| 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: |
Tuesday, December 20, 2016 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
As mentioned in another report, the two big ones were tricky because the weekend thaw blew out any ice bridges, but follow the herd path downstream on the first one and upstream on the second - I accidentally dunked a boot on the first crossing before finding the herd path. The crossings involve stepping on some ice covered rocks so spikes are strongly recommended. Other smaller crossings not an issue |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A few blowdowns, one just past the Mt. Avalon spur and a few between Field and Willey, nothing too tricky to by-pass. No real issues following the trail, there was a faint trench most of the way and the trail between Field and Willey is better blazed than it used to be |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Hannah was a trooper today - she's an experienced winter hiker and knows how to handle tougher conditions including trail breaking - make sure your dog can handle deeper snow and an icy crust if you want to bring them on this hike soon |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Started in spikes right away, even the parking lot was a bit icy - Avalon trail was well packed but extremely choppy, didn't look like anyone had been on that trail with snowshoes in a long time. Kept the spikes on heading up towards Mt. Avalon past the junction and followed one set of fresh tracks (guess it was the person who posted the other report, we must have passed the spur trail when you were at the summit) - switched to snowshoes at the junction for the Mt. Avalon spur trail because Avalon trail beyond that point was completely unbroken. In general broke through 6-12", an icy crust with fluffy snow underneath, hard to tell how far you'd sink and the trail was uneven underneath in places so it was slow going. Continued breaking trail over to Willey, some drifting in the usual places but nothing deeper than knee deep in one or two places. Was a bit easier retracing steps back to Field but still tough work - bit colder and windier than forecasted so we didn't take too many breaks. Had wanted to hit Tom too but legs were tired to break more trail so will come back for that one next week - trip back was uneventful. WRT over to AZ trail is still unbroken, and there was only one set of boot prints headed up AZ trail to Tom, not sure how far they go but can't imagine that section is really broken out even if they go to the summit - no tracks coming up the Willey ladders either. If you plan on doing these 4k's in the near future, BRING SNOWSHOES - my one set of tracks broke out the trail but it will need several more before becoming well packed - it was hard enough with snowshoes, I can't imagine how tough it would be without them sinking even further. Challenging but fun day - even if we didn't get all three peaks, always better to be safe than sorry and we didn't see a soul all day - thanks Hannah for another great winter adventure. |
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 | Name: |
Hikes with Hannah |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2016-12-20 |
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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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