| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
South Moat Mountain, Middle Moat Mountain, North Moat Mountain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Moat Mountain Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, October 24, 2021 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
5 NH cars in the lot when we arrived on Passaconaway at about 8, overflowing onto the street when we returned around 12:30 |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Ice - Black |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
None of note |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trail is in great shape overall. The relocations (which appear to be new this year? I have not hiked Moat in many years). As befits such a popular trail, the first few miles are wide, smooth, with great footing; a pleasant change from the usual. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
No obvious hazards; there is almost no water between Passaconaway and North Moat though, so bring enough for the pup. |
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 | Bugs: |
None |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
A nice out and back of the Moats today. The wind was pretty terrible early on in the hike, but calmed down on the way back so were able to linger on South/Middle moat for a while around 11. Everything except Washington was in the clear. Leaves are clearly well past peak, but some color still here and there, mostly the oaks. The relocations are well-flagged, and a lot of work has clearly been done on them, but they are still new and are the least sure-footed parts of the trail before the ledges. The northern facing ledges coming off of Middle Moat now have spots of ice, and pools of water were still frozen over midday on the ledges in places. All the ice was avoidable at this time, (though difficult to see in the wrong lighting) but spikes may be required sooner rather than later. One oddity was that our GPS mileage came in a solid 1/2 mile over the book distance. Since GPS always slightly underestimates distance, we were quite puzzled, and checking the book, I couldn't find any way to reconcile the discrepancy. My only thought was the relocations, but they sure didn't seem to add a half mile to the overall distance, and the book accounts for at least one of them (I believe there were 3 in total?). But given that it was a simple out and back, I can't think of any other possibilities for such a difference. If anyone knows what's up please email me because I am curious. |
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 | Name: |
HotRodJimmy |
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 | E-Mail: |
hotrodjimmy1810@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2021-10-24 |
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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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