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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks Elephant Mountain (attempt), ME
Trails
Trails: Logging roads, bushwhack
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Monday, January 18, 2021
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Ample parking alongside the road. 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow - Drifts 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment: Snowshoes 
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Some streams are still flowing beneath the snow.  
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes:  
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes:  
Bugs
Bugs:  
Lost and Found
Lost and Found:  
 
Comments
Comments: Got a late (10:30) am start up Elephant, solo. About 1 foot of snow at lower elevations, knee deep and deeper higher up. Route was not broken out. Some of the lower elevation snow had a walkable crust on the uphill but not downhill (170lbs plus gear). At start, I followed some recent ski tracks out parallel to the usual logging road hoping they were headed up an alternate way. They weren't, so I continued uphill on skidder trails then needed to course correct which took me through a ravine by an unnamed waterfall (difficult) and up through open woods (easy but steep) to the logging road shaving off some distance but probably loosing time and calories. I continued up the usual way sometimes on firm crust or blowouts, sometimes foot deep powder. At the end of the road the snow got deeper and was soon up at my knees with waist deep traps and drift pockets. Got as far as 3,400ft by 3pm. Felt good but was moving at a snail pace with the worst of the thickets to come. Hate summiting after dark so I turned around, descended the normal way except for a shortcut downhill to cut off the hairpin turn on the logging road. My tracks are there for the taking!  
Name
Name: Barefoot Paul 
E-Mail
E-Mail: paulwgagnon@gmail.com 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2021-01-19 
Link
Link: https:// 
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