Sugarloaf
Mountain – Elwell Trail, Bristol/Alexandria town line
View of Newfound Lake from Big Sugarloaf.
(Directions for hiking Little and Big Sugarloaf and Bear Mt. are in the AMC
Hikers Guide to Southern NH -- as are all of the trails around Cardigan.)
Park at the hiker's parking across from Wellington
State Park on West Shore Road in Alexandria. As you start out on the Elwell
Trail from the parking lot, a snowmobile trail veers right. Be sure to follow
the blazes to stay on the hiking trail. A bit further on there is a trail that
leads left to Goose Pond. Not far - and a pretty picnic spot.
Little Sugarloaf is less than 1 mile to the
summit. It is an easy hike in winter or summer.
A great little hike to introduce small children to
the joys of peakbagging. I've seen 4 year olds at the top picnicking with their
familes. View Newfound Lake from the top. If you look west, you can look down
onto Goose Pond. Goose Pond, where loons, wood ducks and mergansers are often
seen, is a nice side trip on the way down from Little Sugarloaf. Trail blazes
are easy to spot.
Big Sugarloaf is accessed by traversing Little
Sugarloaf and following blazes down into the saddle that separates the 2 peaks.
You will then climb Big Sugarloaf. From the top of Big Sugarloaf, you can see
far to the northeast and have a much broader view of the Newfound Region.
For those who don't like to backtrack, leave one
car on Bear Mt. Road in Hebron where the old Carriage Road veers left and Bear
Mt. Road veers right. Then hike from the Elwell Trail at Wellington State Park
to Big Sugarloaf and follow blazes down a steep trail to the Carriage Road and
hike to your car.
At the intersection of the Carriage Road and the
trail leading up to Big Sugarloaf, you can also access the Bear Mt. Trail and
climb Bear Mt. too! Beware that it is rarely used, steep and sometimes
confusing.
Cardigan
Mountain Trails AMC, Alexandria.
Directions: From US 3A North in Bristol, turn left
onto West Shore Road and in 1.9 miles, go straight on Cardigan Mountain Road.
Bear right at fork onto Fowler River Road. In 3.2 miles, take left fork onto
Brook Road. In another 1.1 miles, turn right onto Shem Valley Road and bear
right at schoolhouse. In 1.3 miles, parking on left across from AMC’s Cardigan
Lodge.
There are numerous trails of varying difficulty,
including several to the summit of Cardigan Mountain (3167 ft). Maps are
available inside the lodge. Naturalist-led programs are available on weekends,
as well as some weekdays in summer.
http://www.outdoors.org/publications/outdoors/2005/mountcardigan.cfm |