Wildcat Ridge - Wildcat and Wildcat D NH 48 - Pinkham Notch to Carter Notch on the Appalachian Trail
The Wildcats are a rugged section of the Appalachian Trail offering amazing views of Mount Washington and the Presidentials in the White Mountains.
We hiked the Wildcats from Pinkham Notch to Carter Notch on the Appalachian Trail and then followed the Nineteen Mile Brook Trail down from Carter Notch to the trailhead on Route 16. This end to end hike included the summits of Wildcat D (4062') and Wildcat (4422'), both of which are part of the New Hampshire 48 and New England 4000-footers. We followed the Lost Pond Trail, Wildcat Ridge Trail, and Nineteen Mile Brook Trail in this 10 mile hike with 2992' of elevation gain.
We began at the Pinkham Notch Visitor Center, crossing Route 16 and then following the Lost Pond Trail about a mile ot the Wildcat Ridge Trail. The Lost Pond Trail climbs gently to Lost Pond at about a half a mile, then follows the shoreline of the lake for a bit, before descending slightly to the junction with the Wildcat Ridge Trail.
The Wildcat Ridge Trail doesn’t waste any time in ascending. It climbs very steeply for almost 2 miles to the summit of Wildcat D (which is the top of the Wildcat Ski Area) and then descends and ascends over Wildcat C and B, before reaching the summit of Wildcat just before descending very steeply down into Carter Notch.
In Carter Notch we took a quick side trip down to the Carter Notch Hut, then back up to the Notch, and descended on the Nineteen Mile Brook Trail to the trailhead on Route 16.
We did this as an end to end hike. You could do it as a loop if you were willing to roadwalk on Route 16, but it would add several miles to the hike and be an unpleasant roadwalk with all the traffic on the Route 16.
Overall, we hiked 10 miles and gained 2,992 feet of elevation along the way.
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Gear we used on this hike:
Hydration and nutrition for this hike:
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