Mt Hayes

 The forecast for today was a little iffy, but ended up being perfect. Initially a cloudy day was predicted, and while the sun didn't really come out, the views were clear and the colours were spectacular. Laura and I decided to hike Mt Hayes. On the 52 With a View list, there are 2 trails to reach the summit. We chose the Mahoosuc Trail, which actually begins with a 1.2 mile gravel road walk from Rt 16 in Gorham. There is a small parking area alongside a bridge that crosses the Androscoggin River. Signage points the way, so it's not overly difficult to follow. The bridge was a little scary, only due to my fear of heights. It was solid. The road walk was uneventful, however the view at the true trailhead was beautiful. The trail begins with a small stone staircase and follows alongside a brook with lots of pretty little cascades. It was wet in areas, but we were able to keep our feet dry with careful foot placement. We quickly needed to layer down as it was definitely not the forecast real feel of 29°F. Once away from the brook, the trail turned to pine needles with amazing footing. It steepened, but I'll take good footing any day! We continued past the spur to Mascot Pond saving that for our descent. Continuing up, we crossed an old skidder road which is marked with a cairn where the trail reenters the woods. The trail eventually turns to an eroded rocky climb, that was rather wet and muddy. This slowed us down a little as we worked through the foot puzzle to keep our feet dry. Above that, the trail alternated between wet/muddy and dry and eventually came out onto rock ledges where the views are. Thankfully these were mostly dry. We again continued on wanting to hit the summit first, then we'd be back to sit and relax and enjoy the views for a bit. The actual summit is about 0.3 miles beyond the ledges and is mostly wooded, marked with a little baby cairn. Back on the ledges, and the views are spectacular. The muted tones of the day really made the surrounding mountains pop. It was amazing. We stopped for a little while to enjoy a snack and the views before beginning our descent. I had been worried the down would be tough with the wet rocks, but I actually found it much easier than anticipated. Before we knew it, we were back at the Mascot Pond spur and took the 0.2 miles to this beautiful little area. A couple of old firepits are set up and the pond is overlooked by an incredibly steep gravel incline with an old lead mine atop. You couldn't see the entrance to the mine from down below, but I have seen pictures of an another adventurous person who went up that incline. Laura and I were decidedly against that idea and just enjoyed the pond from our vantage point on flat ground. Back to the gravel road walk and to the car. This was Laura's 15th on the 52 List and my 27th. Another successful day. 

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