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18 September 2017

Elbow Pond Viewed from a Rock Slide near Mt. Waternomee

INTRODUCTION:

Yawn!  A bushwhack adventure just to get an overview vista of Elbow Pond located near Woodstock, NH . . . this requires some explanation!

So, here goes!  Oftentimes I will search Google Earth in various areas that are within a reasonable drive from my home in Bethlehem, NH.  While doing this a few years ago, I made note of what appeared to be a rock slide located a short distance south of Mt. Waternomee.   It appeared to be large enough and steep enough and situated such that it could provide a view of Elbow Pond in its entirety.   This was of significance to me since my previous explorations at other locations had yielded views that only included segments of the pond.

And so, this rock slide was put on my list of places to visit some day.  Then, in August 2017, this spot worked its way to the top of my list, and I sat off to find it!

To access this slide, I opted to begin the adventure by following an unofficial trail that leads hikers to the wreckage of a WWII B-18 bomber that crashed on the side of Mt, Waternomee in 1942.  And then, from the end of that unofficial trail, I would continue onward to the slide by bushwhacking a few tenths of a mile in a SSW direction.  For anyone interested in more information about the WWII B-18 bomber crash, there are details contained in one of my older blog postings (click HERE).

The unofficial trail to the crash site was as easy to follow as most official trails that I’ve hiked.  And, the bushwhack itself was relatively easy with open woods for most of the way.  However, the final approach to the rock slide was a bit steeper than expected, but the footing was overall pretty good.

With no further ado, shown below are some photos taken on this adventure.

PHOTOS:


Seen above is a map which shows the general location of the slide.
The slide appears to be quite old since the surrounding forest has grown in and diminished the slide’s footprint.  Regardless, there is still a rather decent view from some sections of the slide.
Zooming in a bit closer . . . Elbow Pond is in foreground, with Sandwich Dome prominent on horizon at left (and if look closely, the open ledges on Welch-Dickey can be seen in front of Sandwich Dome).  Peaks in the Ossipee Mountain Range are seen on the distant horizon behind Elbow Pond.

Extreme zoom view of Elbow Pond.
(The greenish layer around the circumference of the pond is the result of lily pads growing in shallow water along the shoreline - SEE NEXT PHOTO.)
Photo was taken during the autumn season a couple of years ago, and it shows the lily pads along shoreline of Elbow Pond.
Since the B18 bomber crash-site wasn’t my primary target, and since I’d been to this site on other occasions, I only snapped a few photos of the WWII plane wreckage before heading for the slide.
(For anyone interested in more information about the WWII B-18 bomber crash, there are details contained in one of my older blog postings . . . click HERE).
Also, while hiking the ‘B18 Crash Site Trail’, I stopped to take a snapshot of Airmen Falls (a.k.a. Bomber Falls).   This waterfall requires a strong flow of water to be attractive.  Very little water was flowing on this particular day. :-)
TO SUM IT UP:

It’s completely understandable that this adventure might be unappealing to some readers since it lacked the allure of hiking to a destination included on one of the many recognized hiking lists.  Regardless, the view (and the challenge of finding it) was something that provided me with personal satisfaction.  And so, for off-beat adventures such as this, I sometimes remind myself of a John Fogerty song entitled “Garden Party” where there is this refrain: “. . . you can't please everyone, so you got to please yourself.” :-)


6 comments:

Larry said...

hey John,
I continue to admire and enjoy your posts; the stunning pictures, historical tidbits, fun facts and the encouragement for "off-beat", "destinations can be whatever you want", etc instead of pursuing peak-bagging lists. Using your "small winter adventures near my home" as a sort of model, my wife and I pursued a number of small adventures in the late winter that I've been meaning to share for a while. While technically not really near our home on the Upper Westside of Manhattan, we made our home in a hotel near Kingston, NY for a few days and rather than hiking in the near-by Catskills, we found some smaller parks that we had largely to ourselves and offered very nice trails and scenes of the Hudson River and surrounding area. If you ever happen down to this “neck of the woods” for something different, check out Scenichudson.org and I’d highly recommend the John Burroughs Nature Sanctuary—where Mr. Burroughs built had his famous cabin retreat “Slabsides” and had guests like his friend, the poet Walt Whitman, John Muir in 1896 and President Teddy Roosevelt in 1903. I was actually a bit shocked on how few visitors it apparently currently gets—my wife and I cleared a lot of deadfall from the trails as we hiked around on our visit. It was an honor to tidy up the paths also walked by such visionaries who were truly trailblazers in both appreciating and advocating for preservation of our country’s natural treasures.
See:
https://www.nynjtc.org/hike/print/6175 Shaupeneak Ridge
https://www.nynjtc.org/hike/print/6229 Black Creek Preserve
http://www.johnburroughsassociation.org John Burroughs Nature Sanctuary
http://www.scenichudson.org/sites/default/files/esopus-webmap-2016_0.jpg

(I tried to cut and past 2 pictures but they did not "paste".)
peace! Larry

1HappyHiker said...

Hi Larry,

It’s always wonderful to hear from you. Thank you for reading my blog, and most especially thank you for taking time to post a reply.

The links that you so kindly provided are terrific, and I commend you and your wife for opting to take the “road less-traveled” by doing some adventures that are excluded from traditional “lists”. Especially interesting is the John Burroughs Nature Sanctuary. It must have indeed been exhilarating to walk the same paths as visionaries such as Walt Whitman, John Muir in President Teddy Roosevelt who were strong advocates of preservation of our country’s natural treasures. Most assuredly, if I ever travel to the Lower Hudson Valley region, I will make it a point to visit this Sanctuary, as well as other places you referenced in your links.

Regarding your attempt to incorporate photos in your comments via ‘cutting and pasting’, it’s a significant shortcoming of blogging websites to disallow readers to include photos with their comments.

All the best to you and yours, Larry.

John

One Day in America said...

Ha, I love the old Garden Party lyrics!
Also, I enjoyed this post. I had read your earlier post about the WWII B-18 Crash site—can't believe it was from way back in 2012!
The views of Elbow Pond from your new vantage point are exceptional. This is an interestingly-shaped body of water. I'm not sure I've ever seen such a unique pond. Any special geologic forces at work here?

1HappyHiker said...

Hi Rita,

Glad you enjoyed the reference to the “Garden Party” lyrics . . . an oldie, but goodie!

Yes, it was hard for me to believe that 5-years have passed by since I did the blog posting about the WWII B-18 crash site. Although it’s a rather hackneyed expression, time truly does fly by ever so quickly!

You asked if there are any special geologic forces at work to create the unusual shape of Elbow Pond. Most likely there is a geologic rationale regarding the shape of this pond, but if so, I haven’t a clue as to what it is! Perhaps some reader will know, and will post an explanation.

John

Karl said...

Great post as always, John. I always wonder what's next on that list. It's like a surprise for your readers! I'm curious, have you ever worked your way to an obscure slide or feature that you found on Google Earth, thought you found it and then found by looking at your GPS track later that you didn't? Or do you have a good GPS that tells you that you made it to your destination?

I think it's great that you got your full view of Elbow Pond and Sandwich Dome in the background is impressive.

Take care,
Karl

1HappyHiker said...

Hey Karl,

As always thank you for reading my blog, and especially thank you for taking time to post your thoughts and comments.

Regarding your question, since circumstances are such that most of my bushwhacking is done solo, there is a lot of pre-planning for my off-trail adventures. And as a result, I usually reach my intended destination. However, no one is perfect, and so there are some rare occasions when things don’t go exactly as planned. :-)

All the best,
John