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| Moxie Bald's North Peak |
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Today I made my way up to the Moxie Pond area to return to Moxie Bald Mountain, this time starting at the Troutdale Road, instead of the AT Road. The bridge across Austin Stream on the Troutdale Road is still closed, and looks like it will be for some time, but the trailhead is easily approached from the south via the Stream Road from Moscow.
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Signage at the trailhead
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I chose to do this hike today because we haven't had much rain in a while, and the crossing of Baker Stream just after the trailhead is rather notorious for being a difficult one. It turned out this was a good choice, as the wide crossing of the stream was rock-hoppable without much issue today.
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The crossing of Baker Stream
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The first few miles on the AT were quite easy, and it wasn't too long before I reached the Bald Mountain Brook Lean-To.
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Bald Mountain Brook Lean-To
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A waterfall near the lean-to
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After the lean-to, the trail crosses AT Road, and soon starts to climb steeper. I first visited the main summit, where the view south was blocked by a fog bank, but there were some views north and west.
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The summit with footings from the former fire tower
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View across the undercast to the west from the summit
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I then continued on to my favorite part of the mountain, North Peak. The exposed alpine ridge and windswept summit are spectacular and rare for a mountain with this elevation.
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The northern ridge of Moxie Bald
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As expected, it was extremely windy on the ridge, but there were excellent views all around, including some undercast views to the south.
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At North Peak
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Looking back towards the main peak
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The view west from North Peak
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The view north from North Peak
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After spending a while on North Peak, I descended via the AT and the Summit Bypass Trail.
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Remains from the fire watchman's camp at the junction of the AT and the Summit Bypass Trail
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Moxie Bald never fails to impress, and I only saw 2 other people during the entire 12+ mile hike.
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