Warren, n.h.
The ridge extends from South Peak to the main summit on the horizon, showcasing the Moose and Jobildunc ravines.
The cleared viewpoint with restricted vistas near the height of land on the trail is called the 10th Mountain Division Outlook, an appreciation recognizing the Dartmouth College men who served with the skiing troops in World War II. The wooden placard reads: “And the granite of New Hampshire keeps of record of their fame.”
Fittingly, it is on a trail named after the Dartmouth Outing Club’s longtime director of outdoor affairs, Al Merrill, who also was the Big Green’s head ski coach from 1957-72.
Known as the “Silver Fox” during his coaching tenure, Merrill’s Dartmouth ski teams never finished lower than fifth at the NCAA championships. A National Ski Hall of Fame member, he also coached the U.S. FIS Nordic combined team in 1954 and its Olympic team in 1956. Merrill was the head coach for Nordic skiing for the U.S. Ski Team from 1962-68 and the Nordic program director from 1968-70. During those years he instituted many ideas that increased U.S. competitiveness in Nordic sports, as evidenced by John Bower’s Nordic combined victory for the King’s Cup at the Holmenkollen in 1968.
Merrill died at age 69 in 1990.
The trail, the Al Merrill Loop, is known as a cross country ski trail. In conjunction with the Asquam Ridge Trail, it also makes a fine 5-mile hiking circuit with beginnings in a cul-de-sac just steps from the newly renovated Moosilauke Ravine Lodge on Ravine Lodge Road in Warren, N.H. The circuit is a nice woods romp within the sights and sounds of the Baker River at times, while serving up remembrances to those with a passion for the outdoors.
On a warm fall afternoon, my wife, Jan, and I hit the wide trail as finishing touches were being applied to the timber lodge. The trail, with its multiple short palette-like bridge crossings, followed the canopied mix of hardwood and softwood upward with a series of well-appreciated switchbacks.
The way passed by a spur path leading to the one-room DOC John Rand Cabin, built in 1983. A visit to its porch found a serene look at Moosilauke, the Algonquin word for “bald place,” referring to the mountain’s bare summit. The view extended across the Baker River Valley and into Gorge Brook Ravine. A plaque on the cabin commemorated Dartmouth alum John Rand for his 41 years of service to the DOC.
The easy-to-follow trail led to the Moose viewpoint and then reached height of land before getting narrower and descending — hiking with poles, I tried a tuck but went no faster — eventually crossing the Baker River and back to the trailhead.
Afterward, we visited the lodge, a White Mountain timber Taj Mahal. Originally constructed as a ski resort in 1938, the rebuilt 11,000- square-foot lodge contains glorious local timber, a large stone fireplace, solar panels, kitchen, overnight rooms, meeting room, library and more.
The remarkable lodge is part of a compound that includes other guest cabins like the Class of 1974 Bunkhouse, Class of 1966 Bunkhouse and Ross McKenney Bunkhouse in the setting of stunning Mount Moosilauke views. The lodge sits at 2,417 feet in elevation, with coordinates 43.9 North and 71.8 West, as marked by a stone marker outside its doors.
Plus, you have to love the DOC’s sense of humor. Descending to the lodge from the dirt road by an impressive white pine entryway on the walkway and stairs, there are a number of whimsical trail signs. One points to the Gobi Desert in Mongolia, some 8,412 miles away. Another points to the North Pole with an inscription of 3,754,656 sled dogs. Maine, another says, is some 2,724,480 inches down the road. And apparently the remains of Elvis have been relocated to the Whites as one marker with a downward arrow and emblazoned with the name Elvis suggests the famous singer is six feet under.
Whether hiking or skiing — there’s foot travel only on the Al Merrill Loop — in the shadows of Moosilauke it’s good to know the King may be nearby. If you listen closely, I bet you can hear him singing That’s All Right to that impressive mountain mama.
Marty Basch can be reached at marty.basch@gmail.com.