Cohos Trail–NH

September in New Hampshire Mountains

Something special for hikers in New Hampshire. The little known Cohos Trail blazes north from New Hampshire’s White mountains to the Canadian border. This 162-mile Appalachian-like trail was the dream of Kim Nilsen who conceived the idea 36 years ago.

This trail is remote and wild and is “the largest trail system to be built in the northeast in generations.” As the third major trail in New England (complementing the Appalachian Trail and Vermont’s Long Trail), the Cohos offers true solitude to the hiker. Sue Kenn is the first thru-hiker of the Cohos Trail, and she has confirmed how wild and remote the trail is. It offered, Kenn says, “the chance to do something new, but also to be in a quiet place, and really just be by myself.”

It’s remote because most New Hampshire hikers continue to Maine after hiking through the Presidential Range. They don’t swing due north towards Canada. “Everybody knows the Presidential Range,” Nilsen says, “but there’s a whole ‘nother 100 miles north of that filled with dramatic peaks and huge lakes and waterfalls galore, and we made it possible for people to trek out there, to steep themselves in the magic of that part of the world for a little while.”

I hiked this trail three years ago. If you are looking for a new trail that promises pristine beauty, and want to be with only a few friends and not run in to scout packs and groups of hikers, I can’t think of a better place to plan a hike. When I’m in the mountains, I often wonder what it must have been like when Native Americans roamed the lands. What did they see? I believe the Cohos Trail in northern New Hampshire gets you very close to the untouched beauty of Indian times.

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