Taylor Lodge - Mount Mayo section

Me and a friend have been trying to complete a simply day-hike this winter from Taylor Lodge, going southbound to the top of Mount Mayo on the LT, but we have had to turn around twice now due to losing the trail. It seems as if the blazes just stop all of a sudden, and a thorough check of the surrounding area still left us clueless about where the trail continues. For those who have been on this small section; do you know for a fact that the trail is poorly blazed here, or did we just completely miss the next marker, even though we looked for quite some time in every direction.

Trying to find the LT in winter is nearly impossible in many sections. It's blazed just fine for summer travel, but the blazes are the same color as the snow that often plasters itself to the trees, and with a few feet of snow on the ground an obvious trail isn't so obvious anymore. Chances are you missed a marker, but don't feel bad about it. I've had the same experience in several sections of the LT, including nearby in Bolton. Finding the trail in winter isn't easy-- that's why fewer people do it. I say go back and give it a shot a few times. Make sure you remember where the last blaze that you found was, and keep searching for the next one. If no luck, you could always try your orienteering skills.

You got to keep in mind that the trail generaly doesn't make any sudden turns and mostly continues in sort of a straight line. There are exceptions of course and these tend to be fairly obvious, because if the trail turns and you don't you start tripping on the forest debree like tree limbs and branches. It takes some experiance to see the line the trail takes through the woods in the winter but if you pay attention, you can see it.

So, if you loose the blazes, just keep going in that same direction following the path of least resistance and there is a good chance you will see another blaze before too long.

I was a roving caretaker for the GMC one summer long ago and was based out of Taylor lodge, spending weekends there. Really nice area, especially Nebraska notch - its pretty wild in there.

Thanks for the replies.... I'm aware that the trail blazes are more difficult to follow in the winter, and we keep this in mind when we go out on our hikes. However, this particular section was blazed very well, and was easy to follow, and then all of a sudden the blazes seemed to just stop out of no where. Given I haven't been on that many different sections of the LT, I was just wondering if this is common. I'm thinking that we are just going to trail blaze to the summit on our next trip. Thank you for the replies.

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Originally Posted by Slo-go'en

You got to keep in mind that the trail generaly doesn't make any sudden turns and mostly continues in sort of a straight line. There are exceptions of course and these tend to be fairly obvious, because if the trail turns and you don't you start tripping on the forest debree like tree limbs and branches. It takes some experiance to see the line the trail takes through the woods in the winter but if you pay attention, you can see it.

So, if you loose the blazes, just keep going in that same direction following the path of least resistance and there is a good chance you will see another blaze before too long.

I was a roving caretaker for the GMC one summer long ago and was based out of Taylor lodge, spending weekends there. Really nice area, especially Nebraska notch - its pretty wild in there.

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Hey Slo, what year? I did the same in 1975, based out of Taylor for a month or so, then got the big job as Ranger/Naturalist (now called summit caretakers) on the summit of Mansfield for the rest of the summer.

Anyhow, there are some twists & turns south of Taylor until you're past the beaver ponds, and like Slo said, you can usually tell right away when you're off the trail. Keep trying. If nobody's made prints, the turns can be easy to miss.

I was there I think in 1988 give or take a year. As a sub, I did a loop between Taylor, Buttler, Taft and Sterling pond, then back to Taylor. The schedule was set up so I was at each shelter as the full time caretaker took thier days off. Once the summer was over, I took over at Taft for the fall. I still have my GMC caretaker T-shirt, too bad it doesn't fit any more. Those were the days...