Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Mt. Cardigan, NH |
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| Trails: |
Access Road, West Ridge Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Friday, March 29, 2013 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
The access road is still gated and covered in snow. There is room for about 8 cars off of Burnt Hill Road. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Snow/Ice - Postholes, Snow - Spring Snow |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
No major crossings. |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
The steep, rocky, and almost always wet section just below the Skyland Trail junction has a well packed bypass detouring above it. There was no recent traffic on the trail proper. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
After dark it was nice to have Marlie lead us down off of the open summit. |
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| Bugs: |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
We started up the trail at 6:45pm and reached the summit just before 8pm. We finally gave in and turned on the headlamps after we touched the fire tower. I was a little worried at first as the access road was not very well packed and snowshoes would have been a better choice, but once on the West Ridge Tr it was well packed and microspikes worked great. There were a few deep postholes over some small water crossings which are starting to open up. Once above treeline I could have taken off the micros as there was an abundance of bare rock to walk on. My friend barebooted the whole way without any difficulty. On our way down both of our headlamps ran out of juice. Finally after many miles of carrying them I was ably to put my spare batteries and spare headlamp to use. South Ridge Tr and Skyland Tr both seemed to be broken out. It was cloudy above but from the summit we could see groomer lights on Mt Sunapee and Ragged Mtn. To the west Canaan and the Mascoma Valley was well lit and the windmills to the east looked like Christmas lights as red lights blinked on and off across the ridges. We saw one other person a quarter mile from the road and then no one else. What a great way to relax after finishing off the work week.
4+- miles 1500'+- elev+ 2 hr 15 min |
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| Name: |
IQuest |
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| E-Mail: |
iandanner@hotmail com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2013-03-30 |
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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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