Several months ago, I joined the NH AMC Paddlers on a nine mile trip down the Contoocook River. We crossed under several bridges along the way, including one that looked like it might be part of a Rail Trail. Investigating further, I discovered that the Mast Yard State Forest (on the edge of Concord) has a large trail system in that area and decided to check it out! The closest trailhead was at a place called the Gustaf H. Lehtinen Park (on the north side of the river). This morning, I departed my house just after 0800 and drove (via I-89 and some back roads) towards the trailhead (listened to audiobooks on the way). I arrived at the parking lot by 0930 - from there, I crossed a nice bridge and walked about two miles to the west. It was a pleasant day, with temps in the high 40s, very little wind and partly cloudy. There was a LOT of bird activity everywhere! I saw and heard flights of Canadian Geese on their way north and encountered other waterfowl as they drifted in little ponds. Many other people were out in the woods with me, enjoying the day with their dogs. The railroad bed ended at Penacook Road and I immediately backtracked to the river. I’d seen on the map that another trail system would take me to the recreation area, Dolly Beach, I’d passed on the paddling trip and decided to walk over there. This turned out to be another nice experience, since the weather had improved even more. I snacked at a picnic table on the beach and imagined the hundreds of guests who would soon be using the swimming hole - luckily, there weren’t any other people today… Backtracked to my car after that, arriving by 1200. After getting cleaned up, I drove east to Concord and ate lunch at Friendly's. Finished at 1330 and drove further east until I located the NH Audubon Massabesic Center. Unfortunately, it was closed... I walked around a bit nearby but didn't really want to hike very long. Instead, I checked out the Great North Aleworks, located nearby. It started to sprinkle a little so I drove back to the southwest until I reached the Texas Roadhouse in Manchester. I had a gift card and used it to enjoy some drinks for a little while (done at 1600). Drove north again via I-293, I-93, NH-3A and I-89 (listened to more audiobooks) and arrived home by 1730. I'd started the day thinking about how I’d wanted to climb a mountain this weekend and regretting that the weather didn’t cooperate in the WMNF. But I got over those thoughts after this nice hike - glad I have lots of other options for outdoor adventures!
