Pelton Pond, Stillwater Pond and Bushy Ridge Loop

This is a great hike, along which you'll pass 3 separate ponds/lakes (and see a 4th), go through the ruins of some old farms, and pass through the sites of 2 different 19th-century iron mines. Park at Pelton Pond parking lot and then head north from the lot, following an old road, which soon becomes the path of the Pelton Pond Loop Trail (yellow). At 0.2 miles, the trail turns right (off the road) and swings around to the south, with views down onto Pelton Pond. At 0.5 miles, turn left onto a campground road at the start of the Roaring Brook Trail (white). Continue on this trail as it heads south, passing several trails which go off to the left. You'll start seeing Stillwater Pond (on the left) at about 1.4 miles. At 2.7 miles, you'll pass the rusty skeleton of an old vehicle. At 2.8 miles, turn right onto an unnamed trail (yellow), which soon passes through the remains of what was clearly a quite impressive farming area, with stone fences and several foundations scattered about. At 2.9 miles, turn right onto another unnamed trail (white) and begin the intermittent ascent of Bushy Ridge, with a few short steep climbs along the way. At 3.50 miles, you reach more or less the top of the ridge, and there are intermittent views (leaf-permitting) to the east of Roaring Brook Lake and Stillwater Pond. At 3.9 miles, you begin a moderate descent. At 4.2 miles, turn right onto an unnamed trail (blue) which follows an old road. At 4.3 miles, stay straight onto an unnamed trail (green) where the blue trail turns left. AT 4.6 miles, once more stay straight on the road where the green trail ends and the 3-Lakes Trail (blue) joins from the left. At 5 miles, you'll start seeing artifacts from the Philips Mine. The 3-Lakes Trail ends at 5.4 miles, where you turn right onto Rte 301 (with Canopus Lake on your left). At 5.6 miles (just after the guardrail on Rte 301 ends), turn right onto an unblazed trail, where you will almost immediately see an entrance to the Canada Mine on your left and mine dumps on the right. After crossing a stream, the trail climbs to a dam, where you turn left onto the Pelton Pond Loop Trail (yellow). Continue on this trail until you see an obvious shortcut trail to the Pelton Pond parking area.