| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Isolation, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Rocky Branch Trail, bushwhacks, Isolation Trail, Davis Path, Isolation Spur |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, February 2, 2013 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Big lot, few cars, well plowed, and not too icy. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
We only did one, the third, and it was pretty good for humans on the trail, a bit tricky for dogs. On the hike back we did it a short ways upstream and it was a piece of cake for dog or man, being mostly solid ice and narrow. Another hiker tried to hike the trail the whole way but found the first crossing impossible, and came back up for the wack. I checked the last/fifth crossing and found it to be a bit tricky for humans, and not good for dogs - just too much open water and/or thin ice and not enough rocks. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A few blowdowns of little consequence except for the Davis Path around the Isolation intersection which involved some crawl unders or walk arounds. The blowdown have gotten closer to the ground with time and snow. No new ones. We used the Isolation trail to Davis Path but the other 3 on the trails today went through the campground on a more direct route, and said it wasn't bad. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Pretty easy and fun day for Pepper, Cinnilla and Shiya. Minimal icing, some water to drink down low, one significant stream crossing that was a bit exciting going out but nothing on the way back, lots of treats, often a solid crust to run on off trail, easy trails and good temps - what more could a puppy dog want? |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
We used microspikes all the way to Isolation, but used snowshoes for the two wacks. We met 3 other hikers, two young guys who used MSRs the whole way, and one in spikes all day. There was some serious post/boot holes up to the ski trail intersection, but it ended there and the trails were well packed. The great Engine Hill wack Hiker Ed established some time ago was no longer obvious in many places, but we managed to follow or be close to it a good part of the way, in part by finding some trail evidence, in part by staying higher than some years by roughly 200' which Ed had done making for a great route through many birch glades, and in part looking for a good path. I'll guess we dropped down a bit earlier than Ed's route, added some wobble, and shot past the trail down to the brook for a short loop back, but the wack works pretty well, just not as good as Ed's. If the area was to get several inches of snow, however, it might be difficult to see any evidence of the wack and the trail itself in places. The wack was bootable, but snowshoes would be better for a mix of flotation and traction, plus preserving the wack base.
We also followed a second wack route by the other 3 hikers we met on the west side of Rocky Branch to avoid crossings 4 & 5. It worked pretty well despite some pretty good wobbles, and branches that knocked my hat off maybe 10 times. We were going to call this west side wack the 3 Dog Night wack for our dogs but that probably just showed our age. My guess is this could be good route for awhile until the last crossing is better bridged. It is perhaps the most obvious part of the entire route and is partially packed via snowshoes.
The trails were pretty fast and easy today, there was relatively little wind, and the temps great for a fast hike. We started in sun, but on the peak a very very light snow began; it was more cloud than snow. We met just the other 3 hikers and had a enjoyable time with them on the summit, which was quite comfortable. What a splendid hike it was, with Per & Cinnilla, Cory & Shiya, and of course Pepper. |
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 | Name: |
Pepper and Me |
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 | E-Mail: |
windriversjohn at gmail dot com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2013-02-02 |
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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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