AIKEN WILDERNESS xc skiing & hiking near Woodford VT

 

Jan 2, 2017 - AIKEN WILDERNESS ski, southern Green Mtn NF.  Woodford State Park.  Across Adams Reservoir.  Path behind campsite 64 down to & across 3 beaver meadows/ponds.  No official signs or trail markers in the wilderness.  L on Old Dewey Road to Tin Can Junction - 2 moose passed thru here very recently judging by the fresh tracks.  Bushwhack W to Beaver Meadows, headwaters of the W Br Deerfield River.  Downstream thru beaver ponds - some thin ice.  Bushwhack W into the woods to trail to W edge of the wilderness area.  Excellent skiing on close to 2' of snow.  Elevation 2,300'-2,500'.  8.7 miles, 6 hours.

Oct 10, 2016 - AIKEN WILDERNESS hike, from Woodford State Park, VT.  Took the Reservoir Loop Trail on W side of Adams Reservoir.  S of the reservoir took a R on unmarked rocky path at a 4-way intersection.  Soon at a beaver meadow.  Followed its edge, crossed stream in the woods to a small meadow then around a beaver pond to the Old Dewey Road in the wilderness area.  Headed S on the somewhat grown-in old road going over 2,500' elevation, some blowdown.  L to a string of beaver ponds.  No markers or signs in the wilderness area of Green Mountain NF.  Walked thru the deserted campground on way back. 5.1 miles, 3.5 hours.

Feb 14, 2016 - Aiken Wilderness via Woodford SP ski. -9F at start, -6F at end

Apr 12, 2015 - CAMP MEADOWS in the Aiken Wilderness from Heartwellville VT. From Green Mountain National Forest - Southern Section by Bruce Scofield: "...this excursion is suggested only for serious explorers of trailless areas who know how to use a topographic map, a compass, and common sense." "The one trail (or more accurately, the dotted line on the topo map)..." Started out on FR 73, a snowmobile trail, for 2.3 miles then headed off into the woods just past the bridge over Reservoir Brook. Soon found a path marked with a rainbow of flagging heading N then W. Abandoned that route & crossed Camp Meadows Brook just before the southeastern-most pond/meadow. Remains of an old cabin (shown on the Stamford quad), an old stove & corrugated roof, were just across the brook. Crossed the meadow & had lunch at its SW corner; behind us was a yellow bucket on a dead tree (something else for you to find now if you already are familiar with the "tin can"). Spent the rest of the trip in shorts. Continued N & bagged more ponds/meadows; between ponds in a sprucey area were moose tracks & scat. Looped back & followed "the dotted line on the topo map", sometimes the old road was fairly obvious, sometimes not. Reached jctn of Camp Meadows Brook & W Br Deerfield River & skied up the river past a cable across the stream. Turned around & followed the river to Reservoir Brook then followed that uphill past frozen cascades. Back on FR 73, mostly downhill. Elevations 1,800'-2,300'. Below freezing last night; sunny, temp rising thru the 40s & 50s, excellent skiing before noon, good (unconsolidated, punched thru occasionally, once 2' into water, did not realize there was a stream underneath) in the afternoon; 1'-2' snow depth. A beautiful day in the wilderness. 10.1 miles, 5.5 hours. 

Jan 14, 2015 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford State Park. Parking area is just E of the park entrance on the N side of Rt.9. A new trail (blue paint blazes) leads from the S of the parking area back to Rt.9 opposite the park entrance. Skied across Adams Reservoir. A path leads from the back of Campsite 64 down (crossing over the park's blue trail) to the 1st meadow (watch out for exposed rocks at the bottom of the hill). Crossed 2 ponds & picked up the old Dewey Road & took it S climbing a series of hills (fun on the way back, I did them twice). After height of land the old road drops with some hobblebush interfering passing another beaver pond on the L. Climbed up to the Tin Can which is wedged waist high in a tree. Continued SE on the old road then dropped SW to a beaver pond, the 1st of the 3 Sisters shown at the bottom of this map. After a relaxed lunch-stop dropped to a large meadow then a short distance to the 3rd Sister which looks like the beavers have let some water out of their dam. On the way back took a side-trip from the Tin Can W then NW dropping down (fun!) thru open woods to the "W"-shaped pond in the Beaver Meadows area. Don't expect any markers or signs, the Tin Can is all you get. Excellent conditions with 4-8" of light powder on good base. Mostly sunny yet some light snow fell during the 1st half of the trip - a beautiful day! 8.3 miles, 5.4 hours. 

Jan 1, 2015 - FOREST ROAD 73 from Heartwellville VT. First stopped on Rt.8 across from the cemetary below the Searsburg Wind Farm (2,500'+ el.) & attempted to ski an old woods road W but it was somewhat washed out & too steep for the conditions today so gave up on that idea after skiing under 0.2 miles, tough ski back to the car. Drove over to Heartwellville. FR 73 is a snowmobile (saw none) trail in winter, el. 1,800'+ at start. Had half inch of powder on hard icy base - fair skiing. Slowly gained 350' in 2.5 miles crossing the W Br Deerfield River & Reservoir Brook on good bridges. Lunched at a small beaver meadow to the N on Reservoir Brook at the S edge of the Aiken Wilderness. On the way back took a side-trip up the Yaw Pond Brook trail which was in tough shape but the brook was quite photogenic. Downhills on FR 73 are novice/easy intermediate but really fast today. Temp in lower 20s. 5.3 miles, 3.1 hours.

Apr 14, 2013 - AIKEN WILDERNESS skiing from Rt.9 in Woodford VT.  S on FR 74 for a bit then into the wilderness area doing a clockwise round-trip mostly off trail.  Combination of open woods, not-so-open woods, areas of hobblebush, open meadows & one section of nasty blowdown - makes for a semi-epic trip.  1.5' of snow, good base with half inch of fresh powder made for very good fast & smooth skiing.  8.5 miles, 5.7 hours.

Mar 4, 2013 - PROSPECT MOUNTAIN from Woodford State Park VT.  Across Adams Reservoir (2,300' el).  Usual route to the Old Dewey Rd which we took W climbing slowly.  Some light blue trail markers.  At a junction took a L & headed S, some light snowmobile use,  Reached trails of Prospect Mtn XC Ski Center.  Still followed the blue markers which brought us out to a groomed ski trail just below the summit (2,767' el)  - good for turns.  Nice mostly easy run back down.  Back at the state park took the trail to the E of the campground (blue paint blazes).  Dropped pack & did a side-trip down thru open woods.  Played "ski the teeter-totter" before heading out of the park.  2'+ of snow, some crustiness, good to excellent skiing (best up high).  4.2 hours.  

Feb 17, 2013 - YAW POND BROOK, Green Mountain NF between Woodford & Searsburg.  From Rt. 9 skied down FR 74 (a snowmobile trail in winter) for 10 mins. then took a L on an unmarked trail, down at first then up to a clearing with raspberry bushes.  Picked up an old logging road going S to a long meadow.  Off on another old logging road going SE which ended after a gentle climb.  Off-trail for a while to snowmobile trail at height of land (2,600').  SW downhill on the snowmobile trail.  Headed S on Yaw Pond Trail (unmarked at the junction, a couple of green diamond-shaped markers further).  Before reaching the brook blue tape marked the trail.  Lots of recent moose tracks in this area.  Crossed the frozen stream on a beaver dam.  Soon reached an area of much blowdown & the trail has been rerouted W of the stream.  Stopped for lunch at a high point then returned mostly the same way but with some added exploration.  Up to 2.5' of snow with a somewhat crusty surface - good skiing.  Lots of animal tracks incl. mountain lion.  4.4 hours.

Jan 13, 2013 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford State Park VT.  Fair to good spring skiing on 15".  Crossed Adams Reservoir - fairly solid, some light slush.  Took the old Dewey Rd S past the tin can junction & down to the 3 Sisters (beaver meadows).  Lots of fresh moose tracks.  5 hours. 

Feb 22, 2012 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford SP again.  Warm 40s, good skiing on wet powder over mostly good base.  From the tin can we headed SSW this time following some ski tracks made yesterday.  Lots of moose tracks, some scat, tree scrapings & a couple of hairy spots where a moose bedded down.  Reached the pond on the W Branch Deerfield River where Gordy Lyons used to have his camp before the USFS made him give it up (the U-shaped pond in the center of this map).  Explored a cute beaver pond to the S which took some climbing & crawling over blowdown to get to.  The dam is so tall I believe the outlet must be a waterfall.  Found an old trail (shown on the USGS Stamford map) which comes in from the NW (has some blowdown) & followed it back to Gordy Lyons' pond.  Followed the pretty ice-covered river upstream to the S end of a long narrow pond at Beaver Meadows, saw a path for a while to the E then whacked (in most winters this area has 2'-3' of snow & hobblebush is not much of an issue, but with 1' of snow it is a bit of a pain) until we hit our tracks from earlier.  Other than the old Dewey Rd the trails & paths in this wilderness area are growing in & unmaintained & must be considered bushwhacks.  5.7 hours.

Feb 20, 2012 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford State Park.  Very good skiing on this beautiful sunny day - 4" powder on good base.  Started out via same route as Jan 23 trip with a detour across a beaver meadow/pond.  Bushwhacked W from the "tin can junction" to the N end of Beaver Meadows - I've followed a path before in this general direction but could not find it on this day.  Saw fresh moose tracks in our tracks on way back!  4 hours.

Jan 23, 2012 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford State Park, VT.  Great quality snow with a few inches of base + 5" of powder - very good skiing, the only negatives being we usually expect twice as much snow here at this time of year & some very light drizzle with temps rising above freezing made things a bit sticky (reapplied Maxiglde) on our return.  Skied across Adams Reservoir then thru campsite 64 to the path leading to the wilderness area.  Surprised that no-one had skied in here over the weekend.  Generally headed S.  After skiing across 3 beaver ponds/meadows we turned L on the old Dewey Road, a long abandoned logging road - don't expect any trail markers in this federal wilderness area.  Uphill for a while (& a fun run down on the way back) then down (a large beaver meadow is seen to the L), then up to the "tin can junction" - this year's model is a rusty old oil can jammed between 2 tree trunks.  Continued on the old road for a bit before dropping down off-trail to a beaver pond to the R, the 1st of the "3 Sisters".  Following the outlet we emerged onto a large meadow then dropped again to another meadow/pond.  Below this there were very many trees down probably caused when Irene came thru & raised water levels.  I have been further downstream & well down the W Branch Deerfield River several times but this seemed to us a good turn-around point today.  Fisher & bobcat tracks but no moose.  4+ hours.

Mar 28, 2010 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Rt. 9 in Woodford VT.  Temp at freezing as we started out & snowmobile trail along FR74 was a bit icy.  After less than a mile we head W off-trail into the wilderness area climbing to a small beaver pond then along SE side of hill at about 2,500' elevation.  Firm snow with a little give to surface - excellent skiing as things warmed up.  After lunch at a stream we head E mostly downhill & run into the Yaw Pond Trail.  We cross Yaw Pond Brook on a fallen tree/beaver dam & continue N until we are back on the snowmobile trail.  Moose tracks, tree scrapings & scat.  9.3 miles, 5.5 hours. 

Jan 31, 2010 - AIKEN WILDERNESS, Woodford, VT.  From Woodford State Park.  3-4" powder on good deep base.  Adams Reservoir ice seemed solid & thick but was cracking as we crossed.  Broke thru ice while crossing a stream in the 1st meadow.  Old logging road S to "Tin Can Junction".  W on unmarked path which we soon lost so bushwhacked thru relatively open woods to Beaver Meadows & across going NW with view of Prospect Mt.  Picked up another old logging road which lead to Prospect Mt Ski Area's Mountain Trail.  Headed back the way we came.  8.5 miles, 5.5 hours. 

Apr 20, 2009 - AIKEN WILDERNESS skiwhacking.  Walked a short distance down FR74 (mostly snow-free) then headed W to where we saw larger patches of snow.  Continued along snowy route mainly on N facing slopes past a meadow, to a beaver pond & to the high point of the wilderness where there is a large rock, some thru-the-trees views (last April 21 we reached this spot but started from Woodford SP).  Saw the "Blind Man's Trail", someone had once blazed a trail in here with blue paint, ranger has since gone in & painted them over with brown.  Elevation 2,300-2,600'.  0-10" corn snow, very good skiing just watch out for hobblebush.  3.5 hours. 

Mar 30, 2009 - AIKEN WILDERNESS skiing.  Mostly off trail.  1'-2' of wet granular snow topped with up to 2" new.  Raining down in Bennington, snowing up in Woodford.  Skied down FR74 for ~10 mins. then R or W on old logging road which we soon left.  Reached old logging road S of the state park.  One tricky stream crossing.  3 hours.

Feb 15, 2009 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford State Park.  6" powder on top of firm deep base - best skiing of the season!  Across Adams Reservoir to end of campground, over 3 beaver ponds/meadows, L on old logging road (unmarked) uphill, down to large meadow for long break in the warm sun, to "the tin can" junction & bear L, now beaking trail (easy), down to string of beaver meadows/ponds to W Br Deerfield River then returned.  Moose & otter tracks.  8 miles, 5 hours. 

Apr 21, 2008 - AIKEN WILDERNESS from Woodford SP, Woodford, VT.  0"-20" corn snow - most snow on N facing slopes.  Left the campground road near the swings & bushwhacked generally SE following areas of best snow.  Reached a 2,500' hill not far from FR74 - no snow on top but nice thru the trees views.  On the way back checked out a snow-free beaver meadow with a small stream running thru it.  Still ice on Adams Reservoir but won't last long now.  4.5 hours.  Fischer Rebound skis.

Mar 24, 2008 - CAMP MEADOWS.  Aiken Wilderness near Woodford, VT.  S on FR 273 snowmobile trail from Rt.9 (limited parking) for 2 miles then cross over to Old Stage Rd snowmobile trail which goes just S of the Aiken Wilderness.  At height of land we head NE off-trail to the meadows.  Crossed over 3 beaver ponds/meadows.  From the middle one we go N thru open hardwoods,  see fresh moose scat & tracks.  Eventually hit a trail & follow it W to Prospect Mtn Ski Area & back to FR273.  A few inches of powder on top of icy base - ok on snowmobile trail, very good elsewhere.  9.6 miles, 4.5 hrs.

 

Dec 9, 2007 - PROSPECT MOUNTAIN, from Woodford State Park, a few miles E (& 1,000' higher) of Bennington, VT.  Over a foot of snow, some wet spots.  Leave the SP campground at S end & head into Green Mountain NF (unmarked), across a meadow with tricky stream crossing, passed 2 beaver ponds to old woods road (light blue markers).  Headed WNW over height of land & took a L (going S; not on USGS map) at 4 way junction, moderate uphill (light blue markers) to trails of ski area, L on loop & L again on Hawthorn then R to top.  430' elevation gain.  Views include Stratton Mt.  Some nice runs on the way down.  Intermediate.  8 miles, 5 hrs.

Mar 6, 2006 - AIKEN WILDERNESS, Woodford, VT. Very good base with 8" powder; close to 2' total in woods. In WOODFORD SP skied across well-frozen Adams Reservoir. Took the unmarked route S from Adams Reservoir (shown as broken red line on this map) across a beaver meadow & 2 beaver ponds. L or S on unmarked but obvious old logging road & up 3 moderate hills (fun on way back). Near height of land saw some ski tracks heading E thru the woods (which turned out to be our route back later in the day). Continued on logging road SW to junction (trail R or SW was taken Jan 30) - a blue paint blaze on tree - a new tin can has been wired to the tree & a map showing a loop trip to the E can be found inside . We bear SE & continue to the edge of a beaver pond. Skiing S we soon reach a large beaver meadow. Dropped over the dam at the SE end & into another pond/meadow - these 3 ponds/meadows are referred to as "The 3 Sisters". Continued S staying close to the N tributary of the W Br Deerfield River then along the streambed of the latter (ice was generally trustworthy). Turned around about a mile N of the snowmobile trail to Heartwellville (see Feb 5 trip). Up the W Br for a bit then decided to follow ski tracks E then N (close to eastern edge of the wilderness area) - figure this is the route shown on tin can map - consider this a bushwhack. Went thru more beaver ponds/meadows before turning W passing just S of the highest point of the Aiken. Saw many moose tracks. Dropped down with some nice glade skiing before crossing another meadow, up a bit then down with more sweet thru-the-trees runs before coming out near height of land on logging road. Took the campground road back to Rt.9. 9 miles, 6 hours. Area must have been skied by many over the weekend because there were ski tracks all over the place - if you don't know the Aiken, just follow some tracks. If you get lost, heading N will get you back to Rt.9.

Feb 5, 2006 - STAMFORD POND from Rt.100 in Heartwellville, Vt. Green Mountain National Forest S of the Aiken Wilderness. Parking is next to bridge over W Br Deerfield River at the start of Forest Road 73 (aka Old Stage Rd, 1,800' el) which is used by snowmobiles (did not see any but a couple must have gone thru). Plenty of snow, 15" in woods, temp around 40F, very good skiing. Some wet spots, easily avoided. Headed NW on the wide dirt road for over 2 miles (novice) then took a left on a lesser trail marked with ribbons. Passed Mud Pond which has a camp on it. Thru an area that must have been logged not too long ago; berry bushes & small trees. Picked up Reservoir Brook, left trail & skied near brook to SW end of Stamford Pond (2,400' el). N summit of Houghton Mt. rose to the W. Crossed Reservoir Brook on a beaver dam (pic) with a small breach in it. Bushwhacked NE never too far from the brook. Passed more beaver ponds & an area with much moose activity - saw many tracks, scat. After skirting private land, picked up snowmobile trail a bit W of where we had left it & a nice mostly downhill run back to the car. 9.5 miles, 4.7 hours.

Jan 30, 2006 - AIKEN WILDERNESS, Woodford, Vt. 10" wet powder - nice skiing. Started from Woodford State park, along road thru campground. Pick up blue trail & soon reach a 4-way junction. Blue marked trails L & R - we went straight on short unmarked path to a vly. Followed stream up thru 2 more beaver ponds - some slush. Picked up an old logging road (no markers, no signs - this is wilderness now) & followed it S. At tree with blue paint blazes ( the metal can i s no longer here) we took a right. Went some distance & returned. Saw trees that moose have gnawed on. Intermediate skiing. 3.5 hours. Cloudy, misty & lots of snow up in Woodford at well over 2,000' elevation - sunny & almost no snow a few miles away in Bennington - Prospect Mtn's website gives a good indication of snow in this area. Drove back to Merck & walked to cabin - nice colors as sun set over the shoulder of Mt. Antone. Note: gas is 20 cents/gal. cheaper in Vermont.

Dec 28, 2003 - WOODFORD STATE PARK ski, on Rt.9 in Woodford, Vt - signpost is at gate but sign has been removed for winter - parking across road a bit further E on Rt.9. Few inches of powder on few inches of wet hardpack base made for good skiing - a bit sticky in the afternoon (don't forget the Maxiglide). A snowshoe race was just finishing up as we set out. Skied campground road (novice) around E of Adams Reservoir. At top of hill, near leantos, picked up trail marked with blue paint blazes (intermediate - some short steep hills, narrow). Trail enters Aiken Wilderness for a short time. We take a pleasant lunch-stop at the edge of a beaver meadow. Sunshine, temp in mid-40s, nary a breeze - nice! Skied around meadow - ice seemed substantial enough - explored a large beaver dam at the outlet. R at trail junction to loop at end of campground road & out over the unplowed road. Saw quite a few snowshoers but no other skiers. Leisurely 4 hours. Incidentally, northern half of Vermont received 6-24" of new powder. Karhu Pyxis skis .

Mar 9, 2003 - AIKEN WILDERNESS xc ski, Woodford, VT. Prime goal was to get out & build a snow shelter - unfortunately it collapsed while Nehasane was in it! Learned a lot. Some bushwhacking & some unmarked but easy to follow trails. Saw signs of beaver & moose. Snow depth about 4'. Skiing was decent for the most part, icy in spots - better off trail with breakable crust with inch of powder - some nice thru the trees turns & runs - pleasant skiing (sometimes skating) across Adams Reservoir in Woodford SP. Karhu Dorado skis, Garmont Excursion plastic boots (mainly for the warmth).

Jan 1, 2003 - AIKEN WILDERNESS xc ski, Woodford, Vt. A bit too much on the fast, hard & icy side at first but things softened up nicely as the day wore on - good base for more powder expected the next couple of days. Have heard that you may get towed if you park near the Woodford SP gate - go E on Rt.9 & take 1st L to parking area (very icy today). Skied road thru campground to its end & then pick up blue trail. Soon, halfway down a hill, reach a 4-way jctn - R goes around Adams Reservoir, L loops back to campground near playground (see Dec 2 trip) - we go straight for about 10 min. then at metal posts take a sharp L into the wilderness area. See moose tracks & tree scrapings along the way. Follow a clear old road (unmarked) & in about a mile reach a jctn (metal can on blue blazed tree - this is the closest thing to a trail marker you will find). To this point, previous skiers had tracked the trail. We take the untracked L fork & head downhill with a tricky stream crossing then bushwhack R or SW to a frozen beaver pond for lunch near a beaver hut. Cross on beaverdam & work our way down to a large vley. Skied across & followed the outlet (W Br of Deerfield River) to another beaver pond then returned climbing ridge to the W & bushwhacking thru the trees (easier than it sounds but make sure you check your compass from time to time & go generally N). We come out just W of the can in the tree then return the way we came. Some nice downhills if good powder snow but today I played things conservatively due to the fast conditions & occasionally switchbacked thru the woods (I don't need no stinking trails!) Raining the last half hour. This map shows unmarked trails in blue. Karhu Vela skis with NNN-BC bindings did fine but this may have been a good day for the Rebounds or even Outtabounds.

Dec 2, 2002 - WOODFORD STATE PARK, Woodford, VT xc skiing. A good foot of snow - excellent conditions. A little over 50 miles from beautiful suburban Colonie or about the length of a Chili Peppers' CD. Again, practically no snow in Bennington but go 10 miles E & it looks like mid-winter. Parked at the gate on RT.9 & skied the campground roads which were mostly tracked by weekend skiers - views of frozen Adams Reservoir. At end of road take blue-blazed trail around S end of reservoir & soon turn S on another blue-blazed trail. Beaver flows not quite frozen hard over yet. Trail slowly winds E then N along the border with the Aiken Wilderness - intermediate backcountry skiing on narrow trail; difficulty moderates as you come back to the campground near the playground. Take peaceful siesta in one of the leantos. Link some telemark turns on a nice downhill - bad knee will keep me from doing a lot of these. On the way home stop at Man of Kent S of Hoosick for a bite & a good British Brew. Fischer Outtabounds with Chili bindings 

Nov 25, 2002 - Woodford, VT xc skiing. Trace of snow in Bennington but drive E & uphill & things look like mid-winter. Adventure started early as N-mobile got stuck in unplowed heavy, icy snow at entrance to Woodford State Park (gate closed) - luckily had sand & shovel which got me out. Drove about a mile further E on RT.9 & parked at unplowed dirt road marked William C. Aiken Widerness - some 4WDs had driven on this road but snowmobiles are prohibited until Dec 15. Skied about 1.5 mi. on about 6" heavy wet snow with light icy crust. At end of road a trail leads S staying close to Yaw Brook - no icy crust in woods. After a short distance trail began climbing but had open wet spots so I decided to turn back. Saw some huge moose tracks. Good base & any more snow would be a bonus - need some cold temps to get rid of the wet spots. For conditions check nearby Prospect Mt. Karhu Outtabounds skis not severely tested.

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