3/3/14 Demeritt Forest

Sunny but 12 degrees and windy, so we wanted woods and headed for the university forests. The small parking area is plowed so you can get your car off the road.

We started from the entrance on Logan Rd. and had nice packed snow with excellent footing- at some point it had been groomed but was now pretty well packed.

I wanted to try, again,  to sort the Black Trails and when we got to Sewall Rd. found that the section we were taking had not been groomed, while heading West had. There was still solid footing as others had used it before us.

We passed the trail we wanted ( no sign) and ended up at the entrance on Stillwater Ave. We backtracked to the trail with no sign and found it to be the one we wanted and we followed the route shown above- first time we did not get turned around. Perhaps the groomed trails helped.

We took the White to the Red,the Blue and then the Green loop before heading back to the car.

When we got back to the road we walked down a short distance and across to the river

We also found some unfinished work

A pretty day in the woods. Once we got moving it was comfortable enough and other than at the river we were mostly protected from the wind. 2  1/4 hours 

3/2/14 Snowmobile Trail from Walker Ridge Rd.

Cold gray day but only a little wind. A month ago we took the Georges Highland Path ( on map above) but found the area near Hogback confusing and did not find the trail up Hogback . A couple of years ago we had taken the snowmobile trail ( in summer) that starts out next to the GHP and it had taken us to the Hogback Trail so we decided to try that today.

This turned out to be one of the prettier snowmobile trails we have been on but also the hilliest - by far. It also did not take us to our goal . I assumed the trail had been rerouted and a logging road we turned from had been the original route. This was confirmed by a man we talked to at the end of our hike.

The trail was in good condition with nicely packed snow so good walking if you don't mind lots of hills-some of them quite long. . Six snowmobiles passed us on our way out and only two on our return. Kelley liked this hike as it was new to her and that always arouses her interest.

The start

After you cross Rte. 220 you climb a hill across a large meadow and pass an old farm

Some more pictures of the trail and it's hills

Looking back down the first hill near the start

Almost back

An interesting hike with pretty views. Next time we will try to follow the old trail.  2  1/2 hours 

3/1/14 City Forest

Sixteen degrees and overcast but little wind and that was a nice improvement over yesterday. We did the route we often do with a little bit of the rail bed going toward Forest Ave. West Trail and the rail bed were well packed snow with very little ice and good footing. The unnamed trail we use had not had much use so it was a bit more of a slog- but not for Kelley who was supported by the crust. We met one man with his dog outward bound and a woman and her dog and a solitary walker on the way back. Not many people for a Saturday morning. Kelley enjoyed it anyway, finding lots of odors she needed to check out.

A few of the things we saw

Pretty good 2 hour hike. 

2/28/14 Veazie Rail Bed

Sunny but 10 degrees and quite windy. We had not done the old rail bed from the Essex Woods end this year so that's where we headed. There is a small park at the top of the hill with a couple of enclosed areas for dogs to play- one each for large and small dogs- but no dogs present.

We walked down the hill to the rail bed and found it well used and nicely packed for good walking.

The wind was cold and then we reached the open area across the frozen bog and it was brutal. Kelley, as usual seemed unaffected and was able to wander and explore with a nice firm crust.

Once back on the rail bed we got a little protection from the trees

And more when the woods became more dense

We walked to the intersection with the small trail we use to get to West trail in the forest and turned back.
Almost back, Kelley wanted to take a side trail. It took us into a neighborhood which has access to a trail which takes you around another boggy area and back to the rail bed. When we got back to the park there were dogs in the dog park but Kelley entered tentatively and did not engage in much play. I don't know if it was the place or she was just tired.

In spite of the cold, a beautiful day and a pretty good hike. 2  1/2 hours 

2/27/14 Snowmobile Trails

Cold ( -9.9 when we got up but I stalled 'till it was + 10 ) . Snowmobiles have been on the easement behind our house the last couple of nights so we decided to check it out. Very nice- firmly packed snow without ice made for easy walking. This 'trail' eventually connects with the actual snowmobile trail. A side trail that we had not taken this year for lack of traffic had also had a snowmobile on it so we took that. It's nice because it gets you into the woods.

The trail eventually takes a turn an goes to the old Bomarc missile site where we turned back and returned to the main trail. A bit further on was another side trail only used by a walker and we started down that one too.

We didn't get far as the other walker had soon given up and we were into deep untrod snow. We turned back too.

We continued on the main trail to Church rd. and turned back. We stayed with the main trail and took it across Broadway and over to Griffen Rd. This trail has been slightly rerouted and didn't go through some nice woods as it had in the past. We turned back again and found a way across Broadway and walked home through the neighborhood.

Turned out to be a pretty good hike as there was little wind so the cold was not bad. The only ice was some snow covered patches in the large field before Church Rd. All of the crust supported Kelley so she could explore a bit. 2  1/2 hours

2/26/14 Little Long Pond

Odd weather day- lower 20's with a mix of sun, clouds, and light snow flurries but only a little wind. We had not been to the park for some time and did not know what trail conditions we would find. Decided on this hike because it offers several alternatives.

We parked in the parking lot- plowed- and walked down the Friends Path. It had not had a lot of use.

The pond

As walked across the large field near the start of the Westside Trail  Kelley spotted a man and his dog across the pond and got excited but wasn't about to get out on that ice.

This trail  hadn't had a lot of use and deep frozen footprints made it a bit rough. When we got to the Jordan Stream Trail those tracks stopped and we saw only occasional deer tracks. The walking wasn't bad as the crust below the surface snow mostly supported us and as the trail follows  the stream - easy to follow.

This bridge has never been a problem, but today she didn't like the ridges of snow left by the melting between the boards and found another way across.

More snow and ice in and along the stream

When we reached the bridge we decided to take the carriage road on the east side of the pond. It gets a fair amount of use and had a nice packed trail to walk

We met a woman and her two dogs but the pup was somewhat aggressive and Kelley wouldn't play with it. Soon  there were wide tracks made by some large machine which left a nice path down each side of the road. When we reached the end of the pond we took the carriage roads on the west side rather than return on the Friends Path. This section looked like it had been plowed.

 and then we came to the machine which had done the plowing and left  the tracks on the other side.

A very short distance from the parking lot is a stream still running. Kelley got in and I missed her laying down in the water but got her coming out.

Turned out to be a pretty nice hike- not the usual number of people and dogs, and I'm sure that disappointed Kelley, but she seemed to enjoy the hike anyway. 2  1/4 hours 

2/25/14 Paul Bunyan Trails

Sunny- supposed to cloud up but  did not- cold ( 12 degrees) , with some wind that made it feel colder when we were in the open. We had never done the trail beyond Ohio St. so that was today's hike. We started from the end of Pushaw Rd. and had nicely packed snow and good walking. Once we crossed Ohio St. the trail became less interesting as it mostly followed the utility easement.

After Union St. it was a little better as the trail wound in and out of the woods. We followed the trail to the point where if followed the fence around the Air National Guard base ( we couldn't see anything beyond the fence) and turned back. Not an exciting hike, but the sun made it pleasant to be outside and it did not feel as cold as we feared. Kelley seemed happy with it even though we met no one.  2  1/4 hours