| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Downing Mountain, Eagle Cliff - West Peak, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Snowmobile trail, bushwhack, road |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, March 21, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
We drove to the drivable end of Stinson Lake Road and parked at the snowbank giving room for other to turnaround if need be. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Ice - Breakable Crust, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant, Snow - Spring Snow, Leaves - Significant/Slippery, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction, Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
found a snowmobile bridge to use |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Nice hike / bushwhack to these NH 500 Peaks. We drove to the drivable end of Stinson Lake Road.
From our parking location we strapped on hillsound trail crampons as things were pretty icy. Once over the snowbank we took the hard-packed snowmobile trail to the west. After a short distance we jumped off and started bushwhacking south in nice but very steep woods.
At first the snow was supportive but that didn’t last too long. It seems to be the case that Mary floats like a butterfly and I just posthole! Should have taken the snowshoes. The hillsound did workout well when not posting as the snow had a thick layer of icy and we wouldn’t had been able to climb without. Anyway, after about 850’ of elevation gain in less than a half mile we hit the recognized high point.
After signing in we dropped off heading south down to the col between us and our next destination, Eagle Cliff West. This side of the mountain had very little snow but patches of icy. It dropped very step and we soon hit some ledge area that we had to back track to get around. No biggie. We headed to the col / pond spillway looking for a way to cross and as luck has it, we picked up a snowmobile bridge to cross the drainage. At this area the woods begun to get deep icy snow again. That said we continued following hard packed snowmobile trail for a bit until it started heading in the wrong direction.
At that point we jumped off and started bushwhacking at moderate grain, nice woods and yes potholing to the summit of Eagle Cliff West. Well I thought I was heading to the summit. There are two peaks up there a half mile apart that are very close in elevation and let’s just say we hit both and the true summit is recognized. After signing in we dropped back down to that snowmobile bridge and rather than going back over Downing Mountain we followed the snowmobile trail east then north and it brought us out to Stinson Lake Road and a short walk back to the truck.
Nice adventure with by beautiful bride clocking in 4-1/2 miles and 1450 ft of elevation gain +/- .
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 | Name: |
Brian Bond |
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 | E-Mail: |
BrianBond@comcast.net |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-03-21 |
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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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