Mount Pemigewasset and Clark’s Trading Post

We sure had a full day of summer fun last Sunday.
Bria and I met at the north end of the Flume parking lot at 9 am. Since we had two cars we decided to skip the road walk and to make a point to point hike over Mount Pemigewasset, aka Indian Head.
I jumped into Bria’s car and we drove down the hill about a quarter mile south of the Indian Head Resort to the Indian Head Trail parking area. The entrance and the brown sign marking the driveway to the parking area are brushy and grown-in and can be hard to see. The gravel parking lot has room for at least a dozen cars.
The Indian Head Trail is not the popular way to hike this “52-With-A-View List” peak. It climbs 200 more vertical feet, at 1.9 miles in length it’s a tenth of a mile longer and it can be wetter than the Mount Pemigewasset Trail. But it is a splendid trail!

The Indian Head Trail crosses under both lanes of I-93 and then along the bank of Hanson Brook.
We walked through a few muddy spots and around a couple mud pits. The trail was easy to follow and seems to be well used. Higher up the trail gets steeper and a bit rough but nothing crazy. The Indian Head Trail joins the Mt. Pemi Trail near the summit. We turned right and headed the tenth of a mile to reach the summit ledges.
There were only four people on top. We walked a short distance past them, we followed the blazes painted on the ledge, to the actual summit. On top at the end of the trail there is a painted turn around arrow – you’ll know it when you see it – and a nice view of Mount Liberty and Mount Flume.
The wide open mostly flat summit ledges that made up the Indian Head Profile offer up a big vista south and west and it is easy to see why it is a popular favorite. Be sure not to go too near the vertical cliff’s edge. The AMC White Mountain Guide warns to take care, particularly with small children. I’ve been on the summit many times and it isn’t the children I see peeking over the edge.
The cool morning was turning hot and we trotted down the Mt. Pemi Trail. The Trailwrights have made many improvements on this trail. The clean water bars and new stone steps proved that the Trailwrights had been working here recently. I have volunteered with the group in past outings and pointed out to Bria the steps I helped build.
We followed the trail through the forest, past big rocks and across a small brook. We met at least a dozen people on their way up the mountain. We passed under both lanes of I-93 and under Route 3 too. The Mt. Pemi Trail ends at the bicycle path just above the Flume parking lot.
Our total point to point hike was 3.7 miles.

Back at the car I was tempted to run into the Flume Visitor Center to get an ice cream cone, I did that last week and it was super duper. But we were on a mission not to miss the Bear Show.
The Indian Head Trailhead parking lot was now full when we stopped to get Bria’s car on our way to Clark’s Trading Post. It was just 11am and that’s when the show starts. We ran through the parking lot to the ticket counter. The clerk must have been reading our minds because when she handed us our tickets she told us that we had time to make the second half of the bear show.

We love Clark’s Trading Post and especially their show bears. I make sure to go at least once every summer. We arrived just in time as Tula was entering the ring. I know the wonderful corny bear jokes by heart. I do love Tula’s bear-feet and she plays Bearsketball very well. I admire the kind way the Clark family treats their bears and the bears are well behaved, better than most of the dogs I know. We also learned about New Hampshire’s wild black bears and their short and sometimes difficult lives and why we should never feed or bother a wild bear.
When the show was over the train whistle blew and the crowd of adults and children rushed to grab a seat on the train. The White Mountain Central Railroad is powered by a real wood-fired steam-powered Climax locomotive. A half of cord of dry firewood is required for each 25 minute ride through the woods and along the Pemigewasset River.
There’s a secret hiding in the woods by the train tracks. The Wolfman will delight and surprise children of all ages. Watching the children react is wonderful fun and we joined them scolding the Wolfman by pointing our fingers and yelling, “Scram you old goat!”

Off the train we dashed to get in line to ride the Segways. Bria had never ridden a Segway before and this was her chance. We donned helmets and we each received individual instruction before heading out on the loop on our own for three minutes. We made our Segways turn by swinging the handle side to side and just by leaning forward with our toes the two-wheeled balancing machine took off forward. This was a great ride and we considered getting back in line to do it again.
We returned to the ring to watch the Circus Acts and I don’t want to give anything away but we saw an amazing balancing act that made us “ooh” and “aah” and a woman magically change her dresses in a fraction of a second! Be sure to catch their show!
There is so much at Clark’s to delight everyone in your family. They have museums that include fire trucks and motorcycles and lots of curiosities. There is more than you can do in a single day–the Old Man climbing tower, Merlin’s Mystery Mansion, Blaster Boats and more. The shows and trains run many times during the day and you can do your favorite things more than once. Most everything is included in the price of entry (the notable exceptions are food, the 45 minute extended Segway Safari and Tuttle’s shooting gallery).
For the 1pm bear show we arrived early and found two seats on the top tier. Echo and Pemi were the stars for the afternoon show. They are talented performers and they sure love ice cream.
The last thing we did before our date for a swim in the nearby Pemi River was to visit the Trading Post. New Hampshire collectables and fresh made fudge along with coonskin hats and pop-guns and such are offered for sale inside. We purchased $3 mood rings, yes we did!
In the river’s cold water our mood rings turned black but out in the hot sun they quickly turned bright pink again indicating we were very happy.
Have fun.

Amy Patenaude is an avid skier/outdoor enthusiast from Henniker, N.H. Readers are welcome to send comments or suggestions to her at: amy@weirs.com.