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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks South Twin Mountain, North Twin Mountain, NH
Trails
Trails: Gale River Road, Gale River Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Saturday, May 18, 2019
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Parked at Five Corners. The gate on the road is closed. 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Mud - Significant, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow/Ice - Postholes 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment: Snowshoes, Light Traction 
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Rock hopping involved. 
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: A big duck-under on the way South Twin. Some blowdowns on the way to North Twin that made us go off course. 
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes: Didn't see any. Probably wouldn't bring them for another month and let the snow melt. 
Bugs
Bugs: None yet. 
Lost and Found
Lost and Found: n/a 
 
Comments
Comments: The road walk was dry. The beginning of Gale River trail was dry, then gets muddy, and snow starts being a thing at 2800'. Put micros on at some point on Gale River and for the entirety of the Garfield Ridge. Used snowshoes for part of the ascent of South Twin, then back to micros, and then bareboot near the summit. Micros to and from North Twin and most of the way back from where we came.

Saw a couple of people with snowshoes but most people were barebooting or in micros. The trails are so chewed up that I worry that using snowshoes would cause one to twist an ankle. When we switched to snowshoes on our way up South Twin, we came across a total of ten people with just running shoes coming down the trail. Now everything up to South Twin looks like someone took a machine gun to a block of Swiss cheese. Lots of hip-deep postholes and unstable monorails.

We "broke out" the trail to North Twin, which was soft posthole-worthy snow. Some blow-downs sent us off course, but I whipped out the GPS and found our way back. It's funny that the trail markers only help you if you are going southbound and there are zero markers if you go northbound.

When we got to North Twin, a group of folks came up North Twin in microspikes. Rumor has it that the river crossings are pretty rough, should you feel like hiking the Twins and are thinking about coming up that way instead.  
Name
Name: Jerome G 
E-Mail
E-Mail:  
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2019-05-19 
Link
Link: https:// 
Bookmark and Share 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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