Sunapee-Ragged-Kearsarge Greenway Coalition
| Trail Guide 13 |
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Wadleigh State Park to Chalk Pond Road
Total Distance: 5.4 miles Estimated time: 3.5 hours
Total Ascents: 950 feet Total Descents: 580 feet
Overview: The steady climb to the ridge on King Hill Road will provide good exercise for any hiker. The latter part of this segment of the SRKG is in the NH Audubon Society's Stoney Brook Wildlife Sanctuary. The trail is marked by SRKG white trapezoidal blazes throughout, although they are scarce on Penacook Road. Trails in the Wildlife Sanctuary may also be marked by Sanctuary blazes.
Finding the Trailheads: The eastern trailhead is off NH 114 in the center of the village of North Sutton. It may be reached by following signs to Wadleigh State Park. There is a parking area on the south side of the Green in North Sutton across from Kezar Lake. From the parking area walk south and turn right at the fork onto Penacook Road. The park entrance is reached in about 100 yd. The SRKG to Chalk Pond continues straight ahead. The western trailhead is at Stoney Brook Wildlife Sanctuary on Chalk Pond Road in Newbury. Chalk Pond Road is off NH 103A, 2.8 mi. north of Newbury Harbor and 4.9 mi. south of I-89 exit 12. The trailhead parking is on the left, 1.3 mi. from NH 103A.
Trail: From the parking area, the trail goes clockwise around Kezar Lake on Penacook Road until it intersects King Hill Road. There is an Indian fireplace (a depression in the earth) adjacent to the left side of Penacook Road soon after the pavement ends. The road passes the lake and then turns left onto unpaved Kings Hill Road (1.3 mi.).
The trail ascends steadily, with an elevation rise of about 800 ft. The more traveled Poor Farm Road comes in from the left (2.3 mi.), and a short detour along this road gives a grand view of Mount Kearsarge. From this intersection the trail continues straight ahead and up on King Hill Road, which from this point on becomes a Class VI road.
The ridge between Fellows Hill and Kings Hill is reached, and the trail continues down to the junction of Haynes Road and graveled Stone House Road (3.2 mi.), which is also the town line between Sutton and Newbury.
The trail follows paved Haynes Road straight ahead until it intersects Baker Hill Road (3.9 mi.). The trail turns left onto Baker Hill Road and after 0.6 mi. turns right into the Audubon Society’s Stoney Brook Wildlife Sanctuary, following an old logging road. About 70 yds. up the logging road there is a false trail going off to the left; the SRKG trail continues on the right branch. At an opening in the woods the trail continues straight ahead. After crossing a seasonal stream the trail continues straight ahead.
At 5.2 mi. the trail turns left on the Stoney Brook Wildlife Sanctuary's Marsh View Trail (formerly Stoney Brook Road), reaching the Chalk Pond trailhead at 5.4 mi.
