| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Carrigain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Sawyer River Road, Signal Ridge Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 12, 2015 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of parking in the lot at the end of Sawyer River Road, a little icy in the morning but almost clear in the afternoon. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Wet/Sticky, Snow - Spring Snow, Snow/Ice - Postholes, Slush |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The 2 crossings on the old route near the junction were wide open but easy to cross with low water levels. Numerous small drainages down low in a varying state of open, well-bridged, and collapsing bridges. Nothing terrible though. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Took out one small blowdown in the lower switchbacks, there are a couple larger ones that may need attention once the snow leaves. No one likes the reroute at the old trail junction. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Didn't see any but there shouldn't be any issues for dogs prepared for the soft snow and long distance. |
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 | Bugs: |
Not yet. But soon? |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
A beautiful day for this hike. We were the first to leave the trailhead under completely sunny skies. We started off on the woods path but almost immediately decided to cut through the woods to the road for better footing. The road was soft but fine in light traction in the morning, and we were able to make it all the way to the old Signal Ridge/Carrigain Notch junction before we switched to snowshoes, thanks to things solidifying some overnight. Snow conditions were pretty soft once we got into the ascent as the day warmed, typical spring snow. The long sidehill traverse was tedious in spots, as the path was barely 2 snowshoes wide and the edge would break free from time to time. Snowshoes came off at the road and we bare-booted back to the car in very soft, often slushy conditions. Not much snow cover left on the road in some places. There's even a few patches of bare ground near the beginning of the trail!
Bring the snowshoes for this one, someone appeared to try to bare-boot it recently and was often postholing to their hip on the edges of the trail. Still 4-5 feet of snow up high, branches in the face, etc. The snow conditions were pretty good for this one, even with the very warm weather (mid-40s on the summit, mid 50s down low) there was minimal snowballing on the snowshoes.
The views were awesome, the best I've ever had on this peak. I think we saw 2 clouds in the distance. 45 degrees with 5-10mph winds gusting to around 20 were measured on the tower. We spent probably 40 minutes on the tower just in light jackets soaking in the sunshine before the long trek out. It was nice to ditch the warm, heavy clothing for summer hiking pants and t-shirts and no gloves for this hike! Surprisingly only 3 other people on the trail today. Thanks Patrick for an awesome day out! |
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 | Name: |
madmattd |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2015-04-13 |
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 | Link: |
 https://mattshikes.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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