Trip report

Ice Gulch

Hiking/Walk DATE: 07/13/2019 - 07/13/2019

Trip/Event Location: Randolph, NH
US

Trip Leader(s): phoenix

Max # People: 10

Trip Guiding / Event Fee: No, I will not be asking participants for money

Difficulty Level: Moderate

The Ice Gulch is a wild and beautiful place, but as its name implies, ice may still be found under the rocks. On a hot summer day, the Ice Gulch can be a cool, damp, refreshing place. We will ascend

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Driving directions to the location and spot to meet at:

From Gorham, NH: Drive west on US Route 2. At the top of the hill, turn right onto Randolph Hill Rd.

From Jefferson, NHDrive east on US Route 2 past Appalachia (the trailheads to Mount Madison/Mount Adams). At the top of the big hill, turn left onto Randolph Hill Rd.

On Randolph Hill Rd 0.6 miles past the 90-degree turn, the Ice Gulch Path begins on the right side of the road at an old farm with a red barn and prominent sign (Sky Meadows). Parking is only allowed off the left (south) side of the road.  I drive a blue Subaru Forester.


Trip Report/Photos
Featured Photo

The parking area for the Ice Gulch Path is a mowed clover field on the south side of Randolph Hill Road.  It has room for about  5 vehicles.   The path begins just across the road as a driveway between two red posts  (with a white trailhead sign on left side) and continues to the left of a barn.  (Contrary to what’s in the current AMC and RMC trail guides, the barn is no longer “red” but rather “gray” as it needs repainting.)  

After passing the barn I followed the path into the woods.  I had to immediately stop to put on insect repellent – this year’s  numerous rains has produced a bumper crop of bugs!   The path was easy to follow with orange blazes, rocks to hop across several brooks, and “Path” signs at intersections with old forest roads.   After an hour, I reached the  “Marked Birch” sign.  The birch had definitely seen its better days.

Near the birch, a sign indicates Ice Gulch Path turns left, but no sign indicates Peboamauk Loop goes straight ahead (although it’s obvious).  I  planned to take the Loop since AMC advertises it as “more strenuous but more rewarding than the main route.”  The Loop immediately began a steep descent to Moose Brook.   Then it turned left to Peboamauk Fall.  (“Peboamauk” is a Native American name meaning “winter’s home”.)   Although the Loop was easy to follow due to good RMC trail maintenance, numerous off-trail blowdowns indicate the area has been hit with violent storms.  About the only safe location to get a picture of Peboamauk Fall had lush vegetation and a beaten tree partially blocking the Fall.  The trail rose steeply alongside the Fall and then had several relatively easy stream crossings.  Still I was happy to have my hiking poles for 3-point contact at all times.  The Loop was probably more scenic before being ravaged by storms.

The trail then reached a junction that had two signs.  The upper sign clearly indicated I came from the Loop and across the way was the way to Ice Gulch.  However, the lower sign confused me a bit stating “Peboamauk , To foot of Ice Gulch via Peboamauk Trail”.  Given that neither trail guide mentions a “Peboamauk Trail”, I questioned whether this was the upper junction with the Ice Gulch Path.  Since it was only 11:20, I decided to explore the “Peboamauk Trail” even though not part of my original plan.  It took me steeply up a hill, passed an overgrown area where some thorny berry bushes made my lower legs feel uneasy (but left no marks), through typical forest with a few muddy areas, and in 15 minutes I was back at the Marked Birch.  Mystery solved – the “Peboamauk Trail” was nothing more than the segment of the Ice Gulch Path that I had originally planned to bypass via the Loop.  After another 15 minutes, I was back at the two-sign junction and ready to head up Ice Gulch.

I saw the Fairy Spring sign on a tree, but wondered where the spring was as it was quite dry around the tree.   Several feet downstream water was coming off the north wall of the gulch so I wondered if that was the spring.  However, as I continued to climb over rocks in the gulch, I could hear Fairy Spring was under them.  Since it was now afternoon, I decided to rest on a rock and have lunch.  While eating lunch, a butterfly was particularly intrigued with the colors of my hiking poles.

The Ice Gulch soon lived up to its name as I spied ice in a shaded crevice between rocks.  It was also refreshing to periodically walk through a blast of cold air.  The sun was just above the south wall of the gulch at times, but mostly it was blocked by the wall and/or vegetation.  Whereas insect repellant was necessary for this hike, sunscreen was not.  The trail through the gulch alternates from open views to a narrow passage between the walls.  All bare rocks were dry, but many rocks were covered with moss that are adept at holding water.  I was surprised several times grabbing on to a shaded rock and feeling cold water in moss, but even more surprised by the warm water in the few moss that were in direct sunlight.  Moss on top of a solid flat rock was a very nice cushion to walk over ; Moss on the side of a rock or extending into the air was not since it usually gives way.  One must be patient in the gulch moss garden to accurately discern which type is directly in front of you.   

Upon reaching the top of the gulch, I noted it was 3 o’clock. With the orange blazes and the sawed-through blowdowns, I was always confident I had been on the trail and never had to retrace any steps.  However, it greatly surprised me that 3 hours had passed as I hiked the 0.9 miles through the gulch (even granting I stopped for lunch, took pictures, stood still viewing awesome scenery, and made two fruitless attempts trying to collect some of ice in an empty water bottle as a souvenir).   I had advertised the hike as “slow and low is the way to go” and evidently had followed my own advice.  A check of my arms and legs revealed only a small gash on my left knee.  I found Ice Gulch lived up to its reputation of being comparable to the infamous toughest mile of the AT (Mahoosuc Notch segment), which some of us did on 8/7/2010 and is in the GO trip reports.  Whereas  I recall taking some underpasses through the rocks of Mahoosuc Notch, I did not find any appealing underpasses in Ice Gulch.

I did not see a Cook Path sign at the top of Ice Gulch, but the path is straight ahead.  (There is also an abandoned trail to the right.)  Descending the Cook Path was as easy to follow as the ascending trails had been.  Some boggy areas had log planks that appeared to be fairly new.  The path disintegrated a bit into a bunch of randomly strewn rocks as it approached the Boothman Spring Cutoff.  Upon reaching Boothman Spring,  I found a fire pit complete with coffee pot and iron grills.  Since this trail is on private property, I’m assuming the pit is for those who know the owner rather than hikers.  Shortly after passing Boothman Spring, the trail left the woods, crossed a field, and was a dirt road as it passed an old building with a skeleton sitting outside just before reaching Randolph Hill Road.  I walked eastward on the road back to my car, taking a picture of Mounts Madison and Adams that one of the homeowners sees daily.

  There are 29 photos in Album (Note: Move mouse pointer over larger pic and click on NEXT for better viewing)

What Members Are Saying About This Trip/Event

  • Thanks for sharing your adventure. From your pictures, I was not expecting to see a boulder path similar to Mahoosuc Notch. Sounds like a hidden gem! - Gandalf

Members That Participated

phoenix

Outdoor Fitness Level: Moderate to Strenuous


Somersworth, NH


United States
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