Trails / New Hampshire / Northern White Mountains

Appalachian Trail: Mahoosucs from Gorham to Gentian Pond and Carlo Col

White Mountain National Forest, Mahoosuc Range (Gorham and Shelburne)

North of Gorham, the Appalachian Trail leaves the Androscoggin River and climbs into the Mahoosuc Range, the last mountains before Maine. N2Backpacking’s report calls the stretch from Gorham to Stratton, Maine, “arguably one of the toughest sections on the A.T.” This page covers the New Hampshire end of the range: Mt. Hayes, Cascade Mountain, a string of small ponds, Gentian Pond, and Mt. Success, with Carlo Col just over the Maine line.

The Maine side, including Mahoosuc Notch, is on the Grafton Notch to Mahoosuc Notch page.

The hike

N2Backpacking describes a two-day route that starts on the North Road in Shelburne and climbs the Austin Brook Trail 3.3 miles and about 1,700 feet to Gentian Pond, at 2,165 feet. SectionHiker, who used the same trail to walk out in 2009, called it “just a two mile walk up to the shelter from a nearby road” and a good one-night section for a beginner. From the pond, the route follows the A.T. back toward Gorham, past Dream Lake, which N2Backpacking found larger and more scenic than the other ponds, then Page Pond and Moss Pond. Its writers saw a bull and cow moose just before Page Pond.

The A.T. continues to the Trident Col tentsite, over Cascade Mountain and Mt. Hayes, and down the Centennial Trail to Hogan Road and U.S. 2 outside Gorham, for 15.4 miles in all. On a November 2009 trip in the other direction, SectionHiker climbed nearly 2,000 feet in about three miles on the Centennial Trail, lost the blazes for an hour on Mt. Hayes, and summed up the range: “lots of precipitous slides and cliffs, high rainfall, marshlands, wet boardwalks.” He took the Peabody Brook Trail out, a steep 3.1-mile descent he called “one of the prettiest trails I’ve ever hiked in the White Mountains.”

To reach Carlo Col, continue north from Gentian Pond over Mt. Success. SectionHiker, walking south in June 2009, covered the roughly five miles on the third day of his trip: a rocky scramble up a cliff face, mud past his ankles, and a north face that “descends just under 1,000 feet in a mile” on wet slab. Backpacking Routes says the trail crosses the state line shortly after climbing out of Carlo Col, and that Carlo Col Shelter is 0.3 mile down a side trail. Beyond it, the A.T. heads toward Goose Eye and Full Goose in Maine; the Grafton Loop Trail is farther north.

Backpacking Routes sums up the terrain on this end: “the ups and downs are still relentless, often on steep rock ledges.”

Tips

Budget slow miles. Wet bog bridges, ledges, and mud slow the pace.
Watch for turns on Mt. Hayes. The A.T. leaves the Mahoosuc Trail for the Centennial Trail there.
Fill up at the ponds. Backpacking Routes says water is at the campsites, with few other places to refill.
Pack for wet weather. Both of SectionHiker’s 2009 trips met rain.
Leash dogs. Trail Finder says pets are permitted, and AMC allows them on platforms but not in shelters.

Camping

AMC manages the campsites, which are first come, first served and can’t be reserved. Gentian Pond has a shelter, three small platforms, and one group platform, with the pond for water. Carlo Col has a shelter, three small and two group platforms, and a stream. Trident Col is a tentsite with four shared pads and an intermittent stream. None of the three charges a fee; AMC’s “Mahoosuc Rover” maintains the composting toilets. Backpacking Routes lists bear boxes at all three. It also says that on the A.T. through New Hampshire, camping is allowed except within a quarter mile of shelters and campsites, and that fires are allowed only at campsites. AMC asks groups of six or more to use its group notification system.

Inside Intel: SectionHiker wrote that Gentian Pond Shelter is “situated in a really nice spot.” At Carlo Col, he found the shelter “small and crowded” and pitched his tarp on a tent platform instead. N2Backpacking’s writers spent their night at Trident Col.

Trail facts

Distance: 15.4 miles point to point (N2Backpacking); add about 10 miles round trip for Carlo Col
Route type: Point to point; out-and-back extension
Difficulty: Strenuous
Campsites: Gentian Pond (shelter), Trident Col (tentsite), Carlo Col (shelter, just inside Maine)
Water: Ponds and streams at the campsites; Trident Col intermittent
Permits: None (Backpacking Routes)
Fires: Only at campsites (Backpacking Routes)
Trailheads: Austin Brook Trail on North Road, Shelburne; A.T./Centennial Trail parking on Hogan Road, Gorham
Last verified: October 11, 2026

The Lowdown

The wet slab on Mt. Success's north face:

Mt. Success's north face descends just under 1,000 feet in a mile on wet slab, after a rocky scramble up a cliff face. Learn how to choke down and place your poles on pitches like that.

See the pole tips →

Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.