| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Field, Mt. Willey, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Avalon Trail, Willey Range Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Wednesday, April 3, 2013 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
The Depot parking is usable with some drifted snow across the entrance. I parked at the Taj Mahal's lot which was mostly empty. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts, Snow - Wet/Sticky |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
No problems. The second has open running water but it's a hop across right now. But a good warmup could change that. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
One easy stepover on Avalon down low, several major ones on Willey Range which are easy to duck under or walk around, but a couple of the walk arounds made it a bit tricky relocating the trail when the packed path had been filled in and where blazes weren't present. There's some tunnel hiking in places along the ridge. The signs at the Avalon spur are back up, now on trees. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
The new snow caused some snowballing on Pepper's legs and paw tops but it wasn't bad. In some of the drifts he was below his see level, and he had to work harder than me on the way up mostly following in my snowshoe tracks, but he had a ball on the hike back when I let him lead. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
My MSR Evo Ascents were perfect for the new snow which was 2+' low and more high, often drifting in the strong wind. They provided great traction going up even when the teeth didn't reach the crusty base. Spikes would have been useless. It was a fun snowshoe boogie down too. We did see the tracks of one barebooter who wasn't postholing but who had to work a lot harder than me; as I've often noticed this past month my stride was nearly double the booters, which is a heckuva lot of saved steps. We skipped Tom to save time, but the booter headed up that way. Later we ran into Cynthia and had a nice chat. She was just heading in after hiking the Wildcats, often in a foot of new snow, with all the zest most have at the start of the day.
It was a very wintry hike; lots of new/drifted snow, gusty wind and seasonally cold. But after hiking all winter it was quite enjoyable, the sun was warm out of the wind at the Willey lookout, and it was another great snowshoe. Thanks Pepper for getting me out of work. |
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 | Name: |
Pepper and Me |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2013-04-03 |
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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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