New London Conservation Commission Trails - Part 1

 I'm still recovering from surgery and unable to do any bigger hikes. Today I decided to tackle several small walks in New London. The NLCC maintains a network of 20+ trails of which there is a patch for completing them all. There is also a section in the AMC South Trail Guide that outlines 2 of the trails. I'm going to go for the NLCC patch and complete them all. I have done 2 already, the SRKG Sections 6 & 7 that I completed back in March with Laura. Today I had a list of 5 small walks, all except 1 under a mile. 

First up was Clark Lookout. I parked in the Park & Ride across the street from the trailhead. There is a gate and sign. The trail for this is a gravel road the entire way, so easy footing. About 0.4 miles one way with an easy to moderate incline. Only about 100ft of elevation gain. Today's weather was overcast, so I was unfortunately not afforded the beautiful views that would typically abound from this viewpoint. At the top is a stone bench to enjoy the views across Lake Sunapee. Someone had pitched a hammock and camped overnight (I assumed as they were still in there enjoying their Sunday morning). I took a couple pictures and left them to the solitude. 

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Philbrick-Cricenti Bog was next on the ticket. I found it OK with my GPS, but would have had no idea there was even a trail there had it not been for that. There is a kiosk, but it's hidden from plain view unless you're looking for it. This trail is 95% boardwalk, which was something different and fun. There are 2 loops, so I just did a lollipop of each. The coolest part was the low clouds really gave it an enchanted forest feel. The outer loops also pass through open fields which I imagine at the right time of year are beautiful with wildflowers and maybe even a wildlife spotting if you're lucky. The boardwalks are essential as you're walking over real bog most of the time, which unfortunately lends itself to mosquitoes as well. There were a couple short sections on regular trail with the regular rocks and roots of a NH walk. Kids would love this trail. It's short, less than a mile total and no elevation gain at all.

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Not sure if Letterboxing and Geocaching are the same, but something fun for the kids

Molly-Charles Trail at Cordingley Preserve was the most rustic trail of the day. I drove past the trailhead 3 times before determining exactly where it was. Look for the white NLCC sign with a squirrel and a little ways in from that you can see the trailhead sign and letterbox. Parking is alongside the road for this one. The trail description on the NLCC website said mostly flat, but I found it a little more technical, though still only about 3/4 of a mile total with just over 100ft of gain. I started heading left from the trailhead. The trail is a loop with 2 short spurs to a brook. The NLCC marks their trails with orange blazes, and for this trail I was grateful for it. The foot bed was established in some places and others I had no clue where the trail was. The weather was starting to turn while I was on this trail so it got rather dark and felt rather spooky. Definitely a less traveled trail, though still maintained. I would highly recommend having a map with you (there were paper maps in the letterbox at the time of my visit) as I used the Interpretive Markers as a guide to where I was. I missed the second spur initially until I saw Marker 5 and realized my error. I backtracked and found it. This was actually the prettiest spot on the trail with a hairpin turn in the brook. The trail was buggy, and between that and my back and forth figuring exactly where to go, it was my least favorite of the day. 

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Sign to look for alongside the road

End of Spur 1

back at the intersection with the loop and Spur 1

This was some of the section I found hard to navigate without the blazes

The marker coincides with the Interpretive Map and was highlighting the tree on top of the rock 

This marker was highlighting the funky shape of the tree

Clark Pond Trails  from my least favourite to my favourite of the day! Clark Pond Trails were also my "longest" walk at just over 1.5 miles, but still mostly flat with just around 100ft of gain. There are 3 trails in this area, 2 of which make a loop (Dancy Trail and Norman Trail), then Allen Trail loops off Norman. I started with Dancy as it's the longer of the 2. This area is so well maintained with identifiers along the whole way telling you what the trees/vegetation consists of. There were also paper maps at the kiosk with a few identifiers. This trail had lots of little bridges and meandered around to a lovely viewpoint over Clark Pond. Rain kicked in while I was on this hike, so I stepped my pace up a little. It was a really lovely area though. A huge variety of mushrooms and fungus, I even saw some type of bird (I'm not an ornithologist, so I don't know what type) up close. The only downside to this one is it's really close to I-89 so you can hear cars the entire time. Sort of takes away from the peacefulness of a hike! Allen Trail does a quick loop over what reminded me of an alpine sort of area, providing a little variety. Even though there aren't any major landmarks, these trails were really nice. I'd recommend it for anyone looking for a quick adventure. 

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teeny tiny mushroom

this reminded me of coral

bench along the Dancy Trail

never seen one of these before

end of Norman Trail overlooking Clark Pond

trees will grow anywhere

mushroom village

Messer Pond Trail  I contemplated whether to do Messer Pond Trail today, since by now it was pouring rain. I decided to go for it, since it's just a 0.6 mile out and back. I was wet, no harm in getting wetter. This trail was the shortest and easiest, it was basically a straight line with no elevation gain. A little bridge built over a wet area was appreciated so as not to get even muddier! The trail leads to an overlook of Messer Pond with a bench and picnic table. I was out and back in under 15 mins on this one!

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