| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Isolation (attempt), NH |
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 | Trails: |
Glen Boulder Trail, Direttissima |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, May 11, 2019 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Glen Ellis parking lot closed. Only car there, parked on 16 at 8:15; tons of people around upon return and at Joe Dodge. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Ice - Breakable Crust, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow - Spring Snow, Leaves - Significant/Slippery, Snow/Ice - Postholes, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
On the way up things were easy without getting boots wet. On the way down, some were almost ankle deep, but still rock hoppable. Tried to get across the rive to Wildcat Ridge Trail for an after hike red-line trip, but couldn't find a suitable/safe crossing. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A few nuisance blow downs, and a couple of significant ones laying the long way on Glen Boulder making it annoying to get through. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Didn't see any, but they would have had trouble with variable conditions and soft deep snow. |
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 | Bugs: |
None. Too windy. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Picked up a fair amount of small trash. Leave no trace applies to you too ladies (found 2 tampon applicators). |
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 | Comments: |
TL; DR
Conditions change by the minute; they suck; didn't summit. This report will be out of date as soon as its written.
OK, bear with me. Below 2500' trail is decent, pretty wet with mud and leaves but not significant enough to be slippery. About 2800' I should've put snowshoes on but I didn't. Alternated about 500 yards of unstable monorail/really soft snow and 100 yards of bare trail. Lots of post holing but it wasn't all that deep, just annoying. At around 3200', finally put the shoes on and things went better. Monorail is solid, but very narrow. Above treeline, there's zero snow. Never been happier to get on to talus before. Then the wind kicked in. Enough to knock you down, so I had to drop to all fours to not get push around. Once you get back into the Krumholtz, the snow reappeared. 4'-5' in most places with about a 12" wide monorail. By this time, the sun had been up/out for a while and things were quite soft. In spots hip deep post holes, even with snowshoes on. Also, because you're high up, plenty of eye pokers and pack grabbers. Eventually, the trail wasn't discernable as the leaners, high snow, and lack of clear monorail made everything look the same. After a few too many close calls with twisted knees and ankles, along with one waist deep double post hole (talk about freaky when you're solo) I called it quits. Made it to about 4500' before turning back. I was lagging behind book time by a fair amount (which I usually am well ahead of) so I was aware of how much effort I was expending to get up. On the way down, all that snow had started to melt and I was basically skiing on snowshoes. THe top 6" or so was mush and just kind of sloughed away when you touched it. All in all a rough go; saw every kind of condition in one trek. Mountains won this one; the Whites sure can be humbling. Did some quick red-lining dow low afterwards, but nothing of note. |
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 | Name: |
captainicebeard |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2019-05-11 |
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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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