Middle and South Carter Hike

Jon and I bagged another two winter 4,000 footers over the weekend on a 10 mile hike over the Carter Range in the eastern White Mountains of New Hampshire, with a respectable 3,500 feet of elevation gain. I did the same trip last winter. 

It was cloudy with little wind at the beginning. This trip would have required very strong GO members with lots of winter experience in order to have made the entire loop under the conditions we encountered today.

We parked the truck at the 19 Mile Brook Trailhead at 8:30 am and barely got the last legal space in the lot which fills up early on most weekends, especially in winter. We had to wake up at 5:30 am to make the drive up in time for this hike ~ definitely an Alpine start ~ but I really wanted to return to the Carters this winter and it was definitely worth it!

We started by walking north on Route 16 for about .2 mile to the road leading to the entrance of Camp Dodge, where the Appalachian Mountain Club trail maintenance crew lives when they're not in the mountains working. The road was not broken out and had about 6 inches of powdery snow so we put on our snowshoes. The camps are completely deserted in winter but makes for a great shortcut to get to the Imp Trail.

The snow clung to the deciduous trees and clumped on the conifers. A half mile later we reached the Imp Trail. It was not broken out. It was 2.9 miles from here to reach the ridge and the Carter-Moriah trail. We took turns breaking, switching off every 15-30 minutes. This was a pretty good rhythm but in hindsight I think we should have been switching off more frequently to make better time. 

As we rose through the forest the snow deepened and we were now in 10 inches of snow. After the Imp/North Carter trails junction, we were now breaking up to 15 inches of powdery snow. As we gained elevation the snow was really clumping on the conifers and the deciduous trees were covered in a beautiful hoar frost which gave all their branches the appearance of crystalline barbed wire.

As the snow got deeper we were looking forward to reaching the ridge. From the Imp/North Carter trails junction, it took us 2 hours to break 1.2 miles of trail! It was a grind and physically exhausting for both of us. Once on the ridge we noticed the trail appeared to be more compacted with between 6-12 inches of snow. It now was breezy and getting colder.

We walked a bit south on the Carter-Moriah trail to find a sheltered location for lunch. The Carter-Moriah Trail coincides with the Appalachian Trail. The snow depth was such that our snowshoes were reaching the AT blazes.

We started to climb up to Middle Carter, which is the highest peak in the Carter Range, at 4,610 feet. We continued to break trail up to the summit, but it's a fairly gently climb over a few ledgy knobs that normally have some great viewpoints. But not for us today. Nonetheless, the trees were draped in snow and quite beautiful. There are a few places where we had to fight our way through spruce-fir branches and we had to pay attention to the eye pokers and face slappers. The only way we knew we reached Middle Carter was encountering snowshoe tracks from people coming in from the other direction. There's no summit sign on Middle Carter anymore. The Forest Service removed it from the summit it because the summit is on the boundary of a designated Wilderness area ~ seems a shame to us.

Reaching a broken trail was so nice. From here we continued south along the ridge to South Carter at 4,430 ft and stopped for quick snack. From here we had to hike another 4.6 miles back to our truck. We continued south to the Carter Dome Trail and hiked down 2,000 feet. At Nineteen Mile Brook Trail we switched to microspikes.  

It's been at least our second hike in the row where we had no views, but it mattered little. What mattered was that we got out to spend a day together in a beautiful, winter forest on a high mountain range!

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~ Mike Boisvert

Tag 2 more winter peaks: Middle and South Carter in Gorham, NH. Hike part of the Appalachian trail. The 19 mile trail is always nice. It is a rewarding workout with great views if the weather is right. We found the ridge walk over Middle and South Carters to be very enjoyable with good views!

The Carter range gets LOTS of snow on it. If we have warmer spring like conditions we still will need to pack snowshoes. Melting and refreezing snow = ice so bring light traction. We have also found this trail unbroken on a previous trip and also rotten crumbling trails where you will post hole to your knees. Prepare for all conditions.

We will meet the 19 mile trailhead parking lot, Hwy 16, and we will then walk the road north to Camp Dodge. We will cut through Camp Dodge. We will have to walk around a closed gate, then straight through the camp until we come to an old logging road which is very wide. We then walk down the old logging road. It's only 1/4 mile from there to the Imp Trail, which crosses the logging road. From here we take a right onto the Imp Trail to the North Carter trail, which eventually runs into the Carter-Moriah trail where we're forced to go either left or right. We take a right on the ridge and follow that all the way up and over Middle Carter [4,610'] and then South Carter [4, 430']. Eventually we will get to Zeta Pass which sounds grandiose but is really just a trail junction. From there we turn right onto the Carter Dome trail and follow that to the 19-Mile Brook trail and back to the parking lot. 10.8 miles, 3,500 feet gain, about 8 hrs depending on stops and trail conditions.

After The Hike:Bring a change of clothes because after the hike we'll have dinner at the Red Fox Pub in Jackson, NH.

Lodging Option: Bunk beds are available at my house near Waterville Valley, NH for Friday and/or Saturday night for $20 per night. Coffee/bagels each morning and linen/blankets/towels are provided. We have limited space in the fridge to store your beverages/food so it's best to bring a small cooler. Space is limited so email me ASAP to reserve a bunk!

Carpooling: Contact other guys living near you for carpooling. If you are driving up I-93, meet Jon and I off the Exit 28 ramp at the Post Office parking lot for 7:15 A.M.