Mt. Chocorua Hike

A crisp morning with temps in the upper 30s greeted the morning on Sunday 9/25 for this hike.  Sunny skies were predicted and temperatures quickly rose into the 50s, so shorts were in order after debating what to wear.  We met up at 9 o’clock in the parking lot at Piper Trail as planned.  The GO member was a no show, but as it turned out I met a fellow hiker, Jerrod, in the parking lot and he was doing the same loop so we had a splendid day together.

We took the Nickerson Ledge Trail to the Carter Ledge Trail heading to Middle Sister.  Within 10 minutes of hiking the Nickerson Ledge Trail, we spotted a black bear!  We stopped and continued talking and the bear wandered off completely uninterested in us.  I managed to get a quick picture and if you zoom in you can see him.  As we proceeded further up the trail, there are some narrow passages with sharp drop-off’s which tested Jerrod’s fear of heights but I was able to take his pack and talk him through.

As we made it to Middle Sister, the winds picked up so we did not linger and proceeded on Chocorua.  Winds were light and variable, and by the time we made it to the summit we had plenty of company and found a place out of the wind to rest up and have lunch.  One of the most challenging aspects was to find the trail for the final peak without going up a rock wall in the wind.  After lunch we took a leisurely hike back down the Piper Trail and made it back to the trail head in just under 6 hours.  Jerrod and I parted ways (he was going back to Maine) and I made a new hiking bud that I hope will become a new GO member as well. 

Since we were rained out on our first attempt, I am going to try again this Sunday to hike Mt. Chocorua and I hope you will join me as the weather looks promising this weekend.

Piper Hammond Loop Trail is a 8.2 mile moderately trafficked loop trail located near Conway, NH that features a waterfall and is rated as difficult. The trail offers a number of activity options and is accessible year-round.

We'll meet at the Piper Trail head on Rte 16.  Look for the sign and park behind the now empty store.  We'll take the Nickerson Ledge Trail to Carter Ledge which offers excellent views to the Presidentials, then join the 3 Sisters trail to the summit.  The plan is to take the Piper Trail back to the starting point, but if the group is feeling adventurous we can take the longer route via the Hammond Trail and Weetamoo Trail back to Piper.