On a fine October day I returned to the Three Ponds area to check out the south side of the Mount Kineo Trail, which is lightly used above its junction with Donkey Hill Cutoff. Since I was up on the ridgecrest, I continued off-trail to the sharp, wooded summit of Mount Kineo (3313 ft.).
Mount Kineo Trail starts 0.1 mile up the Three Ponds Trail from the Stinson Lake Rd. trailhead. For the first mile it rolls through hardwood forest along the lower slope of Black Hill, with several ups and downs.
Directional signs where the trail turns left onto its original route, now a snowmobile trail.
The trail shadows Brown Brook as it heads up the valley.
A wide corridor along the snowmobile trail.
At 1.6 miles the hiking trail diverges right from the snowmobile trail past a line of boulders.
The Brown Brook cascade was looking good.
At this junction the Mount Kineo Trail rejoins the snowmobile trail.
Heavy duty bridge over Brown Brook.
Parts of the snowmobile trail are brushy.
I pushed a few yards off trail for a partial view over the mile-long Brown Brook Marshes, with the north ridge of Carr Mountain in the distance. Before it was relocated onto the snowmobile trail, a 0.3 mile section of Mount Kineo Trail followed along the edge of the marshes, with several views. Now the trail only offers limited glimpses of the wetlands.
This section of trail could lead to wet feet on a rainy day.
A glimpse of the marshes.
The trail passes by a beautiful bottomland hardwood forest.
A map of local snowmobile trails, posted at a three-way snowmobile trail junction.
A small sign marks the spot where the Mount Kineo Trail turns off the snowmobile trail and becomes a hiking footpath again.
The 1.2 mile climb to the ridge is a nice woods walk.
This south-facing slope is cloaked in a fine hardwood forest.
No better place to be on a golden October day.
A steady climb into conifer forest lifted me to the height-of-land on the Mount Kineo ridge, at 2900 ft.
The bushwhack northward to the summit is a bit less than a mile, through mostly open woods.
It's a surprisingly pleasant whack for a 3000-footer.
There were some blowdowns to weave around, but there was always a way.
This was the worst blowdown patch.
This was as thick as it got.
Climbing to the pointy peak.
The summit.
Canister and sign.
A mini Sandwich Range view: Middle and South Tripyramid, The Sleepers, Mt. Passaconaway and Mt. Whuteface.
Sandwich Dome.
Summit register.
There were many familiar names in here.
Back on the trail, down through the hardwoods.
On the way out I bushwhacked to a large beaver pond down on the lower slope of Kineo.
A peaceful scene late in the day....
.....with a sweet view back to Mount Kineo.
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