I fell in love with Pittsburg, New Hampshire with its rugged terrain, beautiful lakes, incredible fly fishing, and the elusive (to us) moose. If you are heading to Pittsburg prepare yourself for an unplugged weekend. Honestly, if you find yourself on route 3 in New Hampshire you were probably already planning for that. No one randomly finds themselves here and that’s only one of the reasons that we absolutely loved it! It’s gorgeous, offers an otherworldly solitude and the people are incredibly friendly. What’s not to love?
If you’ve heard of Pittsburg, NH before it’s probably because of Moose Alley. This is the section of route 3 north of First Connecticut Lake. You will absolutely know when you arrive because you will see signs like the one below. By most accounts, the best time to see moose along this stretch is at dawn and dusk. However, sunrise is when moose are most active. Well let me tell you, we were out every single dawn and dusk for three days and didn’t see a single moose.
This was my second trip to Moose Alley. The first was a day trip in October 2014, which just happened to be that October (and day) when it randomly snowed. It made the landscape stunning but it also made the moose bed down. Fortunately, I did see 1 moose on that trip and it was a huge bull moose so the trip was completely worth the almost 5-hour drive. That was my first and last moose sighting. I will say that I am fairly positive I saw the moose closer to the White Mountains then to Moose Alley itself. The photo may be blurry but I swear there is a moose right in the middle!
So what gives? The conditions seemed to be perfect but the truth is that moose are solitary animals and you can’t predict where or when they will be out. Even in a place that is famed for moose sightings. I WILL return and see a moose!! It’s really just out of principle now.
I decided to load up the boys and head to Pittsburg for the long Labor Day weekend. I stayed in Deer Mountain Campground which sits a mere 5 miles from the Canadian border of Quebec and right on the Connecticut River. I chose site 16 and I am so glad that I did! It’s a fantastic campsite right by the river but there are 3 sites total by the river. Honestly, I think 16 was the best! It has the deepest water of all of the river sites as well. If you have your furry children with you this is the perfect site because it’s right next to a wooded area with no other sites. This means tons of “potty” area without having to worry about other campers. Thor is a little shy about his potty times.
Deer Mountain Campground, Site 16
Unfortunately, for myself and my fellow ladies, there are only pit toilets at this campground. I know, not my favorite either and honestly I only realized that was the case the day before we left. But there is a pit toilet fairly close to site 16. It’s close enough that you don’t have to walk very far but far enough away that you don’t smell it. Perfect. For a pit toilet, it’s not that bad. It is equipped with toilet paper and hand sanitizer so no need to bring your own tp. However, by the end of the weekend I was gagging anytime I had to use the bathroom. Haha, There are no showers but they do have shower and flush toilets at several of the other area campgrounds.
FYI – a lot of the small pines in the wooded area have sharp edges where limbs have been broken or cut. I cut myself on the arm one of the hundreds of times the boys wrapped their leads around the trees. On the plus side, there are tons of trees to hang your hammock from.
Also, if you have any 4-Legg’d children be aware that this campground is home to some pretty ballsy squirrels that like to taunt dogs. Thor came very close to having himself a squirrel snack a few times.
If you can catch the sunrise at one of the lakes we caught the sunrise at First Connecticut Lake and it was gorgeous!
First Connecticut Lake
Pittsburg, New Hampshire is also renowned as a fishermen’s paradise. The Mr. got to fish in the trophy section of the Connecticut River at the Bridge Pool on Saturday morning. It was a gorgeous spot to just sit with the boys and take it all in while the Mr. enjoyed these trophy waters.
Connecticut River at Bridge Pool
About an eighth of a mile from campsite 16 was a very cute little trail to Moose Falls. It was great to get the boys out to stretch their legs and while the falls were hardly falling at all, the area surrounding them was beautiful. I basically had the area to myself and it was a nice place to just relax with the boys for a bit.
Moose Falls Trail
I also had a chance to explore Fourth Connecticut Lake and I had the entire lake to myself. This lake is closest to the Canadian border and it seems like people just pull into the parking area for a few minutes and leave. I let Thor have a little fun and swim. He actually learned to swim this weekend and is now completely obsessed with water.
Fourth Connecticut Lake
Tip: Bring your passport! I forgot mine, so no crossing the Canadian border for me. No worries if you forget yours too, you can drive right to the border and turn around. There is ample room to do so and we saw a ton of people doing it with us. This is a very tiny border crossing so there is really no issue.
Magalloway Road
If you visit Pittsburg, NH you definitely need to take a logging road to see some of the rugged beauty that this area has to offer and most likely a moose. The general rule of thumb is that if you see a logging truck you need to get the hell out of the way. Logging trucks generally win games of chicken every time! I have never seen a logging truck while on these kinds of roads but please use caution and common sense if you do.
Having the boys with us I didn’t really get a chance to check out the town of Pittsburg itself. It’s a small town with nearly 900 residents. The Burg and the Buck Rub Pub seemed to be the busiest places to eat. They were having a free concert in the town park on Saturday night. If you are looking for a ton of stuff to do then this is not the place for you. Now, if you are looking to reconnect with nature and unplug then you need to visit Pittsburg.
I decided to try to find moose Magalloway Road at dawn because it has so many areas that just look like moose should be standing in them. Scientific, I know. This led to me trying to find the fire tower and hiking part of Coot Trail. This trail is rated moderate at 2.1 miles. Unfortunately, I didn’t know that at the time and hadn’t planned on hiking that morning. The MR was not wearing the right kind of shoes for the rocky and steep trail so we ended up turning back before we made it to the fire tower. The boys loved it though! I also saw a really nice buck before leaving.
Magalloway Road
The Mr’s next fishing adventure found us right below the dam on First Connecticut Lake in the trophy section. He caught 5 rainbow trout. He says, this water can be really challenging to fish, as it is fast moving. The trophy section has big trout that are used to being fished. I was having the most success floating small size 18-22 emergers through the drift. Hard work is rewarded with beautiful trout and hours of fun.
I decided to hang out at our campsite for an afternoon and much to our surprise I had the entire campground to myself from about 11:30 – 2 pm. I swam with the boys in the Connecticut River, which was so much fun! I hadn’t been swimming in a river since my early teens.
Connecticut River at the campsite
We napped in our hammocks and relaxed. Hammocks are always a good idea. This campsite was one of my all-time favorites!
Our camp neighbor told us that he and his son had caught some nice brook trout in the part of the Connecticut River our campsites sat on. He was using a spin cast and the Mr. is really into fly fishing. He tried several times but had no luck in the waters at the campsite.
I also hiked the Falls In The River Trail from the trailhead at the 2ndConnecticut Lake. This trail is rated moderate at 3.5 miles out and back and it follows the Connecticut River.
It was a really pretty hike and the trail was well maintained. I almost had the trail entirely to myself, I started to hike around 3:30 pm. There were parts of the trail that reminded me of Mirkwood from Lord Of The Rings (yes, nerds here). Eerily beautiful.
The Falls In The River Trail
The boys loved this hike and I let them cool off in the river on the way in and out. Poor little Loki was completely wrecked after this hike but he loved it. This trail also connects to the Moose Alley trail 2 miles in. That’s on my list for my next visit to Moose Alley.
The boys cooling off in the Connecticut River
Being that it was our last night in Moose Alley we had to have S’mores. And, of course, I have to pull out another Sandlot quote.
“Ham Porter: These are s’more stuff. Okay, pay attention!
First, you take the graham. You stick the chocolate on the graham.
Then you roast the mallow.
When the mallow’s flaming, you stick it on the chocolate.
Then you cover it with the other then. Then, you stuff.”
On my last morning, I decided to grab breakfast at Treats and Treasures First Lake Convenient Store. The cashier the night before had told us that the breakfast sandwiches here had been voted the best in the North Country.
It opens at 7 am but gets crazy busy by 7:30 am. They try their best to keep the wait to a minimum for their yummy breakfast. The bagel sandwich and wrap got two very enthusiastic thumbs up from us! They also serve lunch and dinner here and the burgers are supposed to be great. You can also find locally made jewelry and hand-tied flies here. Oh, and I got some roaming signal here with Sprint. Just enough to send an I’m ok text! Haha
I took my breakfast to First Connecticut Lake to enjoy the view one last time before leaving.
First Connecticut Lake
On my drive home, I randomly stumbled upon Beaver Brook Falls, which is a great stop to stretch your legs and get the dogs out of the car. Not to mention, it’s beautiful.
It’s definitely worth a stop if you are passing by and the boys loved it!
- There are only a few gas stations in the area so fill up when you see one!
- There are small convenience stores but no big grocery stores in the immediate area. Make sure you bring food with you if you are camping. Those convenience stores are handy when you realize you forgot hotdog buns!
- New Hampshire campgrounds are more lax then campgrounds in Massachusetts. They didn’t need to see the boy’s rabies vaccines and we could drink here. Yay!
- Bringing firewood is not necessary or appreciated. You can buy bundles with newspapers attached for fire starter for $6 at the station where you check in. We always buy the wood right away so we don’t have to run back out the first night. The station closes at 6 pm.
- There is very little light pollution in Pittsburg. So don’t forget to look up! The night sky is amazing here. We could even see star clusters on a really clear night.
- Kayaking is huge here with the Connecticut Lakes in such close proximity, as well as, Lake Francis. If you have a kayak bring it with you! You can also rent kayaks and canoes from several places in the area.
Seeing moose is not a guarantee. While most people get to see those monstrous beauties we started to wonder if they even exist. Are they like unicorns, mermaids and Sasquatch? No, but even in this part of NH that is famous for moose sightings, it is still like finding a needle in a haystack. They do offer moose seeing tours in the summer to stack the odds in your favor. We prefer to try to find them ourselves on logging roads. However, on this trip, we came back seeing no moose at all.
Part of the Connecticut River from The Falls In The River Trail
Ah well, that’s just another reason to come back to Pittsburg, NH.
I WILL see a moose here!
