Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Mt. Liberty, NH |
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| Trails: |
Liberty Spring Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Sunday, November 11, 2018 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Just the usual Liberty Spring parking area with the .9 mile hike past the bike path to the real trail. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Wet/Slippery Rock, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Leaves - Significant/Slippery |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
A few small rock hoppers and one more significant crossing. Look upstream for a narrower spot with a log down at chest height for a hand rail. |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
1-2 blowdowns, nothing of concern |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
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| Bugs: |
none |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
We started out from the Liberty Spring parking area over wet ground with standing water, loose leaves and a bit of a slippery mess. We soon had our micro-spikes on despite the lack of snow or ice, providing better traction through the mud and slick leaves and rock. This continued all the way up to the Liberty Spring / Flume Slide trail junction .6 miles up from the bike path, and at least another half a mile beyond as we headed up liberty and through several of the water crossing areas. Gators were nice for keeping the chilly water out in the muddy areas and crossings.
Eventually we did find winter as the slope increased and soon found ourselves on well packed snow. Most rocks were still exposed as the snow isn't that deep yet, but the snow and firm footing is consistent all the way to the summit. We saw no signs of anyone post-holing this early in the season, and there was absolutely no need of snow shoes yet. This could, of course, could change rapidly in the coming weeks. Most hikers had microspikes, or perhaps no spikes at all, but I'd highly recommend the former.
On a less helpful note we had a perfect day of blue skies and views in all directions for miles and miles, well into VT, etc. Of course some cloud cover on the Presidentials blocked our view of the weather station there, but otherwise you could not ask for better. Despite the reasonable mileage, the Liberty Spring hike is a long, unforgiving incline that has left my hiking partner sore and exhausted today. The hike up offers few unique spots or viewpoints, but I always find the woods to be beautiful in general when covered in snow, and the summit is well worth the effort. My tired, sore hiking parter agreed as her legs burned and she was a bit chilly near the summit but then her eyes lit up and she exclaimed "WHOA!" as she took in the first of the views just shy of the summit. |
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| Name: |
athike02 |
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| E-Mail: |
athike02@yahoo.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2018-11-12 |
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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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