brook junction) a simple herd-like path that is tremendously difficult to follow. I mean it is really he@# to figure out where this trail is. So many times I thought I was on a game trail, the path was that small and lightly trodden. I really struggled through all 2.7 miles. It took me two hours to do this really easy grade due to all the tail hunting. The Guide talks about some views of the Wild River but I cannot imagine how you would be able to move your concentration from trail finding to look at anything else. I ended up mostly following moose defecation piles... they seemed to know where the trail was. Maybe Wild River trail from the Black Angel trail junction is better?
A good 20 mile day with some nice views of the Presidentials on Middle Carter and Mount Hight. |
|
 | Name: |
Remington34 |
|
 | E-Mail: |
|
|
| Date Submitted: |
2019-07-28 |
|
 | Link: |
 https:// |
|
|
Disclaimer: Reports are not verified - conditions may vary. Use at own risk. Always be prepared when hiking. Observe all signs. Trail conditions reports are not substitutes for weather reports or common sense. |
|
