| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
None, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail, Crawford Path, Dry River Trail, Mt. Eisenhower Trail, Edmands Path, roadwalks |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, July 13, 2019 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at the crossroads at Base Road, Mt. Clinton Road, and Jefferson Notch Road. Mt. Clinton Road apparently had opened that morning, Ammonoosuc Ravine trailhead was overflowing by 8am, Edmands had overflowed on to the road during the day too. Absolutely crazy to see the amount of vehicles at various trailheads on our way home (and it was late), Appalachia had cars lined up down Rt.2 almost to Pinkham B Road! |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All crossings of consequence were rock-hoppable with care, especially the two of Dry River. The crossing below Dry River Shelter 3 was easier than the one on Mt. Eisenhower Trail, owing to large boulders to negotiate. Water levels were not high. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Maintenance duties started right outside of Lakes, as we began brushing back the scrub that has encroached into the tread, and fixing a few sad looking cairns. While we thought that the above treeline section wasn't going to be much of a problem, it ended up taking us WAY longer than expected. We did our best to delineate the trail, and remove any confusion as to where it runs. That said, we didn't have nearly enough time, and the ~1.5-2 miles of trail above the shelter are going to require at least two more trips before it's in a better state, and that's being conservative. After being out there for several hours, we decided to concentrate more on blowdown removal than brushing, so there are still a few sections that need serious brushing, but they would have taken us hours to clear. That said, we did clear the trail of most of the offending blowdowns (more than 20 of them), though there still are plentiful step-overs (which are being left as per wilderness standards), and a couple of large diameter trunks across the trail that require a climb over. There is plenty of mud and standing/running water, that we'll try to address, but that's a very long term goal at this point. Got to check out some of our handiwork from last week on the section below the shelter, and there are no new blowdowns or any worsening drainage issues! We did have to fix a couple of our small navigational cairns, especially at the washout below the shelter, as they appear to have been knocked over. Please don't knock over these cairns, they're there for a reason!!! |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw one very well behaved English Lab with her owner on upper Dry River, and later at the shelter where they stayed the night. |
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 | Bugs: |
Awful on Dry River during our maintaining activities, black flies mostly, not terrible if you were actually hiking. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Another in a series of Dry River Trail maintenance trips, this time to the least maintained section, and a solid argument against trying to come at any section of it as a day trip. Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail was an absolute zoo, many large groups, with not a care in the world that other hikers were coming up behind them. It was great to get over the lip of Oakes Gulf, and away from the circus. Once on Dry River Trail itself, we chatted with James, a Forest Service Ranger, just above Lakes. After dropping down into the Gulf, we only saw four people and a dog, much preferred. Very slow going with brushing and blowdown removal. There is a fairly long (~300-400') section of very brushy trail, probably 1.25 miles above the shelter in a blowdown patch, that has had sun exposure for quite some time, and is very grown in. You can pick out the treadway in this section, so it's still able to be followed. I would not recommend the upper Dry River Trail to anyone but experienced hikers and backpackers, even with increased maintenance, as even with our efforts to delineate the trail, it's a wild place that inexperienced person(s) could get into trouble in. |
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 | Name: |
Bill Robichaud |
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 | E-Mail: |
bill.robichaud@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2019-07-14 |
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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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