Chase Pond Peak - Melvin Hill: 8/7/2014

I decided the day before that I was going to do a couple of quick hikes before I had to work on Thursday, so after a later start than usual I headed out. I had jotted down a few possible candidates to hike/bushwhack for today so it would be a matter of finding good access to them. The day started out on the sunny side but as the day wore on, the good weather turned to rain showers.


Mileage: 2.2 miles
Elevation gain: 825 feet
Trails used: none. logging road/ATV trail, bushwhack, unofficial trail.
Highlight(s): none.


I picked an un-named peak on the topographic maps (that I dubbed Chase Pond Peak, since it was near Chase Pond) as my first hike of the day. I looked on the map and found a few roads that looked like they might work out so I headed out. When I arrived at the starting point, it was next to a house and the road in turned into a Class V road which means I wouldn't be going any further in my car. 

Chase Pond Peak is located in Plainfield, New Hampshire. I managed to find an unofficial trail that goes all the way to the summit, where there are views in several directions. If you can't find the trail, it requires a combination of ATV/snowmobile trails and a bushwhack to reach the summit of Chase Pond Peak.

I started the hike on a Class V road and ended up hiking on a ATV/snowmobile trail.

On the way up, I came across what looked like a trail (I did notice some white blazes) heading up towards the summit areas so I decided to follow it.

The trail led up to these ledges, which I took to the high point of Chase Pond Peak.

This sign on the summit area says Snow Mountain, which is a possible name placed by the locals, but it is the mountain to the north of Chase Pond Peak.

This chair is on the ledges below the summit and behind the Snow Mountain sign. It even says "Property of Snow Mountain" on it.

Not much for views on the summit and with rain on the horizon, it was only a matter of time before there were none at all. Mount Kearsarge is just visible in the background.

The actual high point of Chase Pond Peak (elevation: 2194 feet). There were hardly any views from the summit area today due to the rain moving in.

With worsening views and more clouds incoming, I decided to head back down to the car.

Another picture of the unofficial trail that runs from the snowmobile trail to the summit of Chase Pond Peak. It possibly runs over the summit and west but I didn't follow it.

Once off the trail, I followed the ATV/snowmobile trail back to the car.

It was a quick round trip hike, but mainly due to finding the unofficial trail that runs from the summit of Chase Pond Peak back down the the snowmobile trail. Next, I wanted to pick off one of the few peaks I have left on the New Hampshire Top 100 Prominence Peaks. Yes, another list to work on.  

Melvin Hill

Mileage: 3.4 miles

Elevation gain: 960 feet

Trails used: none. bushwhack.

Highlight(s): none.


I did not have much information on how to do this hike but I did know it was going to be a bushwhack through mostly open woods, and if I could find them, old logging roads that I could use to reach the summit of Melvin Hill. It rained briefly but by the time I reached the spot along Route 4A where I would park and start the hike, it was sunny again. However, that would not last as I neared the summit area as rain, thunder and lightning rolled in once again.

Melvin Hill is located in Springfield, New Hampshire and in the Gile State Forest. There are no trails that go to the semi-wooded summit of Melvin Hill, but there are views from ledges that surround the summit area.

I parked just outside of this gate that used to be for the Gardner Memorial Wayside Park (the park is currently down the road) and started the bushwhack.

I saw that there used to be an old road shown on my GPS so I tried to see if there were still remnants of it, which there were at first.

I came across this dig site, which I think could possibly some sort of mine due to the pile of chipped rocks that were beside the hole.

On the way up, I came across a bull moose feeding on some of the vegetation in a old logging cut and spooked it. I followed it's tracks up and found it again and watched it for a good ten minutes, trying to get closer to get a good picture and this is all I got.

As I made it to this grassy area right below the summit of Melvin Hill, it started to rain with thunder and lightning, so I had to hurry and find the high point and head back down.

The views from the summit of Melvin Hill (elevation: 2303 feet) looking towards Mount Kearsarge. I am sure the views would be better if it wasn't raining and if I had more time to look around for more.

I followed my tracks back down through open woods. This hike has quite a few ups and downs and you cross several marshy areas on the way up and back down to the car.

A wetlands area right off of Route 4A that I walked besides on the way back to the car.

Not bad for two bushwhacks. Open woods for both and sighting a moose is always a bonus, especially this far south of the North Country and White Mountains.  Any day out in the woods is by far better than heading into work (which I had to hurry home and do).