Trail Report: Basin Cascaeds Tr/ Cascade Brook Tr./ Lonesome Lake

We started our hike at The Basin in Franconia Notch. There is enough parking and you don't have to pay to park. There is also parking on the other side and you cross under the road to get to the trail. At the same time you can also check out the Basin which is so beautiful in the summer. We started to head up the Basin Cascades Trail which is 1.1 miles long. There are some beautiful Falls to see, the Kinsman Falls and the Rocky Glen Falls.

Kinsman Falls

Rocky Glen Falls

After we past the falls we can across where the bridge is out. Last year we had a lot of rain in the New England that washed out roads and bridges. This bridge is still out and there is a sign that leads you to some rocks to cross the brook. You then are hiking up the Cascades Brook Trail for another .5 miles until you see a sign that tells you that you have .8 miles until you reach Lonesome Lake. the trail is very muddy and water sometimes runs in the trail when you get closer to the lake. We had on our H2O Bass shoes we got for some summer hiking. The water just runs through them and they dry quickly.

The sign to lets you know you have .8 miles to go

our awesome H20 Bass shoes

When we reached the lake, there were many hikers and visitors around. Many people come up to swim in the lake which seemed very cold to me, but you do get used to the temp after awhile. We took a break and ate at the Lonesome Lake Hut. It seemed they added a new addition on with some rooms. The trees were cut which gave a great view of the mountains.

The view of the mountains from the Lake

The newest addition with the view

The rooms in the newest addition

After we ate at the Lonesome Lake Hut we hiked around the lake which was fun. The lake is huge and you mostly walk on wood boards they put together to make a path. Its about .9 all the way around the pond and my stepson loved seeing the fish swimming in the lake and the salamanders.

Walking the planks...lol

The view on the other side of the lake

 The hike all together was great. It was 5.6 miles all together. It wasn't a hard hike. Mostly moderate and a mostly wet trail. Great for children! Happy Hiking:)

Kinsman Cascades

Speechless Wednesday : 
View From Kinsman Cascades and Falls

Franconia Notch

Taken: Aug 2011

Lonesome lake

In Franconia Notch there is not just mountains that you can hike up to see views, but there are some lovely lakes to see. One is right off the highway near Exit 34C called Echo Lake. Any visitors love coming to the lake for swimming on the beach, boating and fishing. The other lake is Profile Lake, which many can go down a path to see where the old man on the mountain views. There is also boating and fishing at that lake.
But I want to talk about Lonesome Lake. One of the trails to reach lake starts near the Basin. There are places to park for the road and a sign that says Basin. We took the trail called Basin Cascades Trail which is 1.1 miles. As we headed up the trail we saw the Kinsman Cascades and the Kinsman Waterfall. Here is a pic of the Cascades...

Some visitors come here to swim or just hang out on these rocks during the hot summer months. The pic is of me and Sam (he was seven at the time). This is a great trail to bring kids on, they love the rocks and the waterfall. After we pasted the waterfall we connected onto another trail. The trail we connected into was the Cascade Brook Trail and it's about 1.3 miles to the lake. This trail got a little steeper but it was fun to hike up it. Here is a pic of me hiking up one of the staircases on the trail.

The is the picture on me on the trail. It was a lovely trail through the forest of Franconia Notch until we reached Lonesome Lake. It was a beautiful day when we hiked and the weather was warm. Up here there is also a hut called the Lonesome Lake AMC Hut. We had lunch and got to see this beautiful view...

I loved looking at the lake with the mountains behind it. It was so beautiful. I wish I had a view like this outside my window every morning! There were also dogs on the trail when we were hiking which was fun. The lake would be a great place for them to swim. After we hiked down the same way we came up. It was a great day!:)