Re: spring hiking

We live on Rand Hill Rd and will climb Mt. Major, come off the back side of Mt. Major following the snowmobile trails down to Jesus Valley Road and then up to our house. We then drive a car back down to get the one we left at Mt Major.
I believe there is a trail that runs from Mt Major then up and over STraightback then down to near Hills Pond. I have not taken that route, and don't know how well marked/easy walking it is.
Got the bill for our golf course and bill from the Marina in the same day...can spring be far away???
enjoy!

[mcdude]

...from Straightback down toward Hills Pond and Alton Mt. Road. The lower part of this trail crosses private property and should be treated respectfully (as all trails should!) Here are some hiking maps and directions etc. for hiking in the Belknaps. DCR (from photopost "fame") has a wealth of information about this area.
click here for hiking maps

[dcr]

Originally Posted by Upthesaukee

We live on Rand Hill Rd and will climb Mt. Major, come off the back side of Mt. Major following the snowmobile trails down to Jesus Valley Road and then up to our house. We then drive a car back down to get the one we left at Mt Major.
I believe there is a trail that runs from Mt Major then up and over STraightback then down to near Hills Pond. I have not taken that route, and don't know how well marked/easy walking it is.
Got the bill for our golf course and bill from the Marina in the same day...can spring be far away???
enjoy!

I seem to remember giving you one of my maps of the Belknap trails - perhaps not, so I'll leave one for you at work, with the two trails that lead from Straightback to the J V Road highlighted. One of these leads fairly quickly to the snowmobile trail you're already familiar with; the other goes by a longer, more circuitous route to the end of the J V Road, by the old Boudreau farm. You can, as you mentioned, take the old blueberry pasture road from the top of Straightback all the way to the end of the Alton Mtn Rd, which would leave you only a few hundred yards or so from Hill's Pond. But you'd still have a long walk home.

As for trail conditions: the trail from Major to Straightback is generally well marked, the grades are easy (except near the end, where a steep section less than 100' long has to be climbed - not hand over hand, or anything close to that); the 2 trails down to the Jesus Valley Rd are not well marked ( a few stone cairns in the old blueberry pasture at the top), but the walking on both is generally good, with a few sections of rockiness in badly eroded sections of the roads, but you've seen some of that on the snowmobile trail. Most of both trails are the remnants of old roads.

[Drummer Boy]

We are going to be getting a late start on the day but was wondering if it is possible to hike Mt Major tomorrow? Or is there some other area in the lakes region that would be more suited for hiking in the winter?

[mcdude]

I've certainly never hiked it in the winter but there seem to be cars parked there at all times of the year....I assume they're hiking! Have fun!

[upthesaukee]

You can encounter icy conditions on Mt Major, so be prepared. With the extreme cold, not much melting has occurred up there, and with the warmer conditions this weekend, the ice will certainly have a coating of water on it, making it very slick. Crampons, or at the least, yak traks would be helpful.

[RLW]

I stopped in the parking area yesterday and there were many cars there. I spoke to a young couple that just came down (didn't go to top) but they said about 70% was good climbing and the rest one really had to watch their stepping because of the wet ice and snow covered ice. All in all they said it was fun and great to be able to see the sites and get the great fresh air.