Spring will come! On Saturday, May 31, the Environmental Sustainability Committee will lead a day hike up Blueberry Mountain, near Glencliff, on the west side of Mt. Moosilauke. Phil Kern will be our guide.

This is an easy trail, climbing gradually through a fine hardwood forest, then through fir and spruce, and finally out of the woods onto very open rocky ledges with scattered red pines. The piney ledges begin just a mile up the trail, and another 0.7 miles through the pines will take you to the summit. The total elevation gain is only 1000 feet.

The dry, rocky ledges host surprising thickets of purple Rhodora, usually in late May, followed by exceptional shows of peach-colored Mountain Azalea, usually in early June. Lady’s Slippers are another abundant surprise here there, and several species of shadbush, or serviceberry, take turns blooming through spring and early summer. If we have luck with the idiosyncrasies of the seasons, we might catch one of these bloomings.

We will meet to carpool from the Meeting House at 9:00 AM, and expect to return there by 2:00 or 3:00 PM. For those who want to go directly to the Blueberry Mountain trailhead drive to the village of Glencliff on Route 25 from Haverhill, turn left (northeast) up the hill toward the N. H. Home for the Elderly (Sanatorium Road), then turn left, (north) onto the unpaved North and South Road. Pass the Appalachian Trail and continue until you reach the trailhead parking lot on the left about a mile up the road from Glencliff. If you approach Glencliff from Warren on Route 25 from the south, turn right in Glencliff. There is a fee for parking at the trailhead so bring small bills.

Dress for walking and the weather. Bring a lunch and drink. Expect black flies, which seem to love Blueberry Mountain all summer long.

Please RSVP to the Meeting House by May 25th.