Home4000-FootersOther White Mountain TripsTrail WorkOther StatesMemorabilia

Map

  Moriah-Carter page: 

1

2

3

4

5

6

 
Mt Moriah, Middle Carter Mtn - page 4 of 6

After leaving the guy and his dog behind, I continued ascending the wonderful rocky ledges at the south end of Mt Moriah. All was quiet and peaceful until I began to hear voices below. Soon, a group of three noisy young teenage boys appeared over a rise, followed close behind by more, then more, and then more boys. Their leader, not much more than a boy himself, brought up the rear with a few stragglers. I let them all pass me by, hoping that they were considerably fast and would soon be out of sight.

Unfortunately, such was not the case. A bit up the trail, I encountered the whole group again, resting on a large flat ledge. I tend to hike slowly but continuously, rarely stopping for more than an occasional breather or drink of water. But this group hiked fast and furious, only to stop for longer sit-down rests at regular intervals. Naturally, this had us leapfrogging all the way to the summit, and then back again. Preferring solitude, I was not pleased.

Along the way, there grew numerous alpine flowers and shrubs, many past their prime, but some, like sheep laurel, were in full bloom. 

Just below the summit cone, I stopped to wait for the boys to scramble about fifty vertical feet single-file up a sort of chimney on a steep rock face. While waiting, I stopped to talk to a couple of girls who had just come down and were on their way to the Imp Campsite as part of a north-to-south trek of the Appalachian Trail. It was obvious to them that the noisy boy's group would pretty much take over the small bare summit area, and that I wouldn't have much peace. I told them that I thought they wouldn't stay up there very long.

Of course, naturally, they did. As they were sprawled all over the rock on the tiny summit area, I was forced onto some east-facing ledges, which did have some great views of the Androscoggin River the Mahoosuc Range. I figured I'd wait them out, and I expected them to leave at any minute. Again, no such luck! I got tired of waiting, so I stepped carefully over their prone bodies to sneak a quick look east from some rocks near the summit. Disgusted, I grabbed my pack and left. Large groups should be considerate enough not to occupy an entire summit area with no regard for others. Even if the boys didn't have a sense of this, their leader should have.

On the way back, they caught up with me once again on the south ledges. I went around a corner by the edge of the cliffs to photograph some trees and wait until they all passed. My greatest fear was that they'd end up at the Imp Campsite that night, thus ensuring a noisy and restless sleep.

The Northern Presidentials - Mts Jefferson, Adams, and Madison - from the ledges at the south end of Mt Moriah.

n pres from cm trail.jpg (29734 bytes)

The Carter-Moriah Trail climbing toward Mt Moriah. This wooded area is in between the south ledges and the summit cone.

carter-moriah trail 4.jpg (67339 bytes)

Sheep laurel. This pretty evergreen shrub grows abundantly along the trail on Mt Moriah.

sheep laurel.jpg (86837 bytes)

Looking north from the Mt Moriah summit. Down below, the Androscoggin River winds its way toward the Maine coast. Behind it lay the southern Mahoosucs.

looking north from moriah.jpg (42541 bytes)

Me on top of Mt Moriah. A large unruly boy's group, possibly from a nearby camp, sprawled all over the tiny summit area, forcing me onto some east-facing ledges.

me on moriah.jpg (37024 bytes)

Balsam fir. The upright cones of a fir tree distinguish it from the down-hanging cones on a spruce.

balsam fir.jpg (57916 bytes)

Map

  Moriah-Carter page: 

1

2

3

4

5

6