| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Monroe, Boott Spur, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Dry River Trail, Monroe Loop, Camel Trail, Davis Path, Isolation Trail, Dry River Connector |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, September 28, 2014 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Room for a modest number of cars parked off the shoulder I don't know if one can park in the campground for the Dry River Connector as an alternative; the trailhead sign is on one of the campground roads and there is no special parking for it. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Bridge over the one major Dry River crossing remaining, and it would have been a rock hop without it. Everything else was a stepover over or easy rock hop. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Some stepover blowdowns on Dry River and Isolation West. I took out one new blowdown on Iso and made a new one on Dry River a stepover. On Dry River a tree next to the trail has blown over and its roots pulled up the soil, leaving a slighty tricky boulder and roots drop and up. All signs in place, new and old. Davis Path water bars cleaned out and well brushed. More in comments. The campsites and shelter looked to be in fine shape but no one was using them when we came by. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Pepper had a long but for the most part easy day with plenty of sip n dips on the Dry River trail for most of its length, and a few on the lower Isolation West. I was surprised how much water was still available relatively high on the Dry River trail, not only enough for drinking but Pepper, being a small dog, could dip to within maybe a couple hundred feet of the ridge. It was dry on Camel and Davis Path and he was exposed to the sun, and much of Isolation West was dry too so he needed some water in a bowl and some splashed on his fur. Most of the trail was modest in slopes, a lot of nice pawbeds, and plenty of solitude. We met Ian and Marlie above the Mt. Eisenhower trail and Marlie was enjoying the hike too. Pepper and Marlie are very experienced trail dogs, but I don't recall seeing anything that would cause most dogs problems other than the length of trail, excepting one spot where a tree blew over exposing boulders beneath its roots, but Pepper found a way through or around it. |
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 | Bugs: |
There were a few annoying bugs on the trails although they didn't seem to be biting, just getting in my face or ears. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Dry River has a few new bypasses to go with the old ones and stream crossings in the lower sections have been eliminated. There are some cairns in a few places to help navigate. The two bypasses just downstream of the intersection with the Mt. Clinton trail do have some mud now; there could be a lot in the spring. There is now a new trail sign for the intersection of the Mt. Clinton trail; the old intersection was washed away. Much of the trail looks like it hasn't changed, except for some blowdown removal and maybe some brushing, but the awful mud pits I recall from years ago are gone, perhaps they were in the large die off and blowdown section below the ridge which has dried out in the sun. It was pretty easy to follow the trail today; perhaps when leaf covered it may take more care.
Isolation West is interesting. The upper/eastern part is wonderful, a nice footbed and easy walking. The lower/western part has a fair number of stepover blowdowns, some rock and mud, and then after dropping into the Isolation brook valley, a few major slides and a couple of washouts. It is much slower going. Blowdown has been cut enough to allow passage, the trail goes across the slides near their base without a well defined footbed and the trail is routed around a washout or a cairn may lead one across the stream. On the whole the trail seemed a lot longer than the 2.4 miles on maps.
To my mind the Dry River and Isolation West trails are generally pretty good, better than many we've redlined this year, in places better than some 4K trails, although with a few rough spots. Having said that, the casual hiker may not be comfortable in places especially when the leaves or snow cover the trail beds. There are no paint blazes but right now the trail corridor is clear; although Isolation has periodic face slappers. The Dry River valley nearing the Mt. Clinton trail and above was in full color, with gorgeous yellows and some oranges, reds and greens extending from top to bottom. The Dry River still had a pretty good flow in it as well. We ran into a few campers going out as we were going in on Dry River, and were happy to run into Ian, Marlie and Steve M. in the upper Dry. There were a fair number of people on the Monroe summit or loop, a few on Davis Path too, but after that we didn't see a soul. It was a late summer day with a light breeze, very comfortable above treeline. Thanks Pepper for a great weekend of long but fun hikes. |
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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: |
2014-09-28 |
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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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