| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Passaconaway, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Dicey's Mill Trail, East Loop, View Spur |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Thursday, May 21, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
No problems. Room for 5 more cars. Saw more signage this time for places not to park. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Ice - Breakable Crust, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow/Ice - Postholes, Slush |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
One stream crossing. Can choose between walking a log or using slightly submerged rocks. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trail is in great shape. Lower snow free sections have had spring maintenance completed - water bars cleaned, stone steps cleaned. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
A few black flies at the trail head and first mile but disappeared once I entered the woods. I am sure this will change. Was not an issue coming back since there was a good breeze to keep them away. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
A bluebird day. Upper 50’s at trail head to start. First part of the hike is mostly flat for a couple miles. Came to a minor stream which had a log across it but opted to use slightly submerged rocks to cross. Used the log on the return. After this point the trail runs steeper in sections then begins to switchback with steeper sections.
Ran into monorail after the first switchback and was able to sidestep it for a ways. Put on snowshoes when it covered the entire trail. This really helped with stability and avoiding post holing when the snow got deeper higher up. Closer to the summit some trail sections were small streams. Snow now was 1-2 feet deep. Removed snowshoes at a rock scramble near the summit and left them behind a tree and switched to spikes. These worked well for a while until soft snow and monorail were encountered later. Decided to check out the view point .3 miles north from the summit loop. It was a sloppy trek mostly down hill with 1-3 feet of snow in sections. Wished I had had my snowshoes as the snow was deep in places. Post holed several times. But views to the north were great with Mt. Washington clearly visible. After returning to the loop I realized I hadn’t gotten to the true summit. There is a short unmarked side trail to it. Upper 40’s in the shaded areas. Decided to stay with spikes for the descent as there were some solid ice sections that spikes would handle better. A nice breeze for the last mile kept the bugs away but at the trail head the temperature had soared to 83 degrees. |
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 | Name: |
Dexhiker |
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 | E-Mail: |
dexpcdoc@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-05-21 |
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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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