Week #2: North Moat Mountain

Continuing my quest to get into hiking shape (note to self: when they rank a mountain as "moderate" in the Whites, they actually mean "if you're not from around here, you'll think it's ridiculously strenuous and steep, but we consider it moderate because it's less than 10 miles long." Soooo.....yeah.).

Backing up: I managed to hurt my left eye pretty badly last week, to the point where I needed an eye patch. No joke (although we did joke, quite a bit!). Jeff fixed me up all pretty. My hike would be with glasses, which is not the most pleasant experience, but hey. I still had an eye.

After perusing the list of mountains to tackle next, I chose North Moat Mountain. The Moat range lies just to the west of North Conway--those are the mountains you see from town. Down there, they don't look too bad.

Just out of town, you drive past Cathedral Ledges that look like impressively tall pipe organs cut into rocks, and onward a few miles to the parking lot for Diana's Baths. The happy accident about this loop trail is that it begins and ends at the baths, perfect for soaking those sore, swollen toes and rubbed-raw heels. Lucy Brook, still icy this time of year, cascades over exposed granite worn smooth over the millennia. It has created lovely little pools perfect for one-person soaks, thin sheets of water sliding down the hill, various tiny waterfalls, rocks to lounge upon. The dogs took a quick dip and onward we went.

The Moat Mountain Trail follows Lucy Brook in the forest for a couple of miles. Numerous stream crossings and some wet soil provide a home to likely millions of mosquitoes. Thanks be to Deet for some relief. After two miles, the trail suddenly turned to the left and BAM!! The HILL loomed ahead. We began to climb.

And climb. And climb. It was a 2,500 ft. ascent in two miles (the mountain clocks in around 3,500 ft.). The canopy opened up a bit, with more exposed granite, fewer deciduous trees, some mountain views. There were spots where I was scrambling on hands and feet to get up, the rocks chest-high at places.

The granite still has scars on it from when the glacier receeded. I love geology!

This whole time, we were the only ones on the trail. Apparently it is not well-travelled. I have a pretty good idea why...but we did come across two women who were taking a much-needed rest near the top. Sandy and Jennifer were two friends from a town near us. Sandy was getting in shape to conquer all the 48 peaks taller than 4,000 ft. and Jennifer was accompanying her. The four of us plus the dogs clambered up the rest of the way and HOLY COW. The views were breathtaking, even with the grey clouds and slight haze. These were the best views I've seen on the east coast.

Check out the 360!



But what goes up must come down. On the Red Ridge Trail, we came upon areas taller than head-high that required actual climbing. The dogs refused to jump, so Jeff, being the good dog dad he is, carried them down.

The Red Ridge Trail is exposed for a mile or two, with gorgeous views in the hot sun that now emerged from the clouds. We were baking up there, and unfortunately had run out of water. Poor Shelby with her black fur was melting. I scratched my head and found my hair part entirely crusted with blood thanks to mosquitoes and black flies. I made up a funny little song to keep spirits up. What a gorgeous day, though! We are blessed to live in such an area, and to be healthy enough to hike like we do.

As we climbed down what amounts to a huge ravine, we encountered Lucy Brook again, a much-needed cooling break and a drink for the pooches. Ah, we must be close to Diana's Baths! And so we walked. And walked. And we walked. We thought we were lost! I was starting to stumble and limp, my feet feeling like clubs. Finally, at mile 10, we hit the baths. Shoes and shirt and pants off, we waded in the freezing water to relax.

Sandy and Jennifer caught up to us and kindly invited us to have a beer with them at Sandy's second home in North Conway. Score!! A cold beer was much-needed, and those two chicks were totally cool. We love meeting such great people on the trail! Sandy and I popped Advil right away. Soreness factor: three days until my legs were better. Eye is also now back to normal. Just in time to plan for our next hiking adventure...