| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
East Osceola, Mt. Osceola, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Greeley Ponds Trail, Mt. Osceola Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, January 24, 2021 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
As mentioned in previous reports, the parking lot is not plowed. There is some space to the east off the Kanc - we parked there. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
crossings are mostly bridged. I did see that some barebooters punched through in places - we were fine with our snowshoes |
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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: |
First - congrats to Sage on her 500th Grid peak, and for gridding out the Osceolas today. One more hike and she is done with January for the Grid.
Second - this is a public service announcement. I don't care what a previous trail conditions report states, in the winter you need to bring snowshoes with you. It doesn't matter if the previous day said the trail was packed...especially if there are heavy winds the night before, the morning of, and the day of your hike. Maybe you'll get lucky and not need the snowshoes...but often there are drifts. Deep drifts. We saw a lot of people who did not have snowshoes with them as we were coming back from Osceola's main peak. For your own safety, bring the 'shoes.
Sage and I were first on trail, wore snowshoes from the car since we anticipated serious drifts with the 50mph wind going on at 4000 feet and the 20mph winds going on near the parking lot this morning, and busted through the many, many deep drifts that obliterated the trail from about four-tenths of a mile up from the intersection with Greeley Ponds Trail. There were many sections of knee-deep drifts (and both Sage and I are 5'10") before we were even halfway up the steeps. The section after all the steeps up East Osceola but before the actual summit was 100% drifted over with 6 inches to knee-deep snow, depending on the area. The same goes for over half the trail between the peaks - tons of deep drifts. Given the negative temps and the frostbite-worthy winds that were sneaking through the trees up there, it would have been a nightmare and a possible loss of toes had we not been wearing snowshoes to bust through those drifts. Snow in our boots from postholing with the near 0 temps with -whatever windchills would not have gone well.
It took Sage and I just over two hours to get from East Osceola to the main peak of Osceola breaking through the drifts. This is a hike that normally takes us half an hour. On the way back, with trail broken by us and by two fellows on snowshoes (the only other people we saw wearing snowshoes all day), it took us the usual half-hour.
I am not one to care if others posthole the trail, as I normally don't have problems snowshoeing over them or whatever. But for your own safety sake and more successful peakbagging, snowshoes are important to have with you when hiking 4Ks in the White Mountains during winter. If you choose not to wear them, IMO that's your choice...but have them with you so you can use them if you feel the need and for the sake of your own safety. |
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 | Name: |
Trish and Sage |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2021-01-24 |
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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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