Bushwhacks

Mount Huntington (North) and its three subpeaks, South, West, and East have a notorious reputation in New Hampshire’s off-trail hiking community (North and South are on the NH100 highest list) Dense spruce, blowdowns galore, steep climbs, and sheer cliffs keep most hikers away, since there …

Mt Paugus is a 3000 footer in the Sandwich Range, adjacent to famous Mt Chocorua. Known as Old Shag for its shaggy, lumpish appearance, Paugus is quite a big mountain with formidable southern cliffs which make a fine resting spot in summer, providing an …

Mt Bemis is a 3725′ mountain located in the White Mountain’s Crawford Notch, named for Dr Samuel Bemis, who built the stone house at its base which is now the popular Notchland B&B. Bemis was an interesting character: a denture maker turned …

“We have to climb 500 more feet in the next quarter mile”, said Kris, as we scrambled up the southeast face of Mt Chandler, a 3000 footer on the eastern side of the White Mountains just south of the Baldface Range. I put my …

I was grumpy at the end of our bushwhack up Middle and East Scar. I was soaking wet, my hands were cold, and my rain pants were shredded. We’d fallen off our line descending from the East peak and I was covered …

“We should have brought our crampons” said Kris, my frequent bushwhacking partner. “Even without snow,” I replied, as we clawed and scrambled our way up an incredibly steep slope below rocky cliffs. It was unseasonably warm, this first week of November, on …

Dave turned to me and said “I love this!” as we passed a steaming pile of bear poop after a freezing lunch on the summit of trail-less Black Mountain, just outside of Jackson, NH. “I love the adventure,” he said, as we …

Sachem Peak is a trailless mountain near Sandwich Dome noted for its rocky visage and open summit ledges. Located on Acteon Ridge just below Jennings Peak, it’s a moderately easy bushwhack from the Smarts Brook Trail which climbs Sandwich Dome from the west. …

Off-trail hiking also called bushwhacking in New England, isn’t for everyone, and requires more advanced compass or GPS navigation skills. But if you have those, there are many nice autumn hikes that you can go one in the White Mountains where you …

My friend Kris and I headed into Northern New Hampshire to bushwhack some mountains on the New Hampshire 200 highest list. This area is way off the grid, largely owned by lumber companies, but accessible to outdoors folk who want to push their skills …

I’ve fallen in with a delightful group of bushwhackers who enjoy hiking up trailless peaks as much as I do. Our latest conquest were the twin summits of West and East Deception (3671′), two 3000 footers that overlook the valley with the Cog …

Mike and I were cold and wet when we reached the pond. We’d both gotten soaked on the bushwhack up to Mount Anderson (3740′) and had decided to hike back down to Norcross Pond and camp out instead of continuing deeper into …

My right leg sank knee-deep in the black sulfurous mud before I completely toppled into the stuff. As soon as my friends got a whiff, they backed away from me to escape the stench and put some distance between themselves and my mud coated clothing. I …

The Captain is a remote 3540 foot mountain named for its resemblance to El Capitan in Yosemite National Park. Located between South Hancock Mountain and Mount Carrigan in New Hampshire’s White Mountains, it’s a rugged off-trail bushwhack on the New Hampshire Hundred …