| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Priest Hill, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Woods roads, bushwhack |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, May 2, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked by FR 92 gate, off rt. 3. This is the winter parking for the Twins and Galehead, right near the Gale River bridge. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
No issues |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
A few ticks, see comments. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Followed the path directly behind the parking area. At the fork, bear left, heading uphill. Should pass one blue flag on your left. As you approach a field you'll get a good look at the Twins. Cross the field, noting the woods road filled with blowdowns, on the other side. TO THE RIGHT of that woods road is another woods road that comes into view as you finish crossing the field. Take that one, it'll immediately dip down to cross a gully. At this point, I did a tick check and found three about knee height. Notice someone has used a pair of nippers to cut off a bush every so often, to mark the path. As the woods road peters out, you'll get glimpses of Priest Hill slightly to the left ahead. That will be the best view of it, in terms of gauging where the high point is. The woods road will curve and become a path, use the cut bushes to guide until you come to 3 or 4 red flagged trees in a row. I believe the purpose of those flags is for locating the path on your return. I bushwhacked up a pretty gradual and wide hillside from there. I found the woods more open to the left side, and there are views of peaks you can check out if you stick to the left side of the hill. The top is oval, with high points on both ends of the oval. The summit is a rock bulge, it was on the far end. I checked out other bumps just in case. A few feet to the right of summit is a tree with a faded red paint stripe around it. I found string tied to a small tree right beside the bulge, but no jar. I replaced the jar, but I didn't buy notebooks or pencils yet, so there's just an index card in there now.
On descent, I took a straighter route, and the hardwood growth got kind of thick in places going that way. But not bad. No ticks during the bushwhack. After I got back to the car, I found two on me, so they're on that path somewhere.
Yesterday, I checked out William J.J. Gordon Forest, and had to abort early because I was just getting covered with all kinds of ticks. So this didn't seem too bad today. |
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 | Name: |
Steve Marion |
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 | E-Mail: |
swampfoxsteve@gmail |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-05-02 |
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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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