| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Agamenticus, Second Hill, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Cedar Trail, Goosefoot Trail, Vultures View Trail, Big A Trail, Northface Trail, Sweet Fern Trail, Ring Trail, Chestnut Oak Trail, Porcupine Trail, Second Hill Trail, Ridge Trail, Notch Trail, Stone Fence Trail, Hidden Trail, unmarked trail, Rocky Road, Witch Hazel Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Tuesday, March 31, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Coming in from the north (Emery’s Bridge Road) there are signs a ways in that day that Mountain Rd is closed from November through April but no gate and cars seemed to just ignore the small signs and plow through as did I. That said the road in had some unavoidable potholes that make for a very bumpy ride no matter how slow you go so be prepared! A low clearance vehicle would probably get its undercarriage scraped. The trailhead for Cedar Trail has a fairly small lot for only about a half dozen cars but there were some other small spots to park on the road in with a short road walk. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant, Leaves - Significant/Slippery, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
No water crossings that don’t have bridges on them. Many puddles and such to cross from recent rain though. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
No blowdowns on any of the trails that I recall which is quite impressive! The trails aren’t usually blazed all that frequently but are still easy to follow. Many of these trails have some sharp turns/switchbacks that you could miss but that’s about it. Lots of wet and muddy places on some of the flatter trails...maybe they could improve drainage? The drainage I saw seemed to be working well though. It looked like half of one of the signs for Ridge Trail had been destroyed (eaten??). No blaze for Cedar Trail but obvious as it’s a road. Beaver and Vultures View trails were both blazed in red. No blaze for Big A Trail but it’s an obvious and wide universally accessible path. All other trails except Notch Trail (blazed in green) and Northface Trail (not blazed and not even a trail it’s just a 100ft circle at the top maybe 😂) were blazed in white. It seemed that IF the trail was blazed, then the blaze color corresponded to the color of the trail on the Agamenticus map (linked at bottom). |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
A couple unleashed that came bounding toward me that didn’t listen to the owner that was calling them back. I wish people would properly train their dogs. It seems to be becoming a lost art. |
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 | Bugs: |
None |
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 | Lost and Found: |
I carried out two different gloves. |
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 | Comments: |
A wonderful evening spent redlining Agamenticus. 46F when I started at quarter past 4 and about 10 degrees cooler when I returned at 7:30pm. Very sunny, clear day, with pretty mild wind but still pretty chilly up top.
The trails listed above is just all trails I was on at some point or another. Below is the actual route I took including the distance of some to clarify. The overview is that I took Vultures View to the summit, then did the Second Hill Loop described in the guidebook (which is an amalgamation of many different trails) adding some extra distance on the return trip but still including all trails part of the loop mentioned in the guidebook, then descended Goosefoot Trail.
Cedar Trail —> Goosefoot Trail —> Vultures View —> Big A to summit area —> walked around summit area including Northface Trail —> down Sweet Fern Trail —> Ring Trail —> Chestnut Oak Trail —> Porcupine Trail —> Second Hill Trail to summit —> Ridge Trail —> Notch Trail —> Stone Fence Trail —> Porcupine Trail —> out-and-back on Hidden Trail —> Porcupine Trail —> Second Hill Trail to summit —> unmarked trail mentioned in guidebook (labeled as Ridge Trail in Gaia but not signed anywhere) —> Porcupine Trail —> Rocky Road —> Ring Trail to jct with Goosefoot —> Ring Trail back to jct with Witch Hazel —> Witch Hazel —> Big A to summit area —> Agamenticus summit —> Big A —> Vultures View —> Ring Trail —> Goosefoot Trail —> Cedar Trail —> Beaver Trail —> Cedar Trail to car.
Note that Gaia shows Vultures View Trail continuing all the way to the summit as opposed to ending at Big A Trail as the book says. Gaia is wrong and the book is correct. The unnamed trail that goes between Second Hill and Porcupine Trail is shown as Ridge Trail on Gaia but there were no signs to indicate that being true on the trail. Lastly, Stone Fence Trail is shown as connecting with Ridge Trail just a bit north of where Hidden Trail does on Gaia. This is incorrect. Trust the guidebook and the Agamenticus map on their website (linked below).
The trails were drier than I thought they’d be but still some wet ledge worth water flowing down on Vultures View and some large puddles and mud on other trails mostly between Agamenticus (First Hill) and Second Hill. Hardly any snow was seen and only a few small globs of it on Ridge Trail. All the rest of it (which was still minimal) was off trail. No ice. I wore trail runners and it was tough to keep my feet dry but didn’t regret it.
Only two people on the summit the first time I was there at 4:30-4:45 and nobody there around sunset when I returned but there were a number of cars parked that came up from the auto road and were walking down lower. One mountain biker seen. One couple. One group of three, and one or two solo hikers most of which were in between First and Second Hill. Then one couple on the summit. Not nearly as busy as I would’ve thought particularly at the summit.
I’d avoided redlining Agamenticus and was working on other parts of the southwestern tab as there’s just so many trails here I found it overwhelming and knew it would take some planning but now that I’ve gotten out there I know this will now be one of my favorite spots. Really, really lovely :) |
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 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
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 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-04-01 |
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 | Link: |
 https://agamenticus.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/MT.A-MAP.pdf |
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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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