 |
Web Hosting by Netfirms | Free Domain Names by Netfirms |
|
|
|
| Home | Trail Descriptions | Articles | Links | Seasonal Tips | Forum |
The Bennett Street Trail is one of the less-used trails up Sandwich Mountain, starting from (where else?) Bennett Street in the NE corner of Sandwich. Although the upper part of the trail is now in the Sandwich Range Wilderness, the area shows its logging history with many old woods roads and the former Beebe River logging railroad. Although it does not connect to the Appalachian Trail, the Bennett Street Trail is blazed in blue to distinguish it from the many yellow-blazed trails in the area.
The highest natural ground in Carroll County is not at a summit but where the county line crosses the ridge to a higher peak. The present USGS maps show this point near where the Bennett Street Trail reaches Sandwich Mountain.
Distance: Flat Mountain Pond Trail to summit, about 4.0 miles one-way (add .5 miles from parking lot)
Elevation gain: Flat Mountain Pond Trail to summit, about 2800 feet (add 100 feet from parking lot), nominal on return
Maps:
USGS Mount Tripyramid
AMC Crawford Notch-Sandwich Range
Location: Technically the Lakes Region, although most would consider this a White Mountains hike
NH 2004-2005 map J-7
DeLorme NHA&G 40-C/D-2/3 - Sandwich
Sandwich is N of NH Route 25 between Meredith and Ossipee
Lower End: Flat Mountain Trail about .5 miles W of lot on Bennett Street, elevation about 1200 feet
To reach the parking lot (43.883°N, 71.447°) from I-93 Exit 23, take NH Route 104 E about 8 miles until it ends at Meredith. Turn L on US Route 3 and go .8 miles to a traffic light just beyond the public docks. Turn R on NH Route 25 and go about 16 miles to the junction with NH Route 113. Turn L on NH Route 113, go 4 miles and turn R on NH Route 113-A. Go 3 miles to Whiteface Intervale Road and turn L, then turn L again after .1 miles on unsigned Bennett Street. This narrow paved road soon turns to gravel, and at 1.8 miles is the loop junction. The parking lot is .5 miles up the L fork which is a former logging road with grass growing in the center, in snow or mud season it is likely to be impassable.
Far End: Sandwich Mountain Trail near summit of Sandwich Mountain, elevation about 2980 feet
Owner: private and WMNF
Maintainer: Wonalancet Outdoor Club
Special regulations: Upper part is Sandwich Range Wilderness
From the parking lot, follow the Flat Mountain Pond Trail up the woods road for .5 miles to the junction with the Bennett Street Trail on the R.
The Bennett Street Trail follows the brook upstream at a slight gradient for .6 miles to the junction with the Gleason Trail, crossing several small side brooks. The Bennett Street Trail continues to follow the steepening brook, swinging W to follow the branch that comes off Sandwich Mountain. At about 1.6 miles it crosses the Flat Mountain Pond Trail, which here is following the grade of the former Beebe River logging railroad. The trail climbs a flight of stone steps and enters the Sandwich Range Wilderness, then works its way up the side of the ridge, occasionally following old woods roads. At about 3.5 miles the Gleason Trail rejoins and the trail angles around Sandwich Mountain with some narrow sidehill and a couple of rock slabs. The trail ends at about 4.0 miles at the Sandwich Mountain Trail. The summit is about 50 feet to the R, where there are anchor rods in the rock from the former survey station. At one time people were building a large cairn on the summit in hopes that Sandwich would be declared a 400-footer, but it has been removed.
NA
Map Notes: NA
| Start a discussion about this page | e-mail Content Manager |