Hey everyone! The three of us hope everyone was able to enjoy the recent lovely New England weather like we did.
Now, back to business. Follow this link and check out the video of part one of our camping/off-roading trip to Gilford, NH. Check back in the coming days for a write-up about our trip and for a video about part two of our trip to Gilford featuring our trip to Belknap Mountain. Also be sure to check out our Facebook page for pictures from the trip.
Hey everyone! Follow this link and check out the video of our latest trip to Mount Toby State Forest in late February!
Also, be sure to keep an eye out in the coming weeks for pictures/video and a post about our Spring break trip to New Hampshire! We wish we could be more specific about where exactly we’re going, but we’d be lying if we told you we had any idea at the moment.
A dull, boring winter has kept the three of us from using the Jeep to its full potential and hitting some snowy trails. Finally enough snow (a whopping four inches) fell on January 12 for us to go out and have some fun, so we packed up some gear, jumped in the Jeep, and began our next trip. All three of us decided that it was time for a change of scenery, so instead of Mount Toby State Forest we decided to check out Shutesbury State Forest in Shutesbury, Mass.
The entrance we used was only about 20-25 minutes from campus and a fairly easy ride down Route 202. We all thought it was worth noting that on the road to the entrance is a tiny house with a signs with the writing “Da Luv Shack” on it. We checked it out, and it pretty much looks like what the sign says. We were all a little apprehensive after this but regardless we pushed forward. We entered the forest through gate NS4 which was conveniently open and made our way down the main trail. There was nothing too difficult about getting in other than a little bit of ice beneath the snowfall, but it was so minor we didn’t even need to use 4-Lo to get around.
The forest was beautiful with all the snow cover. It was a very pleasant and peaceful ride, albeit a little boring for our tastes seeing as in the past we’ve driven up flowing streams and over decently-sized rocks and hills. It was nice to just be able to cruise around and check out the sights and views without having to worry about getting caught up on a rock or stuck in a rut. We meandered our way down the main trail and checked out a few of the offshoots, many of which were either closed or too small for the Jeep to fit down. Those not of this variety brought us deeper into forest and led us to even more trails, most of which were also impassable.
Eventually we jumped out of the Jeep and explored a little once we were about as deep into the forest as we could get. T.J. jumped out and immediately began to grab some shots of the Jeep (what a shocker) while Frank and Scott checked out a clearing near the border of the forest and Cowls Tree Farm (W.D. Cowls, Inc. Land Company is a local forestry business in North Amherst, Mass.). We spent about 45 minutes to an hour checking out the sights before jumping back in the Jeep and heading back towards the entrance. Before we left we decided to check out the tree farm, only to find the path leading to it to be too tight for the Jeep due to recently fallen trees. We managed to move one out of the with the help of the fancy new Smittybilt front bumper that T.J. installed (shout out to the D-ring mounts in particular).
All in all, all three of us feel it was a very successful trip and an even better way to kill a Thursday afternoon. We’re hoping that many of the closed and currently impassable trails will be open in the spring so we can do even more exploring and see what other goodies Shutesbury State Forest has to offer.
Be sure to check out our pictures from this trip on our Facebook and Flickr pages as well.
INTRODUCTION
We were once again back at it in Mt. Toby State Forest during the middle part of October. Aided by our experiences from the first trip, getting into the forest and making camp was a breeze. This time we were looking to check out one of the areas in the southern part of the forest: Bull Hill. Though not as tall as Mt. Toby (1269 feet), Bull Hill (937 feet) peaked our interest because of the decently challenging route with which to get there. Plus all three of us had a weekend to kill and were looking to have some fun.
SETTING UP CAMP
As mentioned, setting up camp was a piece of cake this trip. We used the same location we did on our first trip, and Frank set up the same rope system we had used previously. Different this time however was the length of our stay: three days as opposed to two. Accordingly we packed more clothes and more food. Extra clothing was especially important this time around as it was once again raining for the majority of the time we were in the forest and during our trip there.
Unfortunately this trip we arrived at the forest a lot later than we did on our first trip (around 5:30 pm) so light was an issue. We set up our tent as fast as we could, and Frank and Scott immediately began working on a fire. Things went a lot smoother this time around in that area, and Frank and Scott got the fire going in no time. After a nice dinner of hamburgers and buffalo burgers, we decided on our plan of action for the following day (what trails to take, what supplies to bring, etc.), relaxed by the fire for a few hours, and hit the sack early to start the following day in the same manner.
CLIMBING BULL HILL
Our day started early on the 15th, and we decided it would be fun to mess around with the BB-gun rifle that we brought along with us this trip. We walked about a mile southeast of our camp and found a campfire site with a bunch of empty beer bottles and cans and took turns taking aim at them. After spending about an hour just messing around, we made the short walk to Powerline Trail and headed due south to Bull Hill.
Having walked Powerline Trail before, the three of us knew what to expect in terms of slick rocks and extremely hilly terrain. After walking the trail for about half an hour, we linked up with the path leading up to Bull Hill. There were a few tricky sections on Powerline Trail though, especially toward the end where the path became very swampy and we needed to work our way through the woods and around. The tough parts are half the fun though so no complaints out of us. There was one stretch where we did get pretty lost attempting to create our own shortcut though, but we don’t have to talk about that.
Much like the trail leading up to Mount Toby, the path leading to Bull Hill was a series of switchbacks. These however were a lot longer than the ones leading Mount Toby despite Bull Hill’s lower elevation. This trail was a much more scenic one though, and because of Bull Hill’s lower elevation the actual hike to the top was fairly easy and enjoyable. Once we made our way out of the forest section, we hit the final stretch and were at the top of Bull Hill.
The area surrounding the “peak” of Bull Hill looks like it’s in the middle of some sort of construction project. There are lots of downed trees and forested areas, and because of this the actual appearance of Bull Hill isn’t anything special. It doesn’t seem like the clearings and downed trees could have been caused by a storm or other weather occurrence, and the three of us figured it might be a forestry project through UMass since the university uses sections of the forest for its environmental conservation classes.
Our return trip was unfortunately not as easy as the trip going because Powerline Trail was an uphill walk back to our camp. And toward the end of our walk back it began to rain (as it always seems to do when we’re in the state forest) making us rush back and get our gear into the dry tent. All in all, the trip was about 6 miles total, and took us about three hours there and back. It was a worthwhile way to spend an otherwise boring Saturday afternoon.
NIGHTFALL AND RETURNING TO CAMPUS
The rain passed about half an hour after we got back to camp making it easy for Frank and Scott to get the fire started again. Other than the little bit of rain on Saturday afternoon, the weather was exceptional for a weekend in mid-October. All three of us took turns chopping up wood to keep the fire going and keep ourselves entertained. The rest of the night went much like our first trip, with us cooking dinner over the open flame and relaxing until we felt like heading to bed.
The next morning, we took down the tent and packed all of our things back into our bags and formed the human conveyor belt and loaded everything back into the Jeep. The trip out of the forest and back to campus was once again a breeze, but it’s worth noting that the foliage in just two weeks had become a lot more intense and noticeable. We arrived back on campus around 12:30, just in time to catch the Patriots game.
Check out our Facebook or Flickr pages for photos of this trip as well as others we’ve taken.
INTRODUCTION
Our first trip took us to the lovely Mt. Toby State Forest located in Sunderland, MA. The forest itself is actually property of UMass Amherst and is used for a variety of natural sciences classes at the university. We ordered a few necessities from 4WD.com to ensure that the Jeep wouldn’t get stuck in any mud or on any rocks, and hit up Eastern Mountain Sports for some climbing supplies to use for our hike, i.e. hiking straps. After scouting out a good route and hitting some of the trails a few weeks back, we grabbed a trail map from the web, packed up the Jeep, and headed out bright and early Sat., Oct. 1.
ENTERING THE FOREST
After about a 30 minute drive from campus, we arrived at the outskirts of Mt. Toby. We entered into the forest through Gunn Mountain Rd. off of Route 47 in Sunderland. Just a heads up for anyone who wants to take this route themselves, it goes from pavement to dirt and rock in literally 150 feet. The trail up this road isn’t an impossible one, but prior knowledge in off-roading and most importantly a high level of understanding in your vehicle’s capabilities are definitely needed here. In other words, don’t take your parents’ Ford Escape up here. Of course if you don’t have access to an off-road vehicle like we do, parking is available off of Route 63 on the eastern side of the forest. The only real difference is the path you take to the summit of the mountain, but regardless the journey up there is equally fascinating.
After making our way over the rocks and through the mud pits of Gunn Mountain Rd., we linked up with North Mountain Rd. and followed that up to Summit Trail. We gathered up some firewood along the way and threw it on the front of the Jeep to make all of our lives easier. This turned out to be a smart move on our part since up the trail was a nice river of water due to all the recent rain, along with some low-hanging branches and a decently sized rock that Scott had to He-Man out of the way so I could attempt getting the Jeep as far up the trail as I could.
Here’s some more advice from the three of us: always keep in mind where you’re walking, especially in a forest where there’s sure to be lots of insect species, including but not limited to, pain in the ass yellow jackets. These decided to show Frank who the kings of the forest were. But like the true man he is, Frank rubbed some dirt in his four or five stings and carried on like it never even happened. I wish I could say I would have done the same, but I’m going to be completely honest with you and tell you that wouldn’t have been the case.
SETTING UP CAMP
After making it as far up Summit Trail as we could with the Jeep, Frank and Scott jumped out and began scouting the area for a suitable place for us to make camp. While they ran off, I checked out the Jeep to make sure nothing was falling off and that all the tires were in fair condition. It’s always a good idea to give your vehicle a good one-over to make sure you aren’t going to run into any significant problems the next time you have to move. Frank and Scott decided on an area about 200-300 feet from the Jeep across a small stream that had formed because of the recent rain.
The area was surrounded by birch trees, which Frank and Scott informed me was the perfect type of wood to get our fire started. It had a nice flat clearing where we could set up our tent and was elevated higher than the surrounding areas to help ensure that a flash storm wouldn’t flood the site. The one issue however was getting our gear from the Jeep to the camp. This is where Frank’s brilliance struck once again. He took some of the hiking strap we bought at EMS and created a secure line for us to hold onto while we crossed the stream with the gear so we could climb the slopes on both sides.
This nifty little manuever helped us keep all of our gear and ourselves dry but allowed us to set up a safe and secure campsite. Later in the day I gathered up some rocks from the nearby stream and pieced together a make-shift fire pit that we would use to cook our food and dry our soaked off shoes later that evening. Frank and Scott, the determined souls they are, tried for about 25 minutes to get the fire started without using our matches, resorting simply to flint and steel. But after Frank managed to slice his thumb upon and the two of them determined the wood to be too damp to catch, they whipped out the matchbook. After countless attempts to get this to work, and with only two matches left the tinder finally caught and we it was smooth sailing from that point on.
CLIMBING MOUNT TOBY
It might sound a little ridiculous, but climbing to the top of Mt. Toby was actually the easiest part of our trip. The trail leading to the top of the mountain was just a short walk from our camp (yes we planned it that way) and fairly easy to access. The trail took us through some swampy and muddy areas, but nothing we couldn’t handle. The ultimate ascent to the “peak” (Mt. Toby is only about 1270 feet according to our map) was a series of switchbacks that took us up the hillside. Though not so pleasant on the legs, the climb was very scenic and incredibly enjoyable. The top of the mountain was also a little bit of a let down with a very bland few and no particularly exciting landmarks. The most noticeable of these was the Sunderland Fire Tower which did give us a nice lookout over a decent chunk of the forest.
We stayed at the top of the mountain for about 45 minutes before we headed back to camp. We walked along a road trail on the opposite side of mountain to check out the scenery on the other side of the forest and to get a better understanding of what surrounded the mountain if we were to come back and explore some more. And even though it was damp and dreary the day we went, the sights were still spectacular and making the trip was well worth it.
NIGHTFALL AND RETURNING TO CAMPUS
After making it back to camp, we immediately began prepping for dinner. After a nice dinner of hamburgers and buffalo burgers, we hung out around the fire until about 11:15 when we all decided to call it a night. Now, it had been quite some time since I had been camping, so it took me awhile to fall asleep in a fairly unknown environment. Frank and Scott immediately passed out though, but I didn’t keep allow them that luxury for long. About 25 minutes after we all jumped in the tent, something began blocking out the fire-light around our camp. I being the only one awake began to get slightly freaked out. I won’t go as far to say panicked, but I will make it known that this barely caused any reaction in Frank and Scott after I woke them up. Eventually whatever it was moved on, and I eventually fell asleep like those two with my knife tightly clenched in hand. Later during the night, we all woke up when something was sniffing around the outside of the tent. None of us were too worried about this though, we just assumed it was a fox or something else small that was just as curious about us as we were it.
We started packing up the gear around 8 in the morning on Sun., Oct. 2. We exited the forest around 9:30 after packing the gear back into the Jeep and carefully putting out our fire and checking camp to make sure we left as little a footprint as we could. The drive out was a breeze seeing as going downhill over rocks and through streams is a lot easier than driving uphill in the same fashion. We were back on campus by about 10, giving us plenty of time to rest before watching the Patriots game later that day. Overall, the weekend was an overwhelming success and left us hungry for more like it.
Check out photos of our trip to Mt. Toby State Forest here, and visit the Photos tab on our main page to view pictures from other trips we’ve taken as well.
