Lala Dinsmore

I suppose most people would think that hiking in our area is all but done until spring, but wait! There are many people who will pick a sunny day in late November and find that could be some of the best hiking of the year! Actually my friend John and I have had two exceptionally easy and enjoyable hikes in this past week. The first was the little trek up toward Mt. Hayes. We crossed the (scary-looking but not dangerous) railroad bridge across the Androscoggin on Rt. 16, and on the ...I suppose most people would think that hiking in our area is all but done until spring, but wait! There are many people who will pick a sunny day in late November and find that could be some of the best hiking of the year! Actually my friend John and I have had two exceptionally easy and enjoyable hikes in this past week. The first was the little trek up toward Mt. Hayes. We crossed the (scary-looking but not dangerous) railroad bridge across the Androscoggin on Rt. 16, and on the opposite side of the river walked along the easy dirt road for about a mile (even though a sign says 2 miles!) to the beginning of the trail. This is located at the east end of the dam, and the trail sign is on the left, marked in blue. A lively brook is also on the left going along with you. At about 1.1 mile you’ll see a blue marker on the right side, which marks the trail to Mascot Pond, which is just below the cliffs which can easily be seen from Gorham. This is a trail that I have taken many times with family and even Girl Scouts; well worth a bit of effort, for sure. You can see Mount Madison and many of the Presidentials, as well as a great view of the town of Gorham. Now, look for the Mahoosuc Trail which crosses a woods road, then ascends the valley of a brook, and at 2.5 miles passes a “short spur” that leads left to “Popsy Spring”. Finally after climbing steeply, there you are, emerging on the summit of Mount Hayes!

I will confess that we didn’t turn off for that trek the other day, but before the snow flies, I would recommend it as a great five –mile round trip.