Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation: South Sugarloaf (Blog Hike #957)

Trails: Old Mountain and Pocumtuck Ridge Trails
Hike Location: Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation
Geographic Location: south of Deerfield, MA (42.46794, -72.59524)
Length: 2.2 miles
Difficulty: 9/10 (Difficult)
Date Hiked: September 2023
Overview: An out-and-back up the back road to Mount Sugarloaf.
Park Information: https://www.mass.gov/locations/mount-sugarloaf-state-reservation
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=946406
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video:

Directions to the trailhead: North of Springfield, take I-91 to US 5 and SR 116 (exit 35).  Exit, go north on US 5, then almost immediately turn right on SR 116.  Drive SR 116 south/east 1 mile to Sugarloaf Street and turn left on Sugarloaf St.  Park in the paved parking area at the base of Mount Sugarloaf on the right, which is reached after only a couple hundred feet.

The hike: Jutting 500 feet above the west bank of the Connecticut River, Mount Sugarloaf anchors the south end of western Massachusetts' short and narrow Pocumtuck Mountain Range.  The north-south Pocumtuck Range extends for only 11 miles and rises less than 900 feet above sea level.  The range's "mountains" consist mostly of arkose sandstone covered by a thin layer of igneous trap rock.  Mount Sugarloaf got its name from early European settlers who thought it looked like one of the "loaves" that sugar was cut into for shipping during that era.

            Established in 1907, Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation is one of the oldest state parks in Massachusetts.  The reservation consists of 533 acres on and around the mountain, and parts of the park near the Connecticut River are used by the nearby University of Massachusetts Amherst for agricultural research.  Mount Sugarloaf has two peaks: South Sugarloaf and North Sugarloaf.  Both peaks are contained in the reservation.

            The reservation's main attraction is its auto road to the summit of South Sugarloaf, which features an observation tower that allows visitors to take in its famous views from the south end of the Pocumtuck Range.  You could drive to the observation tower, but why drive to something that you can reach via a reasonable hike?  Two hiking trails lead to the summit of South Sugarloaf: one very steep trail that goes directly up the mountain's south face and one less steep trail that winds around to the mountain's north face.  This hike takes you up and down the longer and less steep route.  While some climbing and a couple of steep areas are still encountered, this hike is doable by most people in decent physical condition.

Trailhead at base parking lot

            Two trails leave from the southeast corner of the base parking lot.  The trail on the right is the one that goes straight up South Sugarloaf's south face.  Thus, I chose the one on the left to begin the longer and slightly more gradual route.

Hiking the Old Mountain Trail

            The trail approaches but never crosses the summit road before curving left to begin treading a gently undulating course along the reservation's west boundary.  Red paint blazes mark this portion of the trail, which the trail map calls the Old Mountain Trail even though nothing on the ground says such.  A housing development comes in sight on the left, and a power line corridor stands uphill to the right.

Climbing Pocumtuck Ridge

            After passing under the power line, you join an old road at 0.45 miles.  Now the climb begins in earnest, and the trail climbs moderately toward the saddle between North and South Sugarloaf.  At 0.65 miles, you reach the intersection with the Pocumtuck Ridge Trail at said saddle.  The trail going left leads to North Sugarloaf, so you want to turn right to head for South Sugarloaf.

Trail intersection at the saddle

            The grade intensifies and the blazes turn to powder blue as you head south toward South Sugarloaf.  At 0.75 miles, the trail follows the shoulder of the summit road for a couple hundred feet before beginning a pair of switchbacks that takes you up the steepest part of the climb.  0.9 miles into the hike, you reach the first overlook.  This east-facing viewpoint offers fantastic views of Mount Toby and related hills across the Connecticut River.

View east from first overlook

            Continuing south, the grade moderates, and you reach the summit parking lots near 1 mile.  Walking through the parking lots brings you to some picnic tables and the observation tower only a few hundred feet later.  Climbing the spiral lighthouse-style staircase to the top of the observation tower gives fantastic 360-degree views.  The straighter-than-you-might-expect Connecticut River flows off to the south, while the Berkshire Mountains dominate to the west and the Pocumtuck Range rises to the north.  You earned these views while others drove to them, so take some time to enjoy the reward.

View south from observation tower

View west from observation tower

            When you are ready, retrace your steps down to the parking lot to complete the hike.  If you want to add more distance, you could take a detour onto the Pocumtuck Ridge Trail and head for North Sugarloaf and its views.  I do NOT recommend taking the more direct trail back down the mountain's south face: its steepness poses a footing/safety risk, which is greater while hiking downhill than while hiking uphill.

Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park: Downstream from McMahon's Mill (Blog Hike #956)

Trail: Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath
Hike Location: Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park, McMahon's Mill
Geographic Location: downstream from Williamsport, MD (39.53085, -77.82433)
Length: 4.2 miles
Difficulty: 3/10 (Easy/Moderate)
Date Hiked: September 2023
Overview: An out-and-back on an old canal towpath along the Potomac River.
Park Information: https://www.nps.gov/choh/index.htm
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=946348
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video:

Directions to the trailhead: In western Maryland, take I-81 to SR 63 (exit 1).  Exit and go south on SR 63.  Drive SR 63 south 3 miles to Dam #4 Road and turn right on Dam #4 Rd.  Drive Dam #4 Rd. south 0.8 miles to Dellinger Road and turn right on Dellinger Rd.  Drive Dellinger Rd. west 0.5 miles to Avis Mill Road and turn left on Avis Mill Rd.  Avis Mill Rd. deadends at the McMahon's Mill Recreation Area, where this hike begins.

The hike: Stretching for 184.5 miles, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal provided waterway transportation along the Potomac River between Georgetown, Washington D.C. and Cumberland, Maryland.  Construction of the canal began in 1828, but the canal did not reach Cumberland until 1850, which was 8 years after the famous Baltimore and Ohio Railroad reached Cumberland.  The canal's name came from a planned westward extension over the Allegheny Mountains and down the Youghiogheny and Monongahela Rivers to the Ohio River at Pittsburgh, PA.  That extension was never built due to cost and the railroad.

            Despite its relatively late construction, the canal proved useful for transporting coal downriver from Pennsylvania and West Virginia coal fields to Washington and the eastern seaboard.  The canal operated until 1924, when a major flood damaged the canal and forced it to close.  The federal government purchased the damaged canal remnants in 1938, and in 1961 President Eisenhower created a national monument to preserve what remained of the canal structures.

            Today Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park is the most visited national historical park in the national park system.  The canal's towpath was converted to a bike path by 1960, and primitive campgrounds located at regular intervals allow bikers and hikers to travel the towpath's full length.  One of the towpath's more interesting and scenic sections is the portion immediately downstream from McMahon's Mill along a deep and broad section of the Potomac known as the Slackwaters.  Such is the portion of the bike path described here.

McMahon's Mill trailhead

            Start by walking around the red barn-like structure at the rear of the parking lot, heading for the Potomac River.  The wooden barn-like structure is actually the old McMahon's Mill, which generated electricity until 1922 when it was damaged by a flood.  The other side of the building features the old mill wheel, and more stone structures related to the old mill stand between the wooden structure and the river.  Take some time to examine these structures, read the interpretive signs, and imagine what this area might have been like in the early 1900's.

Stone mill structures

            When you get to the river, the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal Towpath Trail goes left and right.  Turn left to begin heading downstream with the Potomac River on your right.  Almost immediately you pass mile marker 88; the Towpath Trail has distance markers at 1 mile increments.  The Potomac River is broad and calm here, thus earning this area the name Slackwaters.  Fantastic views open up across the river into West Virginia.

Potomac River

            At only 0.2 miles, you reach the first of many concrete walkways that elevate the Towpath Trail over the edge of the river.  These walkways are necessary because vertical sandstone cliffs come almost to the river's edge on the left, thus leaving insufficient room for a bike path to get through.  The combination of rock and water makes the Slackwaters a very scenic area.

Elevated concrete walkways

            For the next 1.4 miles the trail surface alternates between raised concrete walkways and a gravel path.  The trail never strays more than a few feet from the Potomac, so any elevation changes are imperceptible.  Just shy of 1.5 miles, you cross the last raised concrete walkway.  Now the trail adopts a more traditional towpath appearance with a gravel trail surface.  Plenty of black walnut trees and some maple trees populate the riverside area, and lots of honeysuckle crowds the understory.

Towpath Trail below the Slackwaters

            Just past 2 miles into the hike, you reach mile marker 86.  Thus far one thing has been noteworthy in its absence from this canal towpath trail: a canal!  Along this part of the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal the boats were transported in the river itself, but in less than another 0.5 miles the old (separate) canal waterway reappears on the left.  The trail continues for another 86 miles, so you will need to turn around at some point.  The reappearance of the old canal is as good of a point as any.  Enjoy each Potomac River view one more time as you retrace your steps to McMahon's Mill to complete the hike.

Pisgah National Forest: Cradle of Forestry in America (Blog Hike #955)

Trails: Biltmore Campus, Forest Festival, and Forest Discovery Trails
Hike Location: Pisgah National Forest, Cradle of Forestry in America
Geographic Location: north of Brevard, NC (35.35073, -82.77865)
Length: 3.5 miles
Difficulty: 4/10 (Moderate)
Date Hiked: August 2023
Overview: A rolling hike on asphalt trail past forestry exhibits and through the old Biltmore Forest School's campus.
Area Information: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/nfsnc/recarea/?recid=48230
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=945675
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: 

Directions to the trailhead: From the intersection of US 64 and US 276 on the east side of Brevard, take US 276 north 15 miles to the signed entrance for the Cradle of Forestry in America on the right.  Turn right to enter the area, and park in the large blacktop lot.  The hike begins after walking through the large Visitor Center.

The hike: The year was 1895 when George Vanderbilt of Biltmore fame hired a young German forester named Dr. Carl Schenck to manage his vast forests southwest of Asheville, North Carolina.  Schenck replaced the famous Gifford Pinchot, who would later become the first chief of the U.S. Forest Service, the federal agency that manages our national forests.  During his time under Vanderbilt, Schenck developed the principles of sustainable forestry that would dominate the field for most of the 1900's.

            Realizing both his need for more labor to help him manage Biltmore's forests and the need for forestry education in America, in 1898 Schenck founded the Biltmore Forest School that formalized the needed training into a 1 year curriculum.  Students would spend their mornings in the classroom learning forestry theory and their afternoons in the forest putting that theory into practice.  Despite rough living conditions in rugged and rural western North Carolina, most students enjoyed their education, and several foresters of note including Frederick Olmstead, a founder of the Society of American Foresters, came through the school.

            In the early 1900's, large state universities began offering formal programs and degrees in forestry, and Schenck's school could not compete.  Vanderbilt fired Schenck in 1909 because the forests were not producing enough revenue, and the school closed in 1913.  Yet the Biltmore Forest School remains the first school of forestry in America, and today it is celebrated as Pisgah National Forest's Cradle of Forestry in America.  A fantastic Visitor Center describes the school, and 3 asphalt trails wind through the school's campus and the surrounding forest.  This hike uses all three of those trails, thus allowing you to see all there is to see at the site.

Start of Biltmore Campus Trail

            Start by walking through the Visitor Center to reach the main trailhead behind the Visitor Center.  The Biltmore Campus Trail goes to the left here, and the Forest Festival Trail goes to the right.  We will go both ways eventually, but I turned left to hike the Biltmore Campus Trail first.

Old schoolhouse

            Almost immediately you reach the old schoolhouse, a small wooden building where Schenck taught his students forestry theory.  Continue to follow the asphalt trail as it descends a switchback and passes under US 276 via a metal tube.  Now on the north side of US 276, the trail quickly splits to form its loop.  I could see more historic school buildings to the right, so I turned right and used the trail going straight as my return route, thus hiking the loop counterclockwise.

Rangers' dwelling

            Next you pass the school's commissary and a ranger's dwelling before heading into the woods.  The trail undulates gradually as it crosses a couple of small creeks, but all grades can be negotiated by a stroller or wheelchair.  You pass other interesting structures including Dr. Schenck's office and a blacksmith shop before closing the loop.  Interpretive signs describe each structure.  Honestly, I almost skipped this trail due to its short length, but the historic structures made this trail my favorite one at this site.

Hiking the Biltmore Campus Trail

            After closing the loop, retrace your steps back under US 276 to the Visitor Center trailhead, then continue straight to begin the Forest Festival Trail.  This trail commemorates the 1908 Biltmore Forest Fair, an event organized by Schenck on this site to promote his school and work.  Where the trail splits to form its loop, turn left to begin hiking the loop clockwise.

Portable sawmill

            The Forest Festival Trail features many exhibits about historical forestry: you pass a road grader, a logging train, and a portable sawmill in that order as you go around this loop.  The method of building roads and railroads to transport cut logs rather than floating them downstream was developed here, and it is the method still used today.  When you get to the portable sawmill exhibit (look at the huge circular blade on that saw!), you could continue around the loop if you wanted to shorten this hike.  To also hike the Forest Discovery Trail, the third and final trail at this site, turn around at the portable sawmill exhibit and retrace your steps to the logging train exhibit.  Turn right (going this direction) to begin the Forest Discovery Trail.

Logging train exhibit

            Unlike the first two trails, the Forest Discovery Trail has no forestry history or exhibits; it is just a nice walk up and down the side of the mountain.  This trail is also steeper than the first two, but the trail only gains about 200 vertical feet in just under 0.5 miles.  2.4 miles into this hike, you cross a cascading stream on an old road bridge before descending.  Some asters in bloom here brightened my path in late August.

Hiking the Forest Discovery Trail

            At 3.2 miles, you reach the seedling nursery and the end of the Forest Discovery Trail.  Turn left on the Forest Festival Trail to return to the Visitor Center and complete the hike.  If you are up for more easy to moderate hiking, the parking lot for the Pink Beds Loop, described elsewhere in this trail journal, is only a few hundred feet further up the mountain on US 276.