A summit as high as a goose’s eye.
I suppose “a peak as high as a goose’s beak” works, too, or “a land mass as high as a goose’s” – actually, you know what, never mind. This mountain in Newry, Maine, could have been called anything, but Goose Eye is the name that stuck (mostly anyway. Sometimes people also call it “Goose High”).
The mountain is the second-highest peak of the White Mountains’ Mahoosuc Range (Old Speck claims the title of tallest). And Goose Eye Mountain is a wonder.
There are a few trail options to summit Goose Eye, including the Goose Eye Trail and Carlo Col Trail (both of which start from the same parking lot and can be combined into a loop that includes Mount Carlo and a section of the Appalachian Trail).
We hiked to Goose Eye via the Wright Trail, mainly because the trailhead was a short drive from Sunday River, where my hiking partner Holly and I convened for our adventures.
The Wright Trail is an 8.8-mile trail featuring river crossings, a sweet swimming hole or two, entertaining scrambles, and expansive above-treeline views. Needless to say, the Wright Trail is now a favorite.
I don’t think Goose Eye gets the fanfare it deserves. Maybe that’s part of what makes it wonderful. Even on a stunner of a late-fall day, with temps in the 70s and the sun shining bright, we saw only four other people in the 5+ hours we were on the trail (we loitered a good deal along the creek and at the summit). One of those hikers was Julia, who we met and chatted up on the way to the summit and who is now a new friend and adventure partner. At the top, the three of us sat in the warm sun gawking at the crowd of summits before us, pleased as punch about new sights and new friends.
Goose Eye Mountain
Newry, Maine
There are a few different trails to the summit of Goose Eye. This story is about the Wright Trail: 8.8 miles out and back and an elevation gain of 2,762.
FMI: www.alltrails.com/trail/us/maine/wright-trail
