| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Old Speck Mountain, Sunday River Whitecap, Stowe Mountain, Bald Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Old Speck Trail, Grafton Loop Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, July 9, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Dropped at car at Puzzle Mountain lot (parking on west side of Rt26 is not allowed per agreement with private property owners), and the other car at the AT/Old Speck lot further up Route 26. Plenty of parking at both lots on either end of the day. |
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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: |
Nothing of note, any tributary or stream was easily crossed. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Thick hobble and sapling overgrowth in a couple different areas: one notable heading south from Old Speck summit to Bull Run tentsite (carwash, watching ground for footpath); another before and after Slide campsite. Newer clippings found on trail in weird places. Lots of stepovers, and blowdowns that have clear herd paths around them. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
Bug nets went on after Bull Run. Mosquitos below 3kft, mixed with black flies above that. Persistent, we fended them off with Picaridin. Had a couple persistent deer flies in the middle of the trip too. Bug nets worked for them. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Another episode of dodging droplets!
Forecast looked better than most days, so we decided to get after a long planned trip traversing the western side of the Grafton Loop Trail - north to south. Met a handful of nobo's who were happy to have a break from the rain, especially after enduring the intense thunderstorm the night before! Most had started the day east of Mahoosuc Notch, and strongly climbed the Arm. Clouds broke a little above 3kft, and we climbed the summit tower to see Success Pond, and some of the peaks on the eastern side of Grafton Notch.
Down the southeast side of Old Speck we went, to what we found to be almost two miles of heavy moose poop! Moderate overgrowth wet us down pretty good too. Water at Bull Run was flowing great so we stopped to drink and filter. A few stretches of overgrowth on our way to Slide tentsite, and some again before reaching Miles Notch. The climb from the floor up to Sunday River Whitecap was easier than expected, with the summit well socked in. After admiring the lack of views, we carried on to Sargent Brook tentsite. This was our favorite of all four, and agreed we would have stayed here if our overnight plan hadn't been impeded by rains. We continued on over Stowe with nothing to report other than beautiful wooded summits. Oh, and also tools and materials for new bog bridges that seem to have been long forgotten on the northern bump (well aged wood, and rusting pick ax). New stepping ladders have been placed in recent years on the descent from Stowe's second bump making it easier to address the steeper grade. The final leg up to Bald Mountain, the respective campsite and the exit have nothing of true note, but were in great shape and a welcome relief from the day's climbs.
All of the campsites have donation boxes, but are not required. Bald Mountain was the only one erected, the other three were just laying in the ground (new and uninstalled). |
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 | Name: |
bria, danielle |
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 | E-Mail: |
breahmaria@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-07-10 |
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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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