9/29: Mount Cannon
Sunday September 29th Rachel, Natalie, and I headed out from Boston to Franconia Notch State Park. We were running a bit late and didn't get up there until the afternoon. We parked in the same lot as when we did the Mt. Lafayette loop and crossed under the high way using the tunnel. We decided we still wanted to complete the Mt. Cannon loop which a map at the information center said was 4.7 miles round trip.
We used the Lafayette campground entrance to Hi-Cannon Trail to head up the mountain.
It may seem incredulous to suggest this, and I welcome the opinion of others who have experienced both, but because we ascended the mountain so quickly (most of the uphill part of the trail was 2.2 miles) this trail felt steeper, rockier, and more full of root stairs cases than the trails up Lafayette!
This next part is probably my favorite... we found this gorgeous tree! It's roots had grown up out of the ground creating almost a cave and the tree had grow at an angle into the woods before growing up. The part of the path around it was also wider than usual and flat. It was a great place to stop and play.
As we approached the tree line we had to climb this staircase to continue on the trail. Boy were we glad we were going up and not down!
Along the way we found several place to step off the trail and view the mountains around us and lake below. Natalie made me really nervous when she first walked out on one but we played it safe and didn't go far.
Lonesome lake below us looked like it was sparkling as it reflected the sunlight.
It so interesting to watch the terrain change along the path. This one part was particularly dense with trees, but mostly broken low branches with no leaves and evergreens, and the entire forest floor covered in moss.
The last 0.5 miles to the summit began on Kinsman Ridge with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains, including the peaks we summited last time - Little Mount Haystack, Mount Lincoln, and Mount Lafayette. At this elevation we bundled up a little more.
We stopped at the tramway for lunch and then headed up to the observation deck for a splendid view of the surrounding mountains on all sides. On the deck we were happy for our extra layers, it was a bit windy and much cooler than it was at lower elevations.
For our descent we Lonesome Lake Trail. This trail was just as rocky, if not rockier than Hi-Cannon Trail. We spend most of the time using both our legs and hands to climb down.
Eventually we came to Lonesome Lake and had a bit of a break walking on plank trails along the lake edge.
Seen above is our view from Lonesome Lake of Little Mt Haystack, Mt Lincoln, and Mt Lafayette our hike last time we were in the White Mountains.
And I'm still chasing chipmunks...
