9.2 miles and 4 peaks
This seems to have been a busy week for me. I actually did this hike on Sunday but am only now getting around to writing it up.
The hike last Sunday was an ambitious one, at least for me. I'm positive it's the most hiking that I've done all summer. It was a good warm-up for an upcoming overnight hiking trip to the White Mountains.
We started out at the parking lot along route 3 at the start of the the trail leading to the Day mountain carriage road and trail. We planned to hit three summits: Day (583 feet), Triad (696 feet), and Pemetic (1,248 feet). Sitting on top of Pemetic, we couldn't resist adding Penobscot (1,194 feet) to our route. It took nearly 5 hours to complete the trek of 9.2 miles.
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There is actually a carriage road that leads to the top od Day mountain that is an ease walk or bike ride. The trail head is a little deceptive since there is a well trodden path on the right of the carriage road. A little beyond this dead end is the Day mountain trail head on the left of the carriage road. It wasn't too long before we were rewarded with our first spectacular view.
Under the nearly-cloudless blue sky it was easy to press on to the summit. This is a fairly easy trail that left us with lots of energy to hike down the slope towards Triad mountain.
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Triad is actually three peaks. We headed towards the highest peak up some steep and rocky slopes via the Pemetic southeast trail. The climb was quick, but required a few stops to catch my breath. At the top, we stopped to enjoy the view and rest our legs.
Between Triad and Pemetic there is a forest path that could come straight out of a fairytale. The sun streaking through the leafy canopy lit the moss covered forest floor. I even spotted a large toad stool. Distracted by the magic beauty of the forest, I actually had to jog a little to catch up with the group. Sometimes you just need to stop and take a deep breath of the pine-laced air.
The climb up to Pemetic was even more abrupt than up Triad. There were plenty of rocky stairs and ledges to scramble over before breaking from the forest and climbing the rest of the way up the sun-drenched rock face to the summit.
Our lunch break well-earned, we enjoyed our food looking out onto Jordan Pond and the surrounding peaks. It was just too tempting to stop there. Plus we were contemplating a trail up Penobscot that I hadn't traveled yet. I'm a sucker for a new trail.
So down Pemetic and across to Jordan pond we headed. An easy walk around the northern end of the pond and we were heading up the Deer Brook Trail. It was a fairly steady climb, or maybe my legs were getting a little tired. Still I couldn't resist another detour to Sargent Pond, a little oasis between Sargent and Penobscot mountains.
After another snack break, we double backed and sumited Penobscot.
From there is was only a few more miles down to the Spring Trail, onto Jordan pond house, and back to the parking lot south of Day Mountain.
By the end of the 9.2 miles, I was ready to sit down to a cold drink and some hot food. The plan for this weekend is a lot less ambitious, the Orange and Black trail to the top of Champlain. Only 3.4 miles, provided I am not tempted to add another detour. With so many connecting trails and roads, it's just so easy to keep walking.
