Paper birch forest along Minong Ridge Trail

Hiking along the Minong Ridge Trail has been a pleasant stroll through attractive forests thus far. So, there is absolutely no reason to contemplate my last opportunity to bail out on the trail at the intersection with the Hatchet Lake Trail.

After a fifteen minute break at the Hatchett Lake intersection, I continue hiking through the same aspen/paper birch forest. The sky begins to darken though, while before it was merely overcast. Is there more rain in store for me today? The weather forecast from this morning was not optimistic, and meteorologists are never wrong. Right?

The wind picks up some, as I continue hiking through the aspen/paper birch forest. The combination of the white and grey mature tree trunks as far as the eye can see, mixed with the light green foliage of the many saplings in the understory, makes this a very pretty stretch of trail. A red-eyed vireo flutters above my head in the young aspen trees, enjoying the ample supply of insects attracted to structurally diverse forest.

Section Stats:
Date: September 1, 2011
Length: 5.0 miles (6.4 total daily miles; 31.1 total trip miles)
Difficulty: Moderate (frequent ups and downs)

The trail starts to gradually ascend as I continue to admire the beauty of the forest around me. Finally, the trail climbs back to the ridge that bares its name. An extensive wetland lies at the bottom of the ridge off to the north. Many of the aspen and birch trees give way to red pines along the ridge line, apparently due to the shallow and poor soils.

While passing under a cluster of red pines, a few of cones seem to fall from the sky, just missing my head. Above, a mischievous red squirrel jumps for limb to limb, chewing off cones and dropping them down on me. Did it hear about what I did to that squirrel back at McCargoe Cove two days? Perhaps via the Pine Cone Internet? It chatters loudly when I pick up a few of the cones and throw them into the surrounding forest. That will teach it!

As I stop for a drink of water and a quick snack, the family of four from Todd Harbor pasts me quickly. I note the red squirrel does NOT knock cones on their heads. So maybe there is something to this crazy Pine Cone Internet idea of mine after all.

The family consists of the two parents and two children, one boy and one girl. The kids appear to be pre-teens but it is hard to tell under all the equipment. It has been a long time since I saw kids out backpacking. In my typical haunts in the Adirondacks seeing one is as uncommon as seeing a black bear, or a moose for that matter. National Parks probably attract more families than a dispersed state park like the Adirondacks. Or perhaps it is due to most of my trips being off-trail bushwhacks. Probably a little of both.

Not wanting to play leapfrog with the family too soon, I dilly-dally a little before hitting the trail again. Once back on the trail, it continues to climb, now back into an almost entirely paper birch forest. In a muddy section, I notice a couple of moose prints. Unfortunately, they are not very fresh, but I am overjoyed nonetheless, as they are the closest I have come to seeing moose thus far on my trip.

Red pines along Minong Ridge Trail

Red pine trees return to the forest, although still mixed in with the plentiful paper birch. Through the trees to the north is an extensive wetland, although I only catch glimpses of it through the forest canopy. According to the map, the trail follows along this wetland for a good distance, but it always remains upslope from it.

Lying in the middle of the trail is a dead deer mouse. Other than the fur looking a little unkempt (death will do that to one’s personal hygiene), there are no obvious signs of what led it to its current predicament. I find it surprising that a dead mouse would remain on the trail for any length of time. Could another hiker have step on it?

The trail drops closer to the wetland, and I am able to actually see some muddy, open water. I stop and scan the area with my binoculars, but I see no evidence of moose. Foiled again! If I do not get to see at least one moose on this trip then I am going to be pissed.

The trail winds through the forest again, but now it has become a paper birch monoculture again. The trail ascends to a narrow ridge, where both sides fall off sharply into a closed canopy of an aspen and paper birch forest. Some red pines remain mixed in with the other two deciduous species though.

Dead mouse on Minong Ridge Trail

Two young men approach me hiking in the opposite direction. One is limping, using a hiking pole under his arm like a crutch. Exchanging hellos, I let them go by and restrain myself from asking any obvious questions (“Are you hurt?”). Cringing at the prospect of getting injured so far from any facilities, I move on, wondering whether I should have carried my personal locator beacon on this trip.

As I approach the top of a deep ravine, I see the family from Todd Harbor slowly descending. It appears the mother has bad knees, as she hobbles along near the top of the deep descent. Credit goes to people who continue to hike knowing they are likely to experience a good deal of pain in the process.

Several years ago, while hiking in the White Mountains of New Hampshire, a friend of mine came down with painful knees, forcing us to abandon a trip before it reached its half-way point. The pain must have been excruciating, as he groaned with each step as we descended from a mountain range. Although it was obviously very painful for him, it was no day in the park listening to the groans either.

Wetland along Minong Ridge Trail

Forest along Minong Ridge Trail

After the family climbs the other side of the deep ravine and disappears down the trail, I slowly amble my way down into the steep ravine. A small stream flows at the bottom and a wet area, covered in alder shrubs is present to the south. Apparently, the wetland feds the stream as it flows to the more extensive, grassy wetland on the north side of the trail.

The climb up from the bottom of the ravine is long and steep, with it culminating at the top of the ridge again. Through the trees, the wetland to the north is still visible, with its brownish open water and plentiful grassy vegetation.

Paper birch forest along Minong Ridge Trail

Aspen forest along Minong Ridge Trail

The forest becomes much more diverse now, with some spruce and eastern white pine mixing in with the aspen and paper birch. The understory remains dense and foreboding; once again making me thankful I did not plan a bushwhacking adventure on the island prior to visiting. Forest understory like this is rarely seen in my old stomping grounds of the Adirondacks. Outside of blowdowns, that is.

The Minong Ridge starts paralleling another one to the northwest. This other ridge looks slightly higher, and more rocky and open. I cannot help but imagine what it would be like to hike along that ridge. It appears the grass is always greener, even when there is not any grass to be found.

Mixed forest along Minong Ridge Trail

The trail descends off the ridge, and goes through a series of wetter areas as it grows closer to a stream but never crosses it. The wetter areas are devoid of most ground vegetation as they are forested in dense northern white cedar. In reality, they are not all that wet right now either, just damp and musty. Obviously, the dry summer has had its toll on even these wet areas.

Many roots and corduroy lie in the trail, giving this stretch a very typical Adirondack feel. Most of the corduroy is caked in hard mud now, not serving much of a purpose, other than to trip up unsuspecting hikers.

The family has taken a break to have lunch as I pass by in one of the cedar dominated areas. They seem to be working on a whole spread with plates and everything. Plates? In the backcountry? I cannot remember the last time I carried an actual plate. Usually, I just use my lap or the packaging the food came in.

When I pass, I cannot help but think I am the lead frog now.

The trail climbs an incline part-way, yet parallels the stream down below. Some very large eastern white pines are scattered within the forest here, giving this area a very wild air to it. Although paper birch continues to dominate the canopy, many young cedars in the understory lie in wait for the chance to take control. Even an occasional young spruce is waits patiently for its chance too.

Large white pine along Minong Ridge Trail

The trail continues to weave in and out of different forest types. Mixed forest with paper birch and spruce, followed by a monoculture of paper birch, but occasionally dipping to a lower area dominated by young northern white cedars.

Finally the trail drops down off the ridge and crosses an open stream. The area is thick with shrubbery and herbaceous vegetation, but no trees grown nearby. The stream crossing is on what appears to have once been a bridge made out of very long logs. A single log remains intact, but the others are in different stages of decomposition and disrepair. This is the first stream crossing what I am used to within the Adirondacks, outside of the heavily visited High Peak Wilderness where bridges predominate.

After crossing the stream on the log bridge, the trail climbs sharply over a high ridge. The steep ascent is followed by an even steeper descent through mostly mixed forest. At the top of the ridge are many juniper bushes and much bare ground. Fortunately, the descent is short and after crossing a small stream, ends at the intersection with the Little Todd Campground spur trail.

In the mud just near the small stream crossing is another moose print. This one appears much more recent than the one earlier in the day. The hoof print is long forgotten when I arrive at the intersection signpost, since propped up against the sign is a moose antler. It does not appear to be recent by any means, but it remains the closest thing to seeing a real moose thus far on my trip.

Stream crossing on Minong Ridge Trail

Moose print along Minong Ridge Trail

Moose antler at Little Todd intersection

Near the intersection, a large boulder stands next to a broad rock shelf. The rock shelf nearly forms steps up to the top of the boulder. I am unable to resist the temptation to climb to the top, even though I could be leapfrogged by the family once again. The top of the rock allows me to catch a glimpse of the open rocky ridge that is in my future during tomorrow’s hike. The tomorrow’s stretch of trail is the shortest segment of my entire trip, but supposedly one of the toughest due to the frequent ups and downs on the rough and rocky ridge.

After climbing down from the boulder and retrieving my backpack, I start down the short spur trail to the Little Todd campground. The trail crosses rolling terrain on its way to Little Todd, through paper birch forest, followed by aspen, and finally through a swamp of herbaceous vegetation, before finally arriving at the campground. The sky is mostly clear now, with a stiff breeze coming off Lake Superior. It is perfect weather to dry off my equipment from the day before.

With two of the four campsites taken already, I have only the remaining to choose from. At least, I get the chance to choose. Such is the benefit of being the lead frog, I suppose.

Wetland on way to Little Todd

Little Todd Campground map

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