| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Osceola, East Osceola, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Mt. Osceola Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, August 6, 2017 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Tripoli Rd. lot is not that big. We got there fairly early, but used the porta-potties and did some light warm-up stretching first. The lot had filled in when we started up around 8:00. Another site I was reading said Tripoli Rd. was fairly rough as of a week or two ago; I didn't think it was *that* bad, other than when you head back W to I-93 there is a lot of washout on the R side of the road, and there are is the occasional large rock protruding in the road on that side where you need to drive slowly and carefully. $5 per day parking fee at this lot. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
N/A |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A few trees looked ready to topple over (most notably a birch tree on the R at a very sharp turn to the R, coming up from Tripoli Rd.) in the high winds! Otherwise, just one small step-over between the peaks. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw a few, they were doing well and were generally well-behaved. One couple had some dogs that seemed overly aggressive, but they were leashed and fully under control at all times. The chimney/bypass area would probably be tough for a dog (I barely made it myself). |
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 | Bugs: |
Basically, zero bugs, which surprised me, given the general dampness. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Ascent to Osceola proper is mostly a piece of cake, as 4K's go. The bottom 1/3 of the trail is very rocky with tricky footing, but not difficult. The slanty slabs were a little tricky for us, but even taking our time in some spots, it only took us a couple hours to get to the summit, and we're not fast hikers at all.
The traverse between the peaks is MUCH more strenuous. We did not attempt the famous Chimney, though many people were doing it (mostly slowly and carefully)... including one guy I saw who went up it and then started down the "bypass" so he could climb it *again* ! Going down the bypass is easy; getting up it was tricky for me to get started, but once you get over the little mini-scramble at the bottom, it's fine. At one point, there were about a dozen folks on East Peak all at once; a lot of people had come from the north, and got there just after we did. There was a fairly good breeze blowing that we noticed pretty much all the way up (Mrs. Ridge Warrior said it felt more like hiking in September or October); I was wearing a jacket for much of the day, even well below treeline, and didn't put it away for good until about 1/3 of the way back down to Tripoli Road, when it had finally started to warm up. Descending to Tripoli Road actually took us longer than going up - we were being extra careful because of the footing issues. |
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 | Name: |
The Ridge Warrior |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2017-08-07 |
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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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