Goose Eye Slide

On a fine early summer day I made the long drive to the Bethel, Maine area and 9.5 miles out Sunday River Road to the remote trailhead for the Wright Trail, the scenic eastern route up Goose Eye Mountain. I wanted to re-visit the lower half of the trail along Goose Eye Brook and then bushwhack onto the ledgy slide on the north face of Goose Eye Mountain's eastern ridge (which Wright Trail traverses).

The trailhead kiosk for Wright Trail.

AMC has recently entered into a maintenance agreement with the Maine Bureau of Public Lands for several trails.

Pleasant woods walking on the lower section of Wright Trail.

The original first half-mile of the trail followed closely along Goose Eye Brook and rejoins the current route at 0.5 mi. This section is now overgrown and hard to follow but does receive some use as it passes several interesting features along the brook.

 

A short distance farther a side path leads to this view of a nice cascade.

Ledges and pools abound along Goose Eye Brook.

This one is a beauty.

Surging stream.

Yet another pool.

 

A neat spot where the trail goes out onto brookbed ledges for 50 yards.

After a long moderate climb away from the brook, the trail returns to it at 2.5 miles and makes a potentially confusing crossing to begin the climb up onto the eastern ridge. To make the crossing you climb up this sloping ledge and make a sharp left into the woods at a blazed tree. 

 

At this crossing a side path on the right leads to a designated tentsite.

When Wright Trail was opened in the 1990s, it was a loop, with the north branch climbing steeply up through the glacial cirque on the east side of Goose Eye and the south branch ascending the east ridge. About 15 years ago the north branch, which climbed through some sketchy terrain on the cirque headwall, was abandoned due to erosion and safety concerns. When I climbed that route while it was open, I noted that it passed along the base of a large slab on he south side of the cirque - which happens to be the lower end of the slide I wanted to check out on this return visit. So I figured if I could follow the abandoned trail, more or less, it would lead me to the slide. I was indeed able to follow it most of the time, though it was very obscure and overgrown much of the way. Early on it made two crossings of Goose Eye Brook.

 

Some moss-covered rock steps assured me that I was on the old route.

 

Parts of it were basically a bushwhack.

The route ascended through beautiful hardwood forest on the north side of the valley.

It then skirted along the base of some large rock slabs. A short, careful scramble led to a view of the cirque headwall and a good look at the slide.

This slide is 500 ft. long and is all steep ledge slab, with a slope of 38 to 39 degrees. In looking at old aerial photos, it appears it may have fallen in the 1970s.

Looking up at more ledge slabs along the old route.

 

Close-up of a slab on the cirque headwall.

 

I descended to the floor of the valley, losing the old trail route,  and then bushwhacked up to the base of the slide, where I could see the old trail footway again.

I bushwhacked steeply up through the woods and then across the slope towards the slide through very dense scrubby growth. Looking back...

...and ahead.

Views to the many rock faces on the north wall of the cirque...

 

...and up to the headwall.

I emerged onto a little shelf of sorts between the lower slab of the slide and the main swath looming above. The rock was pretty grippy where dry and I scrambled a little way up, but I would want approach shoes to ascend all the way. The bushwhack from the top of the slide up to the ridge would be formidable.

I found a safe spot to hang out and enjoy the view (despite swarming black flies) down the Goose Eye Brook valley to Baldpate Mountain, Slide Mountain (no slides visible on it at present) and the beautiful ledgy cone of Sunday River Whitecap. That is Grafton Loop Trail territory.

Slide and Sunday River Whitecap, zoomed.

Looking across to the cirque headwall. I saw no white pines on this slide, but there are numerous tamaracks, including the one seen on the right in this photo. Tamaracks in general are less frequent denizens on White Mountain slides.

 

On the descent I scrambled out onto the lower slab, which shows the steepness of this slide.

 

 Stopped for a break here on the way out before the long journey home.

 

 

The Heart of The Kilkenny

The quiet Kilkenny region in the northern reaches of the White Mountain National Forest has long been a favorite haunt of mine. In fact, the Kilkenny Ridge Trail, with its miles of ridgeline walking, beautiful forests, two high country ponds, and several viewpoints might be my favorite trail in all the Whites. Although I had climbed Mt. Cabot last winter, it had been several years since I'd visited the more remote reaches of The Kilkenny on less-traveled trails. On this partly sunny early summer day I opted for an 11-mile loop that included both Kilback and Unknown Ponds and a side trip to an off-trail viewpoint, with a two-mile road walk linking trailheads at the end.

 

I started from the trailhead for Mill Brook Trail at the Berlin Fish Hatchery.

 

This is a beautiful, mellow approach into The Kilkenny, and the trail is in tip-top shape thanks to the hard work of its adopters, Jennifer and Kevin Stetson. They also maintain the Kilkenny Ridge Trail from Rogers Ledge to Unknown Pond. Thank you!!

In its first two miles Mill Brook Trail follows the rushing waters of Cold Brook. The trail used to be a through route to the Mill Brook valley and Mill Brook Rd. on the NW side of the ridge, but the section of trail on that side has been closed for many years. It really should be renamed Cold Brook Trail but the Mill Brook Trail name endures. 

 

Some parts of the valley have luxuriant undergrowth.

 

 

One of many beautiful scenes along the brook.

The trail leaves the brook and climbs onto a lush plateau of hardwood and birch.

 

 At 3.6 miles, after a gentle descent, Mill Brook Trail meets Kilkenny Ridge Trail deep in the Kilkenny wilds.

I made a short side trip to the north to check out Rogers Ledge Tentsite, which has four tents pads.

 

A wonderfully secluded place to camp.

 

 

Just south of the Mill Brook Trail junction, Kilkenny Ridge Trail crosses this small brook, which is the water source for the tentsite. 

This high plateau, at ~2,500 ft., has a supreme feeling of remoteness.

 

 

Kilkenny Ridge Trail passes by some wild spruce wetlands. 

 

 

 

 

Over the past several years, the trails folks from the Androscoggin Ranger District and volunteers from the Cohos Trail Association have been working on replacing the old, rotted bog bridges in this wet area. Much appreciated! 

 

A half-mile from the Mill Brook Trail junction I had my first glimpse of Kilback Pond, one of my favorite spots in The Kilkenny.

This small but picturesque pond enjoys a serene setting on the plateau between Unknown Pond Ridge (seen in this view) and Rogers Ledge. Birds were singing as I sat on a rock for lunch: Swamp Sparrows, Common Yellowthroats and White-throated Sparrows.

More bog bridges.

Another angle on the pond.

During the week after my hike, more bog bridges were added here to complete this crossing alongside a beaver dam.

 

 

 

A peek back at the granite face of Rogers Ledge.

 

 

 

 

This set of old bog bridges across a flooded area just west of Kilback Pond will be replaced later this season.

 

The crossing of the single log portion was slow and sketchy for me while carrying a big pack. It didn't help that the water was several feet deep on either side.

 

Gorgeous woods approaching the climb up to the crest of Unknown Pond Ridge.

The 700-ft. climb up Unknown Pond Ridge is a good workout, with abundant fern growth along the way.

This section of trail leads through a vast birch forest that seeded in after a big 1903 fire.

 

 

Nearing the crest of Unknown Pond Ridge.

 

 

 

After entering conifer woods on the crest, I bushwhacked to a northern spur of Unknown Pond Ridge. 

A ragged set of cliffs offers a wide view out to the Pliny, Presidential, Crescent and Carter Ranges.

Closer look at the Plinys and Presidentials.

Nearby, there is a lovely view of Unknown Pond resting peacefully at the base of The Horn.

Zoom on Unknown Pond.

The wild, trailless Pilot Range trails off to the NW.

 

 

 

Looking SE to other peaks on Unknown Pond Ridge. 

 

 

 

A birch dance troupe performs in a fern glade behind the cliffs. 

 

 

 

Another peek at Rogers Ledge.

 

Junction by Unknown Pond.

 

The iconic image of Unknown Pond and The Horn.

Unknown Pond's spruce-girt shores.

 

There are five tent pads at Unknown Pond Tentsite. The area along the shore is a revegetation area and is closed to camping,

Not far down from the campsite, Unknown Pond Trail passes through a meadow-like area with a view of the Presidentials.

 

 

An overgrown section of trail. Fern growth is prolific in The Kilkenny.

A lovely section of trail.

 

Unknown Pond Brook gains strength as it flows down the valley. In the span of 0.2 mile, the trail makes two crossings of this brook and one of a tributary.

 

 

 

The Androscoggin District trails folks have been working on improvements  along muddy sections of the trail.

 

Near the bottom of Unknown Pond Trail the Androscoggin District trails folks have also made a good relocation around a section of trail that had been flooded by a misbehaving brook.

 

A highlight of the two-mile walk on York Pond Rd. was this view of North Weeks across York Pond.