Madison Cascades, two days after Irene

Geocaching and letterboxing

If anyone has done any geocaching or letterboxing activities along any of the hikes listed here on Madison Trails, please let us know by posting a comment. (Don’t give locations away, please!)

N.H. Topographic Maps Now Available on Fish and Game Website

A press release from NH Fish and Game:

CONCORD, N.H. – Great news for New Hampshire hikers, hunters and outdoor enthusiasts: the N.H. Fish and Game Department has created topographic maps of the entire state, available for free at http://www.wildnh.com/maps. The topo maps, in PDF format and sized to print on an 8.5″x11″ sheet of paper, include the latest available geographic information for the state at a scale of 1:31,680 (1 inch per half-mile). The maps include roads, municipal boundaries, water bodies, conservation properties, state and national forests and parks and more.

To find a map, go to http://www.wildnh.com/maps, click on Topo Maps, and click on a town name. A small map of the town will come up, with red lines and labels to show each available PDF topo map. Below the small map is a list of map names keyed to the labels shown. Click on the name of the map you want to download.

Each PDF map is less than 500 KB in size for fast downloading, and may be opened with Adobe Reader version 8 or newer. Each topo map represents a quarter of a U.S. Geological Survey “quad” map; 851 of these “quarter-quads” cover the 259 towns and unincorporated places of New Hampshire, and each is available as a topo (showing land contours) or with a photographic background.

The background scanned images of U.S. Geological Survey paper topographic maps are from the National Geographic Society provided through ArcGIS Online, a map service with land cover imagery for the world and detailed topographic maps for the United States at multiple scales. The photography (2009) is from the National Agriculture Imagery Program. The other data layers are from NH GRANIT, the statewide geographic information system clearinghouse.

The New Hampshire Fish and Game Department works to conserve, manage and protect the state’s fish and wildlife and their habitats, as well as providing the public with opportunities to use and appreciate these resources. Visit http://www.wildnh.com.

Madison Cascades Trail:

If you like orienteering, try this with your compass.  This course follows the Madison Cascades trail so don’t follow a direction that leads you off the trail.  This is for those who want to practice orienteering.  It is not a bushwhacking trail for experts.  Practice determining the distance of your “pace”.  Train it to be 5 feet and your life will be easier. I used FEET for distances not steps or paces.

Good luck!

In front of the Madison Historical Society building there is a commemorative plaque.  Look to the left and see a hiking trail sign and stand near it.

On a compass bearing of—-degrees:	Go this many feet:	To a:
100	125	Guest book
112	200	Base of a rise.  Stop and look north to see an old well
112	45	Ash tree on your left
162	265	Through low pines to a huge white pine
120	225	Down hill, cross a brook, stop as trail bears right. Look left, see 5” diameter beech tree
180	200	Pile of rocks on left of trail
180	145	Descend to a double maple on RT
137	42	Bear left
95	250	4 white pines on RT
55-70	185-190	Up a small hill along a ridge to two white pines on L & R
70	160	Big white pine on RT with pinecones at the bottom
70	75	To upturned birch and White Pine
75-80	70	4 inch maple on RT with moss at the bottom
40-45	175	White pine with hiking symbol
60	124	Two inch hemlock on RT
28	108	3 inch hemlock on RT
80	25	24 inch red pine on RT
80	110	6 inch balsam fir
120	185	Pine with hike symbol on the RT
		Descend RT to cascades
87	85	White pine on left
65	40	Red painted boundary tree BARBED WIRE
105	20	Double hemlock
260	125	Back to where trail descends to cascades

Lead Mine Road in Winter

Parking in winter is always an issue.   You are probably not allowed to park on East Shore Drive.   You might be able to push your way onto LMR.  The other end of LMR has more options for parking.  The whole road is about 1.2 miles.   As of the 2007 Town Meeting it was designated as a class V road to summer cottages.  This allowed the designation to conform to the practice of not maintaining it in the winter.  The road is shared by snowmachines, snowshoers, cross country skiers, and hikers.  There are trails off the main road including a trail to Winter Road, a loop around Goodwin Bog, a path to Cook’s Pond, a power line, and several other paths.  The actual Lead Mine is a deep hole in the ground with steep sides filled with water which can be dangerous.

Remember to leave your hiking plan with someone including your anticipated time of return.

Ward Parcel in the Winter

This short hike is best done with snowshoes unless the trail is packed.  Many winter hikes have limited parking, but you can park behind the Town Hall for this one.  The loop is through a wooded area with a variety of hardwoods and softwoods, many animal tracks, and a brook that runs all year.  There are also a couple of hunting perches.  The trail has metal markers on trees, but you can lose track of them.  You are mostly within earshot of route 113 so if you get turned around, you can hear your way out.

Ward Parcel in the Winter

Snowshoes are the way to go since the last snowstorm.  This trail meanders so much that skis would be awkward.  There is a lot to see: tracks, trees, and tributaries along a fairly level walk of about three quarters of a mile.  Breaking trail will be more exercise.  See if you can find the structure built in the tree to wait for deer to pass.

Modock Hill Road

Take Colby Hill Road to the end and turn left on Modock Hill Rd to a Cul-de-sac.  Park here and proceed northwest on the discontinued portion of Modock Hill Rd. (sometimes spelled Modoc).  This class six road heads generally downhill over varied terrain: some wet areas some washed out ledge areas.  At about .8 mi the road bears right where there is a brook crossing.  At about .85 miles notice a cemetery on the right in the woods.  At just under a mile you arrive at Town Line Road where you could get picked up, or retrace your steps back to the driveable part of Modock Hill Road, or head south on the discontinued part of Town Line Road which leads to another cul-de-sac.  In the 1800′s and early 1900′s these were important roads to the farming communities in these rough lands.

Find it on a map.

Madison Cascades Trail

Madison Cascades Trail

Parking/Getting There:

Parking is easiest at the Madison Church, located just north of the junction of East Madison Rd and Route 113. Once out of the parking lot, turn right and head about two-hundred yards down the road, cross over to East Madison Rd, and find the Madison Historical Society (the Granville Homestead.) The trail begins behind this building. You will notice a guest book at the start of the trail, please sign in.

Trail Description:

The forest around the trail begins as mixed hardwood. Try to spot the change, noticing how undergrowth vanishes as you continue along the trail. Watch out for poison ivy on the first stretch of the trail, around the old well on your left. The trail cuts through a clearing of tiny pines, and it is easy to lose the trail in there. Once you are out of the pines, however, the trail is once again clear. Keep your eyes peeled for Lady Slippers in the spring and summer! The trail descends slightly after the pine clearing, and there is a stream crossing once the ground levels out. You can leap across, or use the stepping-stones. Soon the trail will climb moderately then the ground levels out into a ridge. You can look down onto Forest Brook from here. After reaching the top of the ridge, you will see the trail fork. The right path is steep and takes you down to the Madison Cascades. There are many flat rocks by the Cascades and shallow water. The left will take you through some lovely woods, past a grassy clearing, and end at an old class 6 road.

Find on map.

Written by Students at the Community School

Ward Parcel

Ward Parcel

• 3/4 mile
• Easy
• Park at Burke Field on Rte 113 (Conway Road, between Madison Elementary School and Madison Town Hall)

Trail is a level loop through the woods past a mossy stream.

Find on map.

Madison Cascades

Madison Cascades

• 1 mile
• Moderate
• Limited parking on road by Madison Historical Society at corner of Rte 113 and East Madison Road

Marked trail, follow signs starting to right of Historical Society Building. Various wooded terrain gains elevation to a cascading brook.

Find on map.

Railroad Tracks

Railroad Tracks

• Varies in distance
• Easy
• Access at many places along tracks

Tracks travel through Madison from West Ossipee in the south to Conway/Albany in the north.

Find on map.