It was gonna be ridiculously hot later today so I got out to ride by 9AM. That was smart cuz by 10:30 it was nasty hot and humid so I high tailed it out at that point...
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| Start of Dingleberry Trail (a great way down AND back up!) |
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| Misty Mountain has lots of rocks! |
Today it was freakin' hot and humid but a morning hike along the picturesque Hockanum river under a canopy of trees was refreshing! Note: “Hockanum” comes from the Native American word Hocquaun, meaning hook-shaped or crooked river.
"In 1794, a group headed by Samuel Pitkin established a cotton mill along the Hockanum, just west of today’s Union Street. David Watkinson and his brothers took over in 1819, and renamed it the Union Manufacturing Company.In 1866, the company built the Union Dam, 20 feet thick at the base. It was the only dam in Manchester that survived the violent flood of October 1869. Union Manufacturing, as other employers of the time, built housing for workers – many of these houses still exist in the “Old North End.”Cheney Brothers bought the buildings and water rights, and built an electric generating plant in 1901 on North Main Street next to the river. Huge metal pipes brought water from Union Pond to the power-generating plant, and wires on electrical poles brought the power to the south end of town for the silk mills. Stones from the Union Mills were re-used in building Cheney Mills, but no buildings remain at the site of the former cotton mill. Union Village, however, was designated a National Historic District in 2002."
Excerpted from Hockanum River Central to Manchester's History
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| Union Pond |
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| The Union Pond Dam |
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| Kiosk |
I had an awesome bike ride today at Case Mountain riding the "Tinti" Loops. There was a lot of elevation changes (close to 400 feet vertical) but the trails are built so well with switchbacks and very little abrupt climbs that I only choked a couple of times at some rare really steep surprises. The weather was hot but not too humid and the sun was ablaze making it a very scenic ride thru the dense greenery.
The ever-present power lines!
What an awesome spot to bike! This time I focused on riding the northern part of the park and found it just as great (previous ride >)
A late afternoon hike East of Keeney / South of Howe the trails I have built
At the stream crossing
I rode here once last fall and then hiked with Al Tinti in February, but it was nice to get back here once more -- even in the nasty hot humid weather .
I decided to ride another section of Case Mountain I had yet to explore... entering from the Mountain Road entrance.
My intention was to ride the Upper Ridge trail but it was blocked...
