| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Osceola, East Osceola, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Mt. Osceola Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Monday, October 12, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
I arrived at 7:30am and was able to get a spot although there weren’t too many left at that point. It’s a pretty small lot given the popularity of the trail. Although the trail didn’t seem as busy as anyone anticipated it still overflowed big time by the time I returned around 11:15am. |
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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: |
Only trivial little rock hops |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
I don’t recall the trail being blazed but it’s easy to follow. Just watch for where it switchbacks. There were one or two blowdowns though (duck under) that should get removed. I believe the one I’m recalling is about halfway up the trail to the main peak. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
This would probably be a fine trail for most dogs but given its popularity on a fall weekend it’s probably best they’re leashed unless yours is very well trained and on voice command. |
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 | Bugs: |
None |
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 | Lost and Found: |
A few small items left in the trail. I picked up a black glove. If you lost one let me know and I’m happy to return it. I also recall a hat but didn’t pack that out. |
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 | Comments: |
A quick morning hike to grab both Osceolas. These were two of only a handful of the 48 I’ve only done twice. They counted as #11&12 for my October grid. This was hike 1 of 2 for the day.
Very cold in the morning and not having the sun out didn’t help. Also, although not terribly windy, it seemed to be much breezier than expected which made for some very chilly summits. I’m guessing the wind chill was in the teens when I first hit both summits. The sun did come out to play later and you could feel it warming on my way down. High 40s when I returned to my car. I think it was only low-mid 30s when I started.
While I did see several dozen people at least I’m sure, everyone seemed surprised at the relatively small number of people on the trail. Of course, as I headed down there were more, but still. It seems that most weekenders did their hiking Saturday and Sunday.
The trail was mostly dry but had lots of wet spots and wet rock to be careful of too. In particular, there was a thin film of ice over some of the ledges higher up on the trail. Although some of it had melted, some was still there on my descent. It wasn’t too hard to see if you were looking but would also be easy to miss and step on it and fall. I tried to warn people heading up. Personally, I don’t think spikes would’ve been worth the wait. Some frozen water on level ground higher up too but this just broke beneath your weight. Some of it was over mud though so some rock hopping was done close to the summit of the main peak.
I’d only done the section of trail between the two peaks once, over four years ago so it was cool to do it again. Pretty rugged at times! I took the bypass down and the chimney back up. I may have seen what’s called the bypass around the bypass at the bottom of the chimney too but I think that’s only used in winter and I didn’t check it out.
Nice to see many families out hiking and enjoyed some conversation with George who’s working on his 48! Keep chipping away bud :D
And you thought I’d take a day off hiking after finishing redlining...ha! |
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 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
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 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-10-13 |
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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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