| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Round Mountain (T11 R8 WELS), ME |
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 | Trails: |
Round Mountain Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, June 20, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
The guidebook directions were accurate. You know you're there when you see the lodge on your left. The guidebook asks you not to park in front of it, but there's no other spot to really park so we just pulled ahead on the road a ways and pulled off best we could. Those with wide cars may struggle a little here. We drove here from hiking Norway Bluff and though we drove all the way back to Realty Rd, I'm just now realizing that there is a shorter path between the two on back roads shown on Gaia (uses Jack Mountain Rd). Whether or not it's doable, I don't know but while the peaks we did on this day involved WAYYY more driving on dirt roads than I ever did when working on the NH500 Highest up in northern NH, the roads are in MUCH better condition. They are private logging roads that re well taken care of. Expect the main ones to be very wide and, each turn from there generally speaking, the roads will get narrower and narrower. That being said, even by the time we got onto the grassy centerline type of roads, the centerline wasn't really raised and they were in good shape with few exceptions. Low clearance should be okay; just watch out for the potholes. $18/person for non-ME residents ($13 for residents) for day-use fee. $110 for season pass, and $15 on top of day-use fee for camping. Day-use free for those under 18 and over 70 and camping free for those under 18. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
None |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
No signage, blaze, or cairns that I remember, but there was tape which was very useful. Blowdowns were plentiful as the guidebook mentions. Difficult to follow so I would not recommend to inexperienced hikers. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
May be steep for some but not really scrambly so most hiking dogs will probably be fine. |
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 | Bugs: |
For whatever reason, they actually weren't all that bad this day, though we still carried and used bug spray. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
None |
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 | Comments: |
2nd hike of the day after "nearby" Norway Bluff. As the astute reader may notice from the guidebook the trail ascends more than 800ft in 0.6mi so found this trail to be very steep not merely "moderate-to-steep", haahaha. As we were soaking wet and clambering over blowdowns, Crocamole kept joking "Hey, we may be tired and soaked, but at least it's only moderate-to-steep; if it was truly steep, I don't know if I could do it". This kept us laughing and moving! The trail is not well travelled or defined at all; look for the flagging carefully and look for the trail, behind and around blowdowns. Note that it does not follow the trail as shown on Gaia too closely. Most importantly, as the guidebook says, it starts in the back left corner of yard around the cabin (look closely, it's there), which is just south of where its shown starting on the road on Gaia. It stays just south of what's shown on Gaia, before crossing just to the north side shortly before reaching the summit. I don't know what to call the type of ladder to the summit other than "The classic firetower ladder in Maine that Liam Cooney ain't climbing". Truth be told, they are sturdy and I've seen worse but with such big spaces between the steps and no view at the top (still in cloud...), it wasn't worth it. Some relics to see at the summit and the woods higher up on the mountain were pleasant. Gaia had us at 1.3mi, 800ft of gain. |
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 | Name: |
Liam Cooney and Crocamole |
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 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-07-02 |
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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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