About 30 years ago, when the Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway in southern New Hampshire was new, a friend from work and I walked all 50+ miles of the entire trail in a single day. As I recall, we did it to celebrate the Summer Solstice. Wearing light daypacks with just some water, food, a change of socks and a flashlight, we climbed Sunapee in the pre-dawn darkness, walked the 50 or so miles (the route was different in those days and I don’t remember the actual mileage) to the summit of Monadnock at a brisk pace, and climbed down by flashlight. Funny, I don’t recall it being a particularly difficult day. . . . Maybe 50 miles was shorter then?
In 2006, to celebrate the Summer Solstice, EasternsSlopes.com Publisher David Shedd and I decided to see how much of the trail we could do in a single day. In what we dubbed “The Long March,” we ended up covering over 26 miles and were sore enough (mostly from boot issues) that neither of us could hike the next day.
A few days ago, we “finished” the trail. Common sense had set in, and we took two days with an overnight at one of the established campsites along the way.
Some friends kindly agreed to drop us at the trailhead up Monadnock and shuttle our car to Pitcher Mountain in Stoddard where we’d ended before. Hikers who want to leave a car at either end of the trail need to contact Monadnock State Park, the Mount Sunapee ski area, or Mount Sunapee State Park and let the staff know what your plans are so your car doesn’t get towed.
We carried lightweight packs, solo tents and summer sleeping bags. With plenty of water and lots of good food the packs weighed about 30 pounds each to start, which, believe me, is plenty to carry up Monadnock.
No matter which route you take, Monadnock is a good hike. We followed the Old Toll Road (easy) and the White Arrow Trail (steep in spots) to the summit, ate lunch admiring the spectacular views, then started on the M-S Greenway proper. As always when you are carrying a pack, getting down the mountain was harder than going up. Trekking poles help.
Once we got off Monadnock’s well-worn trails, it quickly became clear how little use the Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway gets. While the trail was easily discernable, it was overgrown in spots with raspberries and ferns. Our day’s total was 8.6 miles with a lovely lean-to shelter at the Spiltoir campsite at the end. We had the site to ourselves and pitched the mesh bodies of our solo tents inside the shelter for bug protection.
The second day was long, about 15 miles to hike, but the walking was generally easy and our packs were much lighter. Unfortunately quite a bit of the route is on dirt roads and some blacktop. A violent windstorm had closed several miles of trail into the village of Nelson and that added two-plus miles of road walking.
If you hike north to Pitcher Mountain, be warned: the last mile or so is poorly marked, has many blowdowns to negotiate, and is overgrown in many places. It’s just another indication that this trail isn’t getting used as much as it should, which is amazing considering how well-laid out and accessible it is.
So we’ve now “done” the entire Monadnock-Sunapee Greenway. But we haven’t, really . . . we’ve missed a couple of sections along the way. . . . Perfect excuse to go back. This trail is a gem and well worth exploring completely.
Life isn’t a spectator sport. Get out and enjoy!
Gear Notes: Going Light.
Going light was the key to this enjoying this hike, and David and I were testing out some new gear that performed beautifully:
Boots: I tried some new lightweight “Pole Creek” hikers from Columbia. Very light, very well made, waterproof, and probably very comfortable. But I hadn’t broken them in sufficiently before this hike and developed a blister in a spot where I always develop blisters with new boots. My fault, not the boots. David had some new L.L. Bean Trail Model light hikers. Also really nice boots, same problem with not enough break in.
Packs: David used a superlight “Jam” pack from GoLite. At only 1 pound, 13 ounces, it’s comfortable with 30 pounds but lacks some features like a top pocket. I used an extremely comfortable REI Flash 65. It weigh 3 pounds 2 ounces, but has most of the bells and whistles. Great value.
Tents: I carried an EMS Velocity 1, which is the best all-around value in a solo tent I’ve ever seen. David used a Big Agnes Fly Creek UL 1, which is even lighter, roomier, but quite a bit pricier.
Hydration: Hiking in the summer means drinking lots of water. Our real discovery for the trip was an ultralight highly efficient water purification system from SteriPEN which uses U-V light to quickly sterilize water. This allowed us to carry less water as we walked and drink safely from sources along the route. Amazing new technology!
This article was very helpful. I haven’t been able to find alot of info about this hike. My son and I are planning on doing this hike in August before he heads off to college. I figured on a north-south route with 30 lb packs. I’m hoping to complete it in 3 days.
James,
What a wonderful father-son experience! 3 days is about right for this hike. Camping on this route is limited to established sites, so I’d strongly recommend getting a copy of the Monadnock-Sunapee Guidebook before you hike, You can order it on-line at http://www.msgtc.org/store or from a number of local bookstores and outdoor shops.
Thanks Tim. I have the guidebook. The included map is very helpful with great detail. They did a good job. I may decide to go south to north in order to easily follow the guidebook, since its written as a south to north hike.
Great article on the Greenway! I’m actually going to try out that new filter this weekend when I backpack the entire trail with a friend.
One question with regards to bear-proofing food…did you guys use the age-old bear bag thrown over a high tree branch or the more recent bear-proof container/caches (or neither)? I’m debating whether to shell-out the money for one of them or not…
Andrew,
You are going to have a wonderful time on the Greenway. It’s a great hike.
To tell you the truth, we are probably too lax about bearproofing our food supply. But that’s because we rarely camp in established campsites. Perhaps this story will help you make your decision on the bearproof containers: http://easternslopes.com/2010/08/24/how-to-coping-with-critters-while-camping/
Tim
Hi Tim: My son and I hiked the MSG this past Sunday. Due to weather we got started late up the White Arrow trail. Water on the first section of MSG was lacking. We made one wrong turn by missing a sign, and lost a couple of hours. A funny story. When we stopped in Nelson for a rest and a water resupply, there was a mix beagle/basset hound barking at us. Once we hit the trail there was the dog ahead of us. He wound up staying with us and wouldn’t leave. That night he spent the night under my sons hammock. If he saw or heard an animal he would start barking. Come morning, the was the dog waiting for us. We shared our breakfast with him and headed out, the dog always in the lead. Always waiting when we rested, sometimes barking to move us along. We finally decided we would try to contact his owner once we got to Washington. Luckily he had a phone # on his collar and his name. The woman at the town hall contacted the owner who came and picked him up. He was quite a remarkable dog. so if you are ever passing through Nelson and see a small beagle/basset hound his name is Emmet. A great friendly dog. Needless to say we were not able to finish due to time constraints, but we learned quite a bit and have a lot to talk about and good memories.
Safe hiking
Jim
Jim,
Thanks for sharing your story and introducing us to Emmet. He sounds like a fine hiking companion. Don’t worry about not finishing the trail. It’s not uncommon to miss a sign, wander off and go “exploring.” Not finishing this time just means you have an excuse to go back.
“Life isn’t a spectator sport. Ge out and enjoy!”
Tim
Great report. Looking to do this around Memorial day 2012. My first overnight trip.
Al, Good for you! It’s a beautiful hike and perfect for a first overnight. Do keep in mind that May is blackfly, mosquito, and tick season, so you are going to need to prepare for that. Check out our stories on Insect Shield clothing, ThermaCELL repellers, and other means for avoiding bites.
Also, I’d highly recommend you check out our camping checklists. Planning is almost as much fun as going! Enjoy!