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| From the President ....
Greetings everyone! I know it has been a while since the last Cohos Trekker was sent out to all of you. Largely, it has much to do with all the excitement that has occurred over the course of the 2011 hiking/trailwork season. Regardless, we are going to make a strong attempt to get this newsletter out to all of you on a regular basis from this point forward. Allow me to start with our volunteer work-weekend that took place in the Nash Stream Forest on the weekend of June 4th and 5th. We had 10 folks turn out to give us a hand and we all had a blast. For volunteers, we had Aaron Goff; Sara Massarello; Carl Anderson, Sr.; Carl Anderson, Jr., Kim Votta and Ken Vallery. For board members, we had Kim Nilsen, Yvan Guay, Tracy Rexford, and myself. We had fantastic weather both days with sunny skies. The mosquitoes were out in full-force but that did not stop anyone from having a wonderful time. We accomplished quite a few things that weekend and they include:
It was a pleasure to be able to meet and work with new folks on the Cohos Trail. I am very pleased to see that there is a considerable amount of interest in the Cohos Trail from folks both far and near. Folks traveled from the Boston area; and from New Hampshire towns including: Spofford, Sanbornton, Hebron, Jefferson, Lancaster, Berlin, and Stark. A big “Thank You!” goes out to all who helped make the weekend fun and successful! Without the help of volunteers, the Cohos Trail would not exist ! Volunteers play a critical role in ensuring that the trail is around for current and future generations to enjoy. Without them, the longevity of the trail would be short-lived. Hopefully, in the not too distant future, we can all get together again and do more exciting work on the trail! Over the course of the summer, my father Jack Pepau and I worked diligently on fabricating the new composting-latrine which will be situated at the new lean-to site on the Arm of Sugarloaf in Nash Stream State Forest. Jack and I donated our labor to construct this latrine. The Cohos Trail Association received a donation from Leane Rexford, board member of TCTA and owner of Northern Oasis (a massage therapy and yoga business) of Berlin, NH to purchase some of the materials for this project. This outhouse will be named “Northern Oasis”, after her business. Bob Paradis, another board member of TCTA milled out the siding for the latrine using his portable sawmill. This latrine is similar in design to the previous two that we constructed. One of these outhouses stands at Kamp Kirk and the other at Percy Loop Campsite, both within Nash Stream Forest. This latrine made for the third one that Jack and I have built for the Cohos Trail. I would like to give a warm welcome to Ken Vallery, our new Vice President of the Board of Directors for The Cohos Trail Association. Ken is from Lancaster, NH. He and his wife Kim are our trail adopters for the East Side Trail in Nash Stream Forest and the two of them have showed commitment to the East Side Trail, as well as to the organization in the short time they have been involved with the Cohos Trail. I look forward to working with Ken as we move forward into the future with the Cohos Trail. More recently, the weekend of September 24th and 25th, the Southworth family who own and operate the Garland Mill (a water-powered sawmill) in East Lancaster, NH; along with the Timber Framers Guild of North America generously got together to mill out and donate the frame work for our new lean-to which will be placed on the Arm of Sugarloaf in the Nash Stream Forest. On the evening of the 24th, following the day’s work on the lean-to framing, TCTA and the Southworth’s got together and put on a feed for all of those involved in this weekend-long event. A big “Thank You!” goes to those who contributed to this dinner, including Kim Nilsen, Yvan and Debbie Guay, Tracy Rexford, Kim Votta, Ken Vallery, and everyone else who assisted. I am sorry if I did not get your name; however, know that your assistance with this was much appreciated. It seems that all those in attendance had a wonderful time. Dana Southworth has agreed to cut the decking, siding, and roofing planks at cost. Even more recent, and more importantly, with all of the good things happening on the Cohos Trail this year, I am proud to announce that the founder of the Cohos Trail, Kim R. Nilsen, has had his life-long dream come true! Yes, it is official --- All 165-miles of the Cohos Trail are on the ground, end-to-end, and is open for use from the Davis Path trailhead on U.S. Route 302 in Crawford Notch, NH all the way north to the U.S./Canada border crossing in Pittsburg, NH. The Cohos Trail was completed on September 29, 2011 in Pittsburg, NH when the Black Cat Trail was finished. Despite light-precipitation falling from the skies in Pittsburg, those present for the completion of the trail were Kim Nilsen, Lainie Castine, Yvan Guay, Bruce Brekke, a reporter and a photographer from the Boston Globe newspaper, and myself. Following a short celebration at the end of the section of trail that needed to be cleared, along Route 3, a get-together was had at Lainie Castine’s residence. To continue the celebration of the completion of the Cohos Trail, I bought pizza and beer for those who helped out that day. It was a great time. Lastly, I feel it quite fitting as the President of The Cohos Trail Association to write a quick note of thanks to everyone who helped in one way or another to complete the Cohos Trail over the 12-year span that it took. Numerous volunteers stepped forward over the course of the 12 years to donate their labor to make this possible, as well as a large number of supporters who donated gifts of tools, materials, and monetary donations. Without the assistance of each and every one of you, the Cohos Trail would not exist. It takes the generosity of folks and businesses such as yourselves to make this happen and on behalf of The Cohos Trail Association, I will forever by grateful of your support. Thank you for all that you have done! With warm regards, Chad Pepau, President
ONLINE WITH KIM NILSEN 
BLACK CAT IS GOOD LUCK The last miles of trail to be cut and opened in the long Cohos Trail system from the White Mountains to the Canadian border was the Black Cat Trail between Second Connecticut Lake Dam area and the terrain just south of Deer Mountain Campground. The 3.7 mile pathway was the last remaining link in the 165-mile chain of trails and existing ways that make up the long-distance CT. Today, those last miles are cut and, for all intents and purposes, the Cohos Trail is done end-to-end. Lainie Castine of Pittsburg spearheaded the design, layout, and development of the Black Cat Trail (and other trails in the area) and organized volunteers to get the job done. Last week, Lainie, Yvan Guay, Ray and Joan Chaput, Chad Pepau, Bruce Brekke, and Kim Nilsen managed to cut away the blowdowns, clip branches, sidehill with mattocks, and pull all sorts of forest debris off the ground to create a wide foot trail over the last .7 mile of the three-plus mile route. At the end of the work day, one last small maple sapling beside Route 3 had to be removed. At that, the cork on a bottle of champagne was popped and everyone had a taste of the bubbly to commemorate the event. While working, two Boston Globe newspaper personnel recorded the effort, one to write the copy for a future story and the other to snap photos and roll a video camera. They recorded the crew working in the rain for the first hours, and were on hand to partake of the celebration after the final tree was cleared away. Now, a tramper can walk from Fourth Connecticut Lake on the Canadian border all the way to southern Crawford Notch on trail that was originally planned and amended and dubbed the Cohos Trail. The final trail can and will be tweaked a bit in the years ahead to improve it. Infrastructure will be added in the form of lean-to shelters, composting latrines, kiosks and additional signage, and perhaps a bridge or two. A few bypass trails might be added to the total and one historic mountain spur trail will be built. But the CT is now a complete thru-trail in fine Great North Woods country. ONWARD TO DEER MOUNTAIN On the high eastern flank of Deer Mountain near the Canadian border reposes a cold bog. Seen from space via Google Earth imagery online, one can see that bog environment high on the mountain. Today, you can follow red surveyor tape flags tied to tree branches from a spur track off of Sophie’s Lane (Route 5 snowmobile trail behind Deer Mountain Campground) all the way up the mountain to the bog. The going is moderate all the way. There are no really steep sections. All you have to do is follow the flagging and cross a small stream three or four times. Eventually, that trail into the bog will be brushed out and blazed. Above the bog, new flagging will be put up in 2012 all the way to the north summit of the mountain where the superstructure of the old firetower still stands without its watchman’s cab. Opening that historic route up the mountain will be a priority in the 2012 or 2013, but you don’t have to wait to get to the bog. You can trek that flagged path now. MOUNTAIN LIONS More reports of mountain lion sightings are making headlines from one end of the state to the other. Oddly enough, most of the noise about the big cats is coming from the southern end of the state. But over the years there have come reports from the Lakes Region, Lincoln, Franconia, the Whitefield-Jefferson line, and the Kilkenny. State officials I’ve talked to over the years tended to think that there is no resident population of the big cats. If there was, so the reasoning goes, evidence of mountain lion activity would show up in or near deer wintering yards. Although there seem to be lots of reports of eastern cougars, the moose population seems to be on the wane in Coos. Not only is moose viewing being curtailed by the presence of fewer moose, there is much less moose sign in evidence, as well. Perhaps the hard winter coupled with a heavy infestation of ticks conspired to substantially reduce moose numbers.
TALE OF THE TIMBER Garland Mill in Lancaster is one of the few surviving waterpowered sawmills remaining in the United States. That historic mill was the site of the annual gathering of the Timber Framers Guild of North America. Some 60 Old World skill enthusiasts turned out for a three-day event. Those in attendance turned out beautifully curved timbers for the Old Hermit Shelter (lean-to) that will be built in June of next year on the Sugarloaf Arm Trail in the Nash Stream Forest. Dana Southworth, co-owner of the mill, organized the event. We at the Cohos Trail Association helped feed the multitudes on a Saturday evening, providing corn bread, baked beans, cole slaw, potato salad, tomato salad, and lemon squares. We managed to feed everyone and had precious little leftovers at the end of the dinner. Another party furnished chicken, pork, and roasted corn. The Garland Mill staff provided a keg of Tuckerman’s Pale Ale and a 19th century soft drink concoction called Shrub. On hand from TCTA were Debbie Guay, Yvan Guay, Kim Votta, Ken Vallery, Tracy Rexford, and Kim Nilsen. After dinner Kim Nilsen told tall tales about life in Coos County and how to keep from being trampled to death by a moose. FOR THE LONG HAUL One the very first day of trail cutting twelve years ago, Chad Pepau and Yvan Guay were on hand to open the Old Summer Club Trail. On the very last day of work on the Cohos Trail, the brushing out of the Black Cat Trail miles, Chad and Yvan were on hand again. Now that’s dedication. IN HONOR OF LAINIE In honor of the remarkable work that Lainie Castine has done on the Cohos Trail, and in recognition of her salvaging the trail from oblivion five years ago, we at the association would like to name a big glacial feature on the Black Cat Trail in her honor. So from this day forth, a big glacial erratic rock slab sitting atop a stone upthrust alongside the trail will forever be known as Lainie’s Lair. This stony feature has a utilitarian purpose, by the way. There is space enough under the huge slab so one could not only get out of the rain, but one could sleep under it, too.
Kim R. Nilsen Board chair, The Cohos Trail Association
Trail Mix: 2 cups granola 3/4 cups coarsely chopped pecans 3/4 cups coarsely chopped walnuts 1 can flaked coconut 1-1/2 cups 3-1/2-ounce 1/2 cup sunflower seeds (meat only) 1/2 cup wheat germ 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1 teaspoon salt 1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk 1/4 cup vegetable oil 1 cup banana chips (optional) 1/2 cup dark raisins 1/2 cup golden raisins 1/2 cup dried cherries 1/2 cup dried apricots - diced Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients except banana chips and raisins, cherries and apricots. Mix well. Spread evenly in an aluminum foil-lined baking sheet. Bake 55 to 60 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven; stir in banana chips, raisins, cherries and apricots. Cool thoroughly. Store tightly covered at room temperature. For more trail recipes, see Trail Recipes
Geocaching on The Cohos..........by Lainie CastineIn the spring of 2011, several geocaches (14) were hidden on the Pittsburg & Clarksville trail segments. The caches were geared towards children and families and this is what people are saying.... Excerpts from the mailbag
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 The Cohos Trail is a 501C 3 non-profit
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Trail Association.The Cohos Trail Assocation 266 Danforth Road Pittsburg, NH 603-538-6777 - Editor: Lainie Castine |