| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Owl's Head, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Lincoln Woods Trail, Black Pond Trail, bushwhack, Lincoln Brook Trail, bushwhack, Owl's Head Path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, March 3, 2019 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Lincoln Woods is plowed, but use caution entering, as there is a large pothole. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All Lincoln Brook Trail crossings were snowbridged. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
There are a few blowdowns on Lincoln Woods Trail. Lincoln Brook Trail just keeps getting worse with the unmitigated erosion. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
With the exception of part of Lincoln Woods, I used snowshoes the entire day. I found them to be ideal, especially for traction on the loose snow in places. Though not everyone wore snowshoes for this entire duration, everyone we saw either had snowshoes or skis. Thank you.
Lincoln Woods Trail was pretty well bootpacked to the Osseo junction, then more of a single file ski/snowshoe track. Barebooting was fine all the way to the Black Pond junction; no need for spikes today, as it's all packed powder.
Black Pond Trail was softer, so we all put on our snowshoes. Some random postholes from barebooters.
The packed out bushwhack from Black Pond to Lincoln Brook is very direct, though it does gain and lose some vertical along the way (due to the topography). It avoids most of the mud pits, so that's nice. Departs near the end of the Black Pond Trail and pops onto the Lincoln Brook Trail at the crossing (very last part on the old logging road).
Lincoln Brook Trail was packed out for snowshoes (also noted snowshoe traffic heading east, and some older tracks on the Fisherman's Path). The many dips from muck/waterbars/etc. got old. Brushy in some places.
The predominant track up Brutus is none traditional, in that it never enters into the main birch glades. Instead, it goes direct into the softwoods and steeply up to the shelf, popping onto the Owl's Head Path in the traditional place. Super deep for the descent, so we broke out something more gradual into the birch glades.
Snowpack was never overly deep until we reached the ridge. Up to this point, it was a steady 2 to 4 feet. On the ridge, it's probably 4 to 7 feet deep, possibly more. As a result, there are decent views of the Franconia Ridge and Bonds near the summit. |
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 | Name: |
rocket21 |
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 | E-Mail: |
rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2019-03-03 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.franklinsites.com/hikephotos |
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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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