Choose a Sugarloaf to hike in New Hampshire and you’ve made the right choice.
Sugarloaf Mountain, the one in the North Country’s Nash Stream Forest, contains far-ranging views into Canada and an old stove that was probably used by a fire warden when the summit was graced with a tower.
North Sugarloaf and Middle Sugarloaf, the ones in the White Mountain National Forest, have bare, slab-like summits with commanding vistas to the Presidential Range.
Then there are the smallest of the Sugarloaves — Little Sugarloaf and Big Sugarloaf. They’re the ones towering above Newfound Lake from ledgy tops with blueberry bushes serving up glorious looks above the state’s fourth largest lake.
At 1,002 feet and 1,370 feet, Little and Big certainly live up to their names with both providing granite stages overlooking the 4,000-plus acre lake known for its clean water made possible by freshwater springs that feed and flush it. Newfound Lake has 22 miles of shoreline with Wellington State Park anchored on its west shore in Bristol, N.H.
With its proximity to the state park, the low-lying Sugarloaves and their pristine and secluded neighbor, Goose Pond, see its fair share of foot traffic leaving from a trailhead by the Alexandria-Bristol town line on West Shore Road about 300 feet north of the state park entrance.
The idea was to do an out-and-back trek about four miles in total, over Little Sugarloaf to Big Sugarloaf, and then get a good gander over on the shores of Goose Pond.
Taking a photo of the Sugarloaf Ridge and Goose Pond Conservation Area was helpful to negotiate the junctions with the color-coded trail signs.
For the most part, the two Loafs are accessible by the yellow-blazed Elwell Trail. The popular pathway is named after Col. Alcott Farar Elwell. He helped develop many of the trails in the Mount Carrigan region while serving as director for half a century of the iconic Camp Mowglis boys summer camp, established in 1903.
The hike is loaded with trail signs, including one several yards from the parking area that provides a comprehensive look at the treks available from the launching point. With many loop options on the menu, the Elwell Trail lead to Goose Pond, Little and Big Loaf, Bear Mountain, Oregon Mountain, Mowglis Mountain and Mount Cardigan, the latter about 12½ miles away.
The Elwell Trail has an easy start, going over some bog planks before passing by a junction leading to Goose Pond as it climbs steadily and passing several large glacial erratic boulders, common along the trek. Also on display throughout were the showy pink lady’s slipper.
The lovely member of the orchid family likes to grow in mixed hardwood coniferous forests of hemlock and pine on rocky and mossy slopes.
As the ledges became more frequent, a sign told of the Little Sugarloaf summit about 300 feet away. There the directional views led to chilly blue water, shoreline homes, Wellington State Park, islands and a rippling mountain horizon that includes Plymouth Mountain. Big Sugarloaf has similar views, but from a higher vantage point.
From there, the trail led through a rock squeeze and down into a col. A red-blazed “Rest Area Loop Up” sign was followed and led to shady, flat slabs (unlike highway rest areas, no vending machines or water fountains were available).
The climb steepened up Big Sugarloaf, which had its share of large blowdowns. Another summit sign pointed to the best view, and blueberry bushes, about 350 feet away. There, on the higher perch, a welcome breeze kept the bugs at bay during lunch.
On the way down, the Rest Area was bypassed as the Elwell Trail passed by a boulder with a sign reading “Garden of of Gethsemane,” taken from the garden at the foot of Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives. A bit of an alpine curiosity, the quick descent came to junction with a wide trail to the shores of 15-acre Goose Pond.
The hidden ring of green was quiet that afternoon, a peaceful place.
Returning to the junction, the yellow Elwell Trail was replaced by the wider orange-blazed trails, clearly a snowmobile trail, that ran back to the trailhead which serves up a pond and two little peaks as heartening places for contemplation.
Marty Basch can be reached at marty.basch@gmail.com.