| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
North Crocker Mountain, South Crocker Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Appalachian Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, December 16, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked one car at the Appalachian Trail lot off ME 16/27. This lot was well plowed but icy. Parked one car just off the road about 0.25 miles in on Caribou Pond Rd. Caribou Pond road is really not drivable until the snow melts. It is very icy and slick. One SUV went all the way to the summer trailhead lot. But I really don’t recommend this. Cell reception is spotty and there is only one garage in town. So getting a tow if you go off the road and get stuck would be a time consuming endeavor (if they are even willing to come tow you out). |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
No major water crossings on this route. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Route:
Appalachian Trail (AT) south bound over the Crockers to the road walk on Caribou Pond Rd.
As starting from the AT lot:
The AT is blazed in standard white blazes.
Very bony and very little snow on trail for the first 0.5 to 0.75 miles. Spikes worked best to handle all the ice. The ground was frozen and allowed us to traverse it without sinking.
Once up in the more open shoulder next to Stoney Brook Mountian, we donned snowshoes and kept them on as the snow pack was deep and consistent. One brave soul had broken trail from Caribou road all the way over here. Wow! Snow was firm or at least supportive under snowshoes. It did not have that styrofoam effect as normally happens when temps warm and cool back down. It remained below freezing in upper elevations all day. A moose had postholed a large section of trail just before the summit push to North Crocker. What an ordeal that was to balance over holes, avoid larger holes, etc!
After North Crocker’s summit the snow was mostly firm. A few pockets of deep, soft snow would grab our snowshoes. But these were very short. We traversed the mile between summits fairly quickly.
South Crocker summit had a nice, limited view. The herd path to Redington was not broken out at all. We were toast anyway and elected to not break out the bushwhack. I’ve done the ‘whack numerous times, and I was having a hard time making out the path corridor as the snow is about two feet deep at the summit.
Descending South Crocker was quite the adventure. After the uppermost ledge area the trail drops very sharply. One drop is over a steep ledge. The ledge is snow covered, but thick ice is under this snow making footing a bit precarious as I would dig my shoe in, then slide down the snow that was sliding off the ice. I elected to turn around and hike backwards so to best employ the crampon portion of my snowshoes. The talus field is completely snow covered and simple to descend.
After the junction with the trail to the shelter the trail mellows out. It is still covered in thick, frozen snow and snowshoes worked best.
Spikes were used on the road walk on Caribou Pond Rd due to all the ice.
There are now three sets of snowshoes that have broken this segment of the AT out. Though broken, there is not consolation and spikes will not work. But at least the trail is simple to follow until the next storm. |
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 | Name: |
Remington34 |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-12-16 |
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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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