| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Speckled Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Route 113, Bickford Brook Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Tuesday, January 2, 2024 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Mine was the only car near the southern 113 gate today. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Rock hop. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
I zippified a beast (about 16” diameter) that was just below the Spruce Hill junction, and dealt with a gnarly mess just below the upper Blueberry Ridge junction. I left the easy stepover beast (about 2’ diameter) just above the lower Blueberry Ridge junction because those sneaky paper birches are never as rotted as they look. I will be back and will bring strong friends, LOL. Those are the only blowdown issues on this route as someone took care of the ones that were along the first half mile of the trail. Thank you, whoever you are, and please message me - I would like to personally thank you and also personally invite you to the CTA spring work weekends!! We need you!!
There are three sign issues. I parked at the Basin junctio, just before the 113 gate on the south end, and note that the “Basin Campground Ahead” sign is now upside down. It looks like it lost it’s upper screw (there’s a joke in that sentence, somewhere.). The second sign problem is the Spruce Hill junction sign - it was down when I hiked this a few weeks ago so I propped it up; now it’s down and iced in place so it’s down until the spring thaw. The third sign problem is the upper Blueberry Ridge junction sign, which is listing at 25 degrees.
All above maintenance issues will be added to the spring Chatham Trails Association work list (I know people, LOL!!). |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
I hiked Speckled as an out and back. The road walk is less than 0.4 miles one way so it’s a great winter option. I discovered this hike during the White Mountain Guide project and it is one of the (many, many, many) amazing hikes that I found. I like Evans Notch so much that I volunteer with Chatham Trails! I put on my rock spikes at the start of the switchbacks and took them off again at that point. Like everywhere else right now, it’s fall down low and trying to be winter up high. This is a great route in any season!!
Other trails: neither the upper or lower Blueberry Ridge Trail had any boot prints in the snow but both the upper end of Spruce Hill and (surprisingly) Red Rock headed east both had boot prints! |
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 | Name: |
Bikecamphikegirl |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2024-01-02 |
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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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