| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Lowe's Bald Spot, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Old Jackson Road, Madison Gulf Trail, Lowe's Bald Spot Spur, Raymond Path, Tuckerman Ravine Trail, Sherburne Ski Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, December 19, 2014 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of parking at Pinkham Notch Visitors Center. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Skis |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Most drainages were open, along with the crossings just after Huntington Ravine Trail, and just before the fire road on Raymond Path, necessitating taking our skis off. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
The crown of a tree is down on Old Jackson Road above George's Gorge Trail, requiring a work around. Another crown across Raymond Path between Old Jackson and Huntington Ravine Trail. Many small step overs along the route as well. Ice in the trees caused many of them to bend over into the trail. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw one with its human, who was skinning up the Sherburne when we were getting ready to head down. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
The first tour of the season, and what an interesting one it was. Having done it, I wouldn't recommend Old Jackson Road or Raymond Path (or Madison Gulf Trail for that matter) for skinning. On both trails, we followed an old snowshoe track, with a dusting on top. This was solidly set up and fairly narrow, causing some fun times on any downhill sections. There were some views from Low's Bald Spot, though the ring of clouds around Washington limited any distant vistas. Raymond Path was steep in spots, especially for skinning, and felt like we were in the Twilight Zone, as it didn't seem like it was ever going to end. There were a couple of interesting downhill sections, one where we took of our skis, before we finally climbed up to the Tuckerman Ravine Trail. Our run down the Sherburne was as good as can be expected for mid-December, the upper 400-500' of vertical was fantastic, nice soft snow edge to edge, some sticks poked through, but nothing that couldn't be skied around. Beyond this was the rain-line, and things firmed up, water bars were very prominent, and there were some areas with little snow. Quite a workout! Even in less than ideal conditions, it was a great early season tour with Jake and Sam. |
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 | Name: |
Bill Robichaud |
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 | E-Mail: |
bill.robichaud@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2014-12-19 |
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 | Link: |
 https://onapathwithheart.blogspot.com/ |
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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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