Denmark Mountain Hikers

February 26, 2026

There’s a backlog of information in this post. The editor of these posts found himself stranded by the recent weather when his flight home was cancelled forcing him to endure an unplanned for delay in San Diego while our hikers continued to enjoy the fine winter in Maine. This post contains: three things

1. Hike Report for the Brownfield Bog from Feb 20.

2. This week’s hike information for Mt Roberts Feb 27, 2026

3. An invitation to Rena’s Birthday Celebration

Sanborn WMA Trip Report Friday, February 20, 2026

Submitted by Dale Nelson

Dale and Kitty Nelson, Susan Gassett, Rick Dennen, Greg Dean, Pat Marichetti, Kathy Hutchausun and Diane Sinclair met at the church and traveled to the trailhead where they were met by Robin Marciello, Toni Carros, Jean Murch, Ron Paquette, Susan Sedita, Tom Dugas and Laura Sullivan.

In all, 15 hikers headed down the trail to the Major Greg Sanborn Wildlife Management Area, formerly known as the Brownfield Bog. It was renamed in honor and memory of Sanborn after his untimely death. He was a local lad who rose in the ranks of the Maine Warden Service to second in command of the Agency.  The area where we hiked is a 5,700-acre wildlife management area fed by the old course of the Saco River and the area is considered one of the top birding spots of interior New England, especially during the spring warbler migration and early breeding season. The State of Maine has designated this as a Wildlife Management Area (WMA) and the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife (DIF&W) specifically manages the WMA for waterfowl. The department maintains one hundred nesting boxes here to encourage nesting. About 1/3 mile from the parking area is an old wooden building, said to once have been used to store dynamite when the Saco River was rerouted in 1817-1820. In the summer the WMA is a popular canoe and kayaking destination along the Saco and its smaller tributaries. The WMA is consists of mostly shallow wetlands with emergent marshes, bogs and shrub wetlands bordered by stands of mixed hardwoods. Bird watchers comment that marsh bird diversity is exceptional, waterfowl numbers are excellent, and hawks, upland game birds, warblers, and forest birds are also in residence. 

We left the trailhead at 9:00 AM with Toni leading and Diane as sweep. We took our obligatory group photo at the gate and sign at the main entrance. The trail was well packed by snowmobiles so traction and snowshoes were not needed although some of us wore such traction devices nevertheless. The skies were clouding up as snow was expected later in the evening. Despite the aforementioned reputation of the area, we did not spot  much in the way of wildlife other than old beaver activity and a deer kill site.

We stayed mostly together with Susan, Rick and Diane in the rear. Susan and Rick turned back just before the shack and Diane rejoined the group. Crossing the wooden bridge at the 1-mile mark, with the only open water around, you could get quite a sulfurous whiff, evidence of the fermenting process of the bog. We ambled up the road/trail stopping at the 2-mile mark. 

Part of the group turned back there after a short snack break while the others pressed ahead another .3 miles looking for what  looked like an endmarker or kiosk on my phone’s trail app.   We found ourselves at the boat landing at approximately  10:30AM. We decided that was far enough. After a short rest, taking in the view and identifying the surrounding mountains, we headed back with the last hiker arriving at11:30AM. Total hiking distance. Group one 3.9 miles. Group two 4.5 miles. Weather at start about 20F and at finish about 33F.

We would be remiss not to mention that Susan brought along a poem to read
that, as she and Rick had turned back,  Diane read in Susan’s absence. It
was Robert Frost’s classic “Stopping by the woods on a snowy evening”

You may read the poem HERE

Denmark Mountain Hikers. Friday Feb 27^th Destination

Mt. Roberts (2582’) Moultonborough, NH  –  February 27, 2026

5.4 miles RT, 1400’ elevation gain.  RT hiking time 5 hours, RT driving 2.5 hours.

Meet at the Denmark church at 8:30 AM, or the Mt. Roberts hiker parking lot around 9:45 AM.

Directions to hiker parking lot:

If you are coming south on Route 25 toward Moultonborough, turn left onto Route 109, bear left onto Route 171, then turn left onto Ossipee Park Road.  After a stone gatehouse on the left, the parking lot is on the right.  The Mt. Roberts trailhead is a 10-minute road walk from this point, but we will gather in the parking lot.

NOTE: This is a moderate-to-strenuous winter hike, so please consider carefully whether you are prepared for this activity.  We will be hiking at a slower pace.  Trail conditions are uncertain, so we recommend bringing both snowshoes and micro-spikes.

Any questions, contact Greg Moulton at gtmoulton@gmail.com or cell 339-203-1058.

Rena’s Birthday:

Most of you have already met Jacob’s wife Rena when they have hosted this group at their home on Peabody Pond over the last few years. She wants to invite all of you to a party we are hosting to celebrate her recent 70th birthday. She has rented the Grange Hall in Naples to host the party this coming Sunday afternoon.

 There are two floors to the grange. Snacks, birthday cake and non-alcoholic drinks will be on the first floor while the second floor will have a five piece band and a traditional dance caller. We’re hoping that you can come share this afternoon with us. Bring your friends and family and enjoy yourselves. It’s not often that we have such a fine excuse to celebrate being alive.