You Are Here: December 2025

It was cold today, but we had some rain last week so I thought maybe the ground would be less snowy. It was and it wasn't, but the conditions were just fine. I chose Collins Family Forest, and initially bit off more than I could chew, so I'll have to go back and finish another day. I parked at the Collins Path kiosk on North Shore Road, which was plowed and clear. There was a thin layer of snow on the ground, but I opted to bare boot and carry my spikes just in case. I ended up being able to bare boot the entire day. I went up Collins Path to the Chesley Connector. This entire area is just lovely walks in the woods, no real points of interest, but everything is well marked and well maintained. I took a left on Chesley Connector and followed that to Chesley Road. To avoid doubling back, I walked the road just a tenth of a mile up to Homestead Trail. There was a cellar hole here. I took Homestead Trail past the intersection with Collins Path and continued to Mt Molly Trail. Here, I did an out and back on Mt Molly Trail down to the kiosk on North Shore Road. This was a steep little section, but thankfully short. I continued on Mt Molly Trail up to the summit. There was a short, steep section just before the summit, and today it was completely clear of snow and ice, which was good. I imagine it could be tricky otherwise. Just before the summit I followed a herd path to some ledges with some views over Merrymeeting Lake.. then followed up to the actual summit where there are gorgeous open views across the lake and the surrounding peaks. Coming off Mt Molly Trail on the backside was very, very icy, but luckily there was enough space and snow alongside that I was able to skooch without any issues. Just slowed me down a little making sure I didn't slip and fall. I followed Mt Molly Trail to the kiosk on Devil's Den Road, and then walked the road up to Devil's Den Trail. This was a bit icy as it's a Class VI road and unmaintained, but I was able to walk along the edge without issue. Devil's Den Trail is not on the map yet, but is marked. I had no issues with navigation, though a few more blazes might be helpful. At this point, there is colored flagging in between the blazes which helped. This side of the mountain must not see the sun as much, as the snow cover here was a bit deeper, but not enough to cover my boots and I was able to walk through it easily enough. At Valley Way, I had planned an out and back to cover the piece between here and Mt Molly Trail, but I was getting really tired and had been going slower than expected, so I didn't want to run out of daylight. I took Valley Way back towards North Shore Road. This passed the bottom of the rock face on Mt Molly which had some impressive cliffs. Back at Mt Molly Trail, I retraced my steps to Homestead Trail, and then back to Collins Path, taking that back to the car.

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