| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Observatory Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Bushwhacks, unnamed trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, July 6, 2014 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at paved pull off south east of Lincoln Pond Road on Route 16. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
Some mosquitoes down low and deer flies elsewhere. Not bad on the ledges, but vexing at times elsewhere. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
For the ascent, we bushwhacked directly up from Route 16 in scrappy woods with poor footing up to the scree field. Above there, we were constantly getting cliffed out, eventually finding a way on the east to clear the ridge.
Up on the ridge, we found a very old red blazed trail that eventually connected us with a spectacular near summit view ledge over looking Aziscohos Lake, Low Aziscohos Mountain, and the White Mountains. Lots of blueberries, but not yet blue. The highpoint (some vague herd paths leading to it from the red blazed trail) had a very old container on it that had a hole in it and no logbook.
For the descent, we attempted to follow the old trail, but lost it after about a quarter of a mile, heading southeast from the summit. From there, we eventually hopped on a boundary cut (blue blazes and tape), that was rugged, but not nearly as steep/cliffy as the ascent. Nonetheless, the footing was somewhat poor and there were pockets of blowdown and spruce. We eventually popped out on Route 16 about a quarter of a mile southeast of the pulloff, opting to make better time roadwalking then trying to cut across the contour in the poor footing.
The viewpoints are rather nice, and I suspect it may be easier to bushwhack in from the logging roads to the northeast. |
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 | Name: |
rocket21 |
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 | E-Mail: |
rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2014-07-06 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.franklinsites.com/hikephotos |
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Disclaimer: Reports are not verified - conditions may vary. Use at own risk. Always be prepared when hiking. Observe all signs. Trail conditions reports are not substitutes for weather reports or common sense. |
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