| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Little Haystack Mountain, Mt. Lincoln, Mt. Truman, Mt. Lafayette, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Falling Waters Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Greenleaf Trail, Old Bridle Path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, April 25, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
About 8 cars in the parking lot when we arrived at 7:15. Lot was fairly full when we finished around 2:30. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Wet/Slippery Rock, Ice - Breakable Crust, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow - Wet/Sticky |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction, Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Water crossings possible via rock hopping, though we did the crossings on Falling Waters in the early morning before temperatures rose and the water was near the tops of rocks in places. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
We did not bring our dog, because the reviews from prior week said parts of the trail near top were very icy and required crampons. Due to the warm temps and sun and lack of wind on this day, dogs would have done fine. However, if there's a thaw and refreeze and temps stay below freezing on the hike day, I would leave Rover at home. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Someone hung a found Reebok hat (blue with white and red trim) on a branch on Greenleaf or Bridle Path. |
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 | Comments: |
Perfect conditions for a hike on Saturday. SHARP microspikes and poles worked fine for us. We took crampons, but did not use them. On the way down, there were areas of exposed rock without snow/ice so I found myself removing the microspikes and putting them back on a number of times because I don't like the lack of traction of spikes on bare rocks (plus I don't want to prematurely dull the spikes). If there is a hard refreeze after yesterday's melt, I highly recommend crampons. There was running water of several inches in Bridle Path near the end. Overall, lots of variance in the surface yesterday - everything from bare, dry rock, to drifted wet snow on the peak (my feet were wet by the end of the day even though I was wearing waterproof hikers), soft and firm monorail and a few small sections of hard ice.
Only drawback of the day was one hiking party brought a drone and flew it overhead the entire time we were walking the ridge from Haystack to Lincoln. Nothing like LOUD mechanical buzzing to ruin the ambiance of that beautiful ridge walk. |
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 | Name: |
Belinda |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-04-26 |
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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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