Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway (SRKG) Trail 10, Proctor Academy in Andover, NH to Winslow State Park in Wilmot, NH, is rated by the SRK Greenway Guide as moderate. I will say this may be a bit underrated in that most of the six-mile hike is relatively uphill. The Guide lists the Total Ascents as 1300 feet, and the Total Descents as 140 feet. Add to this the fact the bugs were swarming around us for most of our 3-hour hike.
This hike was indeed special to me because it was with my son, Timothy. Timothy has hiked four of the SRKG trails with me, and hiking together offers us an opportunity to share happenings in our life, and remembrance of our many outdoor adventures together.
SRK Greenway Guide Third Edition Changes
As is my practice for each of the thirteen SRKG hikes I have completed, I locate the trailheads with my wife before taking a hike. This assures me I can show up at 6:30 am the day of the hike, and not have to search for the trailhead. With Trail 10, this proved to be good practice. We readily found the northern trailhead at Farrel Field Houe at Proctor Academy on Route 11 and US 4. However, as we walked the beginning of the trail, at .3 miles the Guide had us “crossing the Northern Rail Trail,” and “bending left toward the Proctor ski hill, the SRKG continues through the flood plain and crosses the Blackwater River on a low cable bridge.” The Guide had us going on the Northern Rail Trail in a direction opposite from the SRKG trapezoid directional signs. Oops. Cathy and I followed the SRKG trapezoids, and in reading the Guide, the book and the trapezoids finally come together at “At 1.1 mile the SRKG meets Bridge Road just south of a fine covered bridge.”
We followed only the trapezoid signs until “... the SKRG continues straight into the woods …” from which the trapezoid and Guide were in synch. Afterward, I checked with Morgan-Hill Book Store to see if they had a more current addition than the 3rd Edition, and they did not. The srkg.org Guide Book picture also shows the Third Edition as the current reference.
As is my practice for each of the thirteen SRKG hikes I have completed, I locate the trailheads with my wife before taking a hike. This assures me I can show up at 6:30 am the day of the hike, and not have to search for the trailhead. With Trail 10, this proved to be good practice. We readily found the northern trailhead at Farrel Field Houe at Proctor Academy on Route 11 and US 4. However, as we walked the beginning of the trail, at .3 miles the Guide had us “crossing the Northern Rail Trail,” and “bending left toward the Proctor ski hill, the SRKG continues through the flood plain and crosses the Blackwater River on a low cable bridge.” The Guide had us going on the Northern Rail Trail in a direction opposite from the SRKG trapezoid directional signs. Oops. Cathy and I followed the SRKG trapezoids, and in reading the Guide, the book and the trapezoids finally come together at “At 1.1 mile the SRKG meets Bridge Road just south of a fine covered bridge.”
We followed only the trapezoid signs until “... the SKRG continues straight into the woods …” from which the trapezoid and Guide were in synch. Afterward, I checked with Morgan-Hill Book Store to see if they had a more current addition than the 3rd Edition, and they did not. The srkg.org Guide Book picture also shows the Third Edition as the current reference.
As my readers know, the SRKG Guide has been my on-the-trail reference book for all my SRKG hikes.
I will report my observations to the SRKG Coalition.
The Hike
The SRKG Trail 10 leaves Proctor Academy in Wilmot on the northwest shoulder of Mount Kearsarge. It uses several unmaintained Class VI roads. The terrain is somewhat muddy and rocky at times, but generally easy walking. My MapMyRun shows Timothy and I averaging between 27 and 29 minutes per mile, depending on the steepness of the area were we in. Northern Rail Trail
We were only on the Northern Rail Trail for less than a half SRK Greenway Guide mile, but we enjoyed the distance markers.
People ask what does WRJ 40 mean? What does B 103 mean? These were from olden days, meaning, 40 miles from here to White River Junction (VT), and 103 miles to Boston (MA).
Barlow Hike to the Top of Mt Kearsarge
I will report my observations to the SRKG Coalition.
The Hike
The SRKG Trail 10 leaves Proctor Academy in Wilmot on the northwest shoulder of Mount Kearsarge. It uses several unmaintained Class VI roads. The terrain is somewhat muddy and rocky at times, but generally easy walking. My MapMyRun shows Timothy and I averaging between 27 and 29 minutes per mile, depending on the steepness of the area were we in. Northern Rail Trail
We were only on the Northern Rail Trail for less than a half SRK Greenway Guide mile, but we enjoyed the distance markers.
Barlow Hike to the Top of Mt Kearsarge
I have hiked the Barlow Trail many times from the Winslow Park parking lot. Here is one of those treks where we went up the Barlow Trail, and returned on the Winslow Trail.
Hiking Mt Kearsarge in Central New Hampshire https://outdooradventurers.blogspot.com/2014/06/hiking-mt-kearsarge-in-central-new.html
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| SRKG Completion Medal |
Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway (SRKG) Trails Hiked by OutdoorSteve and Friends - Click below links
- SRK Greenway Trail 1 Old Province Rd, Goshen to Newbury Harbor
- SRK Greenway Trail 2 Old Province Rd, Goshen to Sunapee Town Hall
- SRK Greenway Trail 3 Sunapee to Deerhill Springfield (Video on Bedford Community TV)
- SRK Greenway Trail 4 ProtectworthTrail, Springfield, NH
- SRK Greenway Trail 5 Springfield/New London to Great Brook Bridge
- SRK Greenway Trail 6 Great Brook Bridge to Wilmot 4A Wolf Trees and Trails
- SRK Greenway Trail 7 NH Route 4A to WilmotCenter
- SRK Greenway Trail 8 Wilmot Center to New Canada Road
- SRK Greenway Trail 9 New Canada Road to Proctor Academy
- SRK Greenway Trail 10 Proctor Academy to Winslow State Park Mt Kearsage
- SRK Greenway Trail 11 Rollins State Park via Lincoln Trail to Kearsarge Valley Road
- SRK Greenway Trail 12 – Kearsarge Valley Road to Wadleigh State Park
- SRK Greenway Trail 13 - Kezar Lake at Wadleigh Park to Chalk Pond
- SRK Greenway Trail 14 – Chalk Pond to Newbury
References
- Sunapee, Ragged, Kearsarge Greenway Web Site for Trail Maps and the SRK Greenway Trail Guide
- Winslow State Park
- Rollins State Park
- Hiking Eagle Pond, NH with Poet Laureate Donald Hall
- ORFS Hike Northern Rail Trail from PotterPlace Depot to Andover’s Softball field
- Sunapee Harbor Riverway
- Sunapee Harbor Riverwalk
- More Outdoor Steve Adventures
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