| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Little Wildcat, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Nineteen Mile Brook Trail, bushwhack |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, February 11, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
A handful of cars at the 19MB lot at 7:45am and still plenty of room. When I returned just shy of 2:30pm, it was kostky full but hadn’t overflowed and still had room for several cars. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Wet/Sticky |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
You can find snowbridged spots to easily cross on 19MB. Just follow my tracks. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
19MB Trail is blazed in blue and easy to follow. Trail splits off in a spot with a duck under. The better packed side where the blowdown is is the true trail. This is the only blowdown I recall. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
They might struggle in the deep snow and steep pitches on Little Wildcat but then again so did I and I’m not a dog owner. Some nasty dog poop on 19MBT that was left in the middle of the trail. |
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 | Bugs: |
Surprisingly, this was the first time this winter I saw snowfleas! |
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 | Lost and Found: |
None |
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 | Comments: |
Day 103, Peak 90. What was supposed to be the first of at least two, likely more, hikes of the day, but this took WAY longer than anticipated so wound up being my only hike yesterday (Friday). We’d hoped for a presi day but with the forecasted winds, it wasn’t in the cards. Just shy of 8am, it was already in the 30s (and I believe above freezing) when I started which I thoroughly enjoyed. No wind other than in the parking lot later in the day and as I got close to the summit.
I hiked up the 1.9mi to the jct with Carter Dome Trail in 45-50min. I used snowshoes though bareboots seemed fine. Spikes probably would’ve balled up. I crossed the brook here and painstakingly tried to make my way up the steep bank on the other side. Once at the top, I walked briefly through a flat area to what might be called the “base of the ridge” to Little Wildcat. The “ridge” wasn’t really much of a ridge though. Looking at my track on Gaia, the topos lines barely distinguish what I’d call a ridge and though I did stay a bit too far to the north of it, at times it looked even steeper in that direction. The story from here to the summit is all the same: grueling trail breaking conditions in deep, wet snow. The grade was often great enough that it was nearly impossible to make progress with snowshoes. Anytime I hit a steep pitch, it was VERY slow going. Not steep enough to be dangerous or anything though. On these pitches, I often found myself almost hip deep in snow. It was normal to sink in above my knee.
The worst of it was probably when I hit a cliffy area. Didn’t seem immediately easy to go around so I just fought my way up. This was somewhere around 2800ft and also where the hardwood forest transitions to softwoods. Shortly after this, I made a loop, and headed north, then south again to get back on my bearing, around some cliffs. This was from 2900-3000ft and I came back into line with my bearing where you see a flattish area around the 3000ft contour. Around here, I also contoured for a bit to look for a good opening in some thicker woods and a nicer grade. I found the latter but not the former. A bit more hell, then the grade finally eased up around the summit and you could maintain a pace. It took me nearly 4hrs of bushwhacking to reach the summit. It took less than 1/4 that time to get back down. Considering it’s only 1/2minas the crow flies from the 19MBT CDT jct to the summit, and my track had me at closer to 2/3mi, I averaged less than 0.2mph. Absolutely astounding. Now that the work is done, it should be easy to get there. Someone did it today and it only took them 45min to summit following my tracks.
I signed in and followed my tracks back except that I found a better route down the bank of 19MB and to the trail. So, if you’re trying to follow my route, I’d recommend looking for tracks shortly BEFORE the jct with CDT. There was also a nice little view toward Carter Dome Slide and such a short ways from the summit. Though this took many times as long as I thought it would due to the combination of deep, wet snow and the incline, the woods were open. Open hardwoods down low, and though I came to some thicker softwoods, I avoided them and found semi-open softwoods all the way to the summit. So in that sense, this is a good route. In summer, I’m sure it’s a piece of cake. If I were doing it again in winter, I might try a less steep route…coming up the northern ridge perhaps?
Total hike was 5.25mi with almost 1900ft of gain, taking 6.5hrs. Don’t let that scare you though, if you do that before my tracks disappear it will take you a small fraction of that time. 262 more days and 275 more peaks to go… |
|
 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
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 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-02-12 |
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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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