| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Baldpate Mountain - West Peak, Baldpate Mountain - East Peak, Little Baldpate, Surplus Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Appalachian Trail, Baldpate Lean-to Spur, bushwhack, Dunn Falls Spur |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, July 1, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
We spotted a car on East B Hill Rd, which is shown as Andover Rd on Gaia, at 6:30am. Only car there. This road is paved but a little rough at its NW end in Upton. Suitable for any car though and it soon gets better and you can fly down it. We then drove down into Grafton Notch where it’s $5 ($4??) to park. This is a large lot with toilets and it was maybe half full when we arrived around 6:45am. Not overflowing but closer to full when we returned just shy of 2:30pm. When we finished our hike on East B Hill Rd, the lot was more or less full with 4 or 5 cars there. I’m sure you could easily park roadside here though. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The log footbridge near the start in Grafton Notch was in good enough shape to cross that brook with dry feet. The crossing above Dunn Falls was the only one not rock hopable. Around 1:30pm when we were there, it was a shallow wade (maybe partway up the shin, definitely well below the knee). People there in the morning or yesterday reported it being knee high which greatly surprised me but still reported it being safe. So in high water, this is likely a safe wade but when flooding/water is VERY high, I’d absolutely avoid this crossing considering that if you got swept away, you’d be headed down a waterfall. The crossing closest to East B Hill Rd on the northern side was rock hopable around 2pm if you took your time. Otherwise, another very shallow wade. There’s another very small water crossing in between these two but this was easily rock hopable. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
The AT was obviously blazed in white. Overall, I think it was blazed better than most sections over high peaks in NH. Cairns above tree line as well. Following the trail over ledge, was pretty easy as I found it pretty well marked BUT could see it being a challenge in thick fog/cloud as markings are sometimes a bit far apart though always visible. A few spots of ambiguity as to which way the trail goes. I believe all spurs (at least the one by Dunn Falls but Baldpate Lean-to as well I think) were blazed in blue and were easy to follow. Surprisingly, I don’t recall any blowdowns along the AT, but, as I’m fond of saying, that doesn’t mean there weren’t any. I do remember a duck under or two that were kind of obnoxious along the Dunn Falls Spur. All trail signs were intact EXCEPT for at the jct of Baldpate Mtn Trail. This trail was blazed but no sign at the jct. it also looked to be very overgrown. I’m wondering if it’s abandoned?? Lastly? The mud was bad enough in places through boggy areas and meadows around the peaks, that I’d suggest adding more bog bridges and such. Lots of trail creep given the current conditions below treeline as well. Not sure as much can be done about this though. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
I don’t think we saw any and I wouldn’t call it a suitable hike for dogs given the ladders on the north side of East Baldpate. The section south of West Baldpate would be suitable as would the section north of Frye Notch Lean-to for regular hiking dogs but I don’t see how most dogs could negotiate up or around some of those ladders. |
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 | Bugs: |
Used bug spray in the morning and that kept them at bay for several hours but they were quite bad our last couple miles or so out. I believe it was more mosquitos than black flies which makes sense now that it’s July. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
None |
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 | Comments: |
A fantastic south to north traverse of the AT over the Baldpates with a friend. From the start to the Hedgehog Hill, West West Baldpate col was generally moderate with some steeper, and flatter pitches. Some rough footing and this section in particular was very wet and muddy. From here to the lean-to was generally flatter and not as wet. I’ll have to whack to West West Baldpate for the ME 2ks when I redline the Grafton East traverse. FYI that I’ve heard this is thick. One thru hiker at the lean-to that had stayed there overnight. Nice to meet you Lucky! We began running into other thru hikers around here as well that we played leap frog with throughout the day.
From here to the summit of West Peak was very steep but not really scrambly. The summit was kostky in cloud though we got some partial views coming down off of it. The real scrambling began heading up East Peak. Some lovely meadows and boggy areas through here as well which featured some astounding mud. Some steep sections but not much in the way of scrambling coming down off of East Peak (or east scrambling anywho) UNTIL you reach Little Baldpate where we had fantastic views. North of Little Baldpate there was more scrambling and a number of ladders. Not all ladders are attached but I found them to be secure enough/not too sketchy.
From Baldpate Mtn Trail (not signed at jct) to Frye Notch Lean-to felt like it took longer than it should have. More thru hikers at this lean-to. The climb up to Surplus was steep but nothing crazy and relatively short. We whacked to Surplus for the ME 2ks. The whack is a little more than 0.1mi and, while it may look thick from where you start your whack, really isn’t bad. It IS sprucey, but they’re low and generally spread out/east to avoid; I just took lots of twists and turns. We started from the HOL on trail. The highpoint has a register but I’m very sorry to say that we used up the last piece of paper and I didn’t even think to bring any with me. So sorry!
Long hike out from here to the car, with some PUDs and some severe mud but generally pleasant. The climb in and out of Dunn Falls is steep but the falls themselves were an absolute gem. We took the sour trail, blazed in blue and shown on Gaia, NW here along the falls for 0.2mi which I thought was well worth the side trip even if not needed for redlining. Some great swimming holes here! The hike from here out to the car, featured some most unwelcome uphill which was anticipated but nonetheless painful.
Gaia had us at 11.5mi, 3600ft of gain, 7hrs. We were happy enough with the direction we went. There’s disadvantages to going either way. If going the reverse direction, we wouldn’t have had to climb down the ladders and go uphill at the end of our day, but we would’ve had to scramble down East Peak which would’ve been tricky and we would’ve been wading through a water crossing or two at the beginning of the day. Elevation wise, the two trailheads start at the same elevation, so no difference there. |
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 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
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 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-07-02 |
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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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