New Trails at Smith Pond

Some of my favorite woods and trails are up along the Smith Pond Brook and Smith Pond. The brook has two of the finest waterfalls in the Upper Valley: Big Dog Falls and Little Dog Falls. The valley up to the falls is like a mini Grand Canyon. The area around the Smith Pond is very diverse with very steep terrain, marshes, many brooks and stream, and a lot of wildlife.

When I read a post that the Upper Land Trust had put in some new trails, I had to check them out. You are now able to hike a 5-6 mile loop from Rte 4A up to and back from Smith Pond. One thing that makes this tract of land so interesting is it’s history with the Shakers. They lived and worked the land in the late 1800’s. The new trails showcase their handy work of hand dug canals and stonework that guided the water from Smith Pond to their mill in Lower Shaker Village.

Here is a my GPS route:

The trails start at the Shaker Forest Gate on Rte 4A which is between Gray’s Marina and Wilson Mobile Home Park. Taking the southern leg to the pond is more direct (and steeper) and includes most of the notable landmarks.

The first stop is an old Shaker Reservoir (dry) with stone dam and spillway.

Along the lower section of the trail it follows the old Shaker hand dug canals.

About a mile into the hike you come to Smith Pond Brook.

You follow the brook briefly until you come to the next trail Junction where you can hike up to Big Dog Falls. The trail ends at the falls, so you must come back to continue up to Smith Pond.

 

Here is a picture of the Falls that I took last year:

This is when the hike becomes steep, but there is a nice stop half-way with a view of Mascoma Lake.

The next stop is Little Big Falls.

You walk by a beautiful marsh before you get to the Pond.

The next stop is Smith Pond. There are trails along the eastern shore, connecting the 3-4 dams. Here are some pictures taken from the dam on the northern end of the pond.

The trail then continues from here for a 2.8 mile hike back to Rte 4A.

All my photos can be found on my website: http://www.travispaigephotography.com/Landscapes/New-Trails-at-Smith-Pond/

Harbor Mountain-Sitka Alaska

Still going through my shots from my trip out west. Here are some more panaramas and trail shots on top of Harbor Mountain.

In search of Tipping Rock

After I saw this picture from a post on the Lebanon Historical Society Facebook page, I knew I had to find this old 18th century landmark. It was a two week journey scouring Boston Lot (Landmark Property) trying to find this rock. I thought I knew everything about the 3000+ acre parcel, but I was dead wrong. Walking the woods off the beaten path, there are some amazing  geological points of interest and there are thousands and thousands of large rocks. This journey also gave me some time to hang with family, friends, some old and new. Digging up old maps and trying to piece together the small clues. I knew someone must know where it is, but part of me enjoyed the hunt, but finally I broke down and got the final clue from a local expert of the Upper Valley trails and woods.

Here are two more photos from the 1890s.

    

The clue below the image on the left stated: The “Tipping Rock,” a glacial rock that once could be tipped about 18”, located in the Boston Lot, west of Lebanon Center near the early road to Hanover.

I then went to the Lebanon Library to find some old maps to try to find this old road to Hanover.This map shows a road between Old Pine Tree Cemetery Road and the Wilder Dam, but is this the road? Unfortunately, it was not.

Here is a topographical map from 1907.

Here is the old map transposed over an up-to-date topographical map.

The other clue was that it was on the edge of an old field, so I thought looking along old stone walls would be a good idea. This older trail map of the area shows some stone walls east of the lake, but again it was a dead end.

Finally, it was found with the help of a local expert. Below is the approximate location of the Tipping Rock, not far from the Nature Walk trail entrance (approx. 15 minute hike). Directions: Take main trail in and take Creepy Teepee. Stay to your left to the Hardwoods Trail (right). Take the Hardwoods trail to Canyon. Take left onto Canyon and stay to the right on the old road and look for orange ribbons. Follow ribbons up old logging road to the rock (approx. 150 yards).

Here are some photos of tipping rock taken over the last few days.

Notice the large flat shelf that the rock sits on.

Looking from this angle, you can actually see a face in the rock.

Here is another view of the side that looks like a face.

Here is Brent trying to tip the rock. It does move slightly, but is still trigged.

The morning light.

Some other “large” rock formations: