Wildcat Ridge and Wildcat Mountain via Wildcat Ridge Trail

This day hike involved going up and along the Wildcat Ridge Trail to Wildcat Mountain, crossing the other Wildcats along the way.

Parking area, Glen Ellis Falls - 1,953' Wildcat "E" summit - 1.75 miles - 4,046' Wildcat Mountain - 3.5 miles - 4,422' Wildcat "E" summit - 5.25 miles - 4,046' Parking area, Glen Ellis Falls - 7.0 miles - 1,953' Total distance round-trip - 7.0 miles Total elevation change - 2,093' Trail map - 700 x 363 - 76K Trail map - 1219 x 632 - 215K

The starting point for this hike was the parking lot at Glen Ellis Falls.

I was up very early at 4:30 for this one and arrived at the parking lot a little before 7:00. The Wildcat Ridge Trail starts on the other side of the road. I followed the trail that leads to Glen Ellis Falls through the underpass and then took the path to the left and crossed the river.

After about a quarter of a mile of relatively flat hiking the trail then became alomost vertical for the next half mile or so. This was by far the steepest trail I have ever been on in the White Mountains and I would not recommend it to anyone with a fear of heights.

600 x 402   1024 x 685 Gulf Peak, Pinkham Notch 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Clouds on Gulf Peak 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Notch view from Wildcat Trail 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Mount Washington summit from Wildcat Trail

Once the trail actually reaches the western end of Wildcat Ridge is settles down a bit. All I could think about on the way up though was how much I was going to hate going back down this thing. The weather continued to worsen the higher I climbed and by the time I reached the Wildcat "E" summit and the top of the Wildcat ski area just beyond it I was in the clouds.

600 x 402   1024 x 685 Large toad 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Worsening weather 600 x 402   1024 x 685 In the clouds, Wildcat ski area 600 x 402   1024 x 685 In the clouds, Wildcat ski area

From the top of ski area to the lookout tower on top of Wildcat "D" takes almost no time at all. The lookout tower is in pretty bad shape though and there are numerous large gaps in the flooring of the platform. There was some fresh lumber laying about so hopefully repairs are under way.

600 x 402   1024 x 685 View from Wildcat "D"

From Wildcat "D" to the main summit of Wildcat Mountain (Wildcat "A") the trail goes through a couple of major ups and downs as it passes over the "C" and "B" summits. None of these is anything like the initial ascent to Wildcat Ridge however and are very gentle in comparison. The sun actually came out for a while when I was on Wildcat "C" and I was hoping the weather was going to improve. That was not to be the care, however, and after a very brief visit the sun was gone. And then the rain started. It was raining pretty heavily by the time I got to Wildcat "B" and I thought briefy about giving it up. But I was too close to Wildcat "A" at that point and I knew I would not want to have to do this again so I pushed on.

600 x 402   1024 x 685 A little sun lights up the forest floor 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Flowers 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Nice section of trail along the ridge 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Tiny flowers 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Wildcat "A" summit

The rain was pretty heavy on top of Wildcat "A" when I first got there and I tried to take shelter under some trees just to get out of the main torrent. After a few minutes it let up somewhat and I was able to look around on the summit. There was really nothing there though except for a sign directing people to a lookout. I went to the lookout and saw nothing but clouds.

I had myself a little bite to eat before turning westward and starting back along the ridge. The rain did finally stop and the skies did finally start to clear on the way back. By the time I got back to that final descent to Ellis River it was a beautiful day.

600 x 402   1024 x 685 Flowers 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Wildcat "E" from Wildcat "D" 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Wildcat "E" summit 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Mossy rocks 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Wildcat "E" from the west side 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Strange shelf fungus 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Ellis River

After crossing the river I decided to go and visit Glen Ellis Falls since I had never seen them before.

600 x 402   1024 x 685 Small waterfall along Ellis River 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Ellis River at the top of Glen Ellis Falls 402 x 600   685 x 1024 Ellis River at the top of Glen Ellis Falls 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Glen Ellis Falls from the top 402 x 600   685 x 1024 Glen Ellis Falls 600 x 402   1024 x 685 Glen Ellis Falls

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Copyright © Bob Ribokas, 1994-2007, all rights reserved. This publication and its text and photos may not be copied for commercial use without the express written permission of Bob Ribokas.