The moose stood quizzically by the roadside, part of the wildlife welcome wagon in New Hampshire’s northernmost county. Within hours, turkeys, deer and even a hopping hare extended a big hello in the land of hiking beyond the 45th parallel.
Pittsburg, N.H., is a sportsman’s Shangri-La. Anglers, hunters and ATVers frequent the Coos County community for its wealth of opportunities, from the riches found in its rivers and waterways to those along the winding and hilly dirt roads fingering out from the pavement.
Moose Alley, a long stretch of U.S. Route 3, is a place to watch wildlife and listen to informational AM radio from N.H. Fish and Game on how to best view the animals should they venture close to the road.
With the creation of the Cohos Trail, a 165-mile pathway from Crawford Notch to the Canadian border, hikers now have more pathways to explore in the wilds north of the White Mountains, as well as a standard or two.
The Falls in the River Trail is a relatively newfound hiking wonder, piercing between the two pulsing byways that give the area its lifeblood — Route 3 and the Connecticut River. The moderately easy trail opened a few years ago by the Cohos Trail Association winds its way to up and along the historic river to a rugged waterfall with various viewpoints from its rocky ledges.
A 3-mile round-trip jaunt is readily found from a parking area off Route 3 by the dam at the scenic Second Connecticut Lake. The trail is well-blazed as it rises and falls along the river.
Though new to many hikers, the narrow spurs along the trail leading to the river are indicators of the use it sees from fly fishermen plying the enchanting waters. A few steep steps at the onset are quickly forgotten as the trail hugs the river, allowing for looks at the water and a lone angler making poetry with the flick of a rod and long line. Along the way, the path threads an area through narrow spruce, bog bridges and a nice open space looking at the river.
The torrential falls are heard before they are seen. A sign marks the site. Caution is advised stepping out to the rocky shelf and on the side paths allowing for further looks at the mighty river still in its infancy about 10 miles or so from its source.
That source is also a fine jaunt. There is a Fourth Connecticut Lake, a mere puddle compared to its three siblings. On the U.S.-Canadian border, there is a unique North Country standard trek to be had, circumnavigating the 2.5-acre pond that is the headwaters for the 400-plus-mile journey to its ocean end. The trail, under the auspices of The Nature Conservancy, is about a 2-mile round-trip hike from the trailhead just south of Canada. There are some ups and downs with bite, some bogs and definitely bugs as the trail wiggles between the countries.
Both outings are easy drives from Deer Mountain Campground, the northernmost campground in the New Hampshire state park system. It is something of a primitive prize for those relishing nights under the stars. Some five miles south of the Canadian border, it is smack in Moose Alley along Route 3 between the Second and Third Connecticut lakes.
At the base of Deer Mountain, which once held an active fire tower, the campground is set in the Connecticut Lakes State Forest. Very near its source, the Connecticut River flows through the campground. There is drinking water, pit toilets (with urinals), but there are no showers. The campground is clean with options for platform sites, a cabin and remote camping by the dam in an area called Moose Falls Flowage.
Those waters are also within sight of Deer Mountain. That fire tower is no longer used, but there is a way up to the viewless mountain’s 3,000-foot-or-so summit. Recently restored by the Cohos Trail Association, the trail there is on the dirt Sophie’s Lane by the campground, following it about a half-mile until a spur road goes left to the trail up the mountain with its stream crossings and boggy boreal forest.
At least, that’s how it goes on paper. However, the Great North Woods are also a place to sit around the campfire and watch as the smoke drifts away, and with it, formulating plans for that hike during the next visit.