Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Old Speck Mountain, ME |
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| Trails: |
Old Speck Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 19, 2020 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parking lot is plowed. Almost full due to many hikers parking there to access Table Mountain - only saw about 6 groups hiking Old Speck. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow - Spring Snow |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Traction |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
First 2 crossings were unbridged but easily crossable. Upper crossings were all snow-bridged. |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
One large tree blowdown about waist-high across trail close to the start. Climbed over no problem. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw 3 dogs + I brought mine. All were having a great time in the snow and spring air! Kaia (Doberman) had no issues with the trail conditions and didn't need her jacket due to the warm temps. |
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| Bugs: |
A few slow-moving mosquitos at the lower elevations. |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
Beautiful spring day out in the Mahoosuc range! I wore Hillsound trail crampons until after the 2nd stream crossing (a few tenths from the parking lot) then switched to snowshoes. I preferred my MSR Lightning Ascents for added traction and a fast ascent/descent in the slippery, soft spring snow. No one else was wearing snowshoes so the trail is clearly doable without them but it would be a lot smoother if people wore them. There were numerous post holes and the trail was fairly lumpy all the way. There were a couple patches of exposed blue ice on a few steep scrambles but they were doable with traction. A few more warm days and this trail is going to degrade really fast...
The fire tower is in great shape with a sturdy ladder to the top. The platform afforded great views into Maine and the snow-covered Presidentials New Hampshire!
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| Name: |
Jessica Holland |
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| E-Mail: |
joflyer22 at gmail |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-04-20 |
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| Link: |
https:// |
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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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