| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Stairs Mountain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Jericho Road, Rocky Branch Trail, Stairs Col Trail, Davis Path, Stairs Mountain Spur |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Thursday, March 3, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Jericho Road was plowed nicely, and there is plenty of room for parking at the turnaround which is 1.75 miles from the old Rocky Branch Trailhead but is now the current summer and winter trailhead due to Jericho Road washouts further up. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The big one, Rocky Branch, has a road bridge which was badly damaged by flooding. If not for someone leaving a length of cord on the guardrail there, we would have had to turn back. Explanation in comments. Other crossings of side streams and many, many drainage dips required care but were mostly (but not always!) frozen enough to allow for dry snowshoes. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Surprising lack of blowdowns on the entire route. Once in the softwoods of upper Stairs Col Trail and Davis Path, there are lots of branches encroaching/leaning into the trail. Much time was spent in knocking snow off branches. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
I would not subject a dog to the deep powder we encountered; plus it would have to be lifted high overhead in order to get onto the bridge over Rocky Branch. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Well, I searched and could not find any winter reports for Stairs Col Trail so thought I'd put one up. The reason we utilized this route instead of via Davis Path from Crawford and Resolution is because we encountered wet, heavy snow a couple of weeks ago when we went for the three-fer and decided to bail after Resolution. Good, I love a challenge and will grab some more Blue lines (winter trail bagging) and approach via Stairs Col!
Snowshoes car to car were absolutely essential. No need for additional traction. It was a cold, blustery day with some snow squalls early on. The wind just never stopped.
Jericho Road: Well traveled - snowshoed, skied, and barebooted - for 1.75 miles to the Rocky Branch Bridge. 3-4" fresh powder on a pretty solid base.
The bridge over Rocky Branch has a huge, deep washout on the near side (one on the far side is less pronounced and filled with snow) that could use a ladder or ramp to allow people to get onto it. Someone left a section of thin cord hanging on the guardrail, enough length and strength to wedge the left foot into (snowshoes removed) while reaching high and grabbing the guardrail. Thankfully there was a snowpile deep enough to allow us to stand on, but this whole maneuver was not easy and required upper body strength and flexibility. The crux of the route for us! Rocky Branch was not snow bridged, with lots of open water, so crossing the bridge was kind of essential.
Rocky Branch Trail: 4-6" powder atop an old snowshoe track that stopped at Rocky Branch Shelter #1. There are a couple of reroutes around washed out sections of trail, but these 2 miles were mostly flat and easy to follow.
Stairs Col Trail: 6-8-10-12-14-16..." of unbroken, unconsolidated snow... the higher the deeper. Trail was a little hard to find in the open hardwoods at the bottom, with minimal yellow blazing, but then was very easy to follow as it is mostly on an old logging road. The trail breaking was slow but manageable and enjoyable except for the 20+ deep drainage dips that had to be maneuvered around and across. Snowshoe televators were great for the steep last half mile.
Davis Path: Lots of deep, unbroken snow here along with strong NW wind gusts. In spots the snow had drifted to a couple of feet but was mostly in the 12-15" range. Some sidehilling interspersed with steep scrambles meant this section was SLOW. We did fine in snowshoes and were glad we'd left the spikes/crampons in the car.
Stairs Mountain Spur: Even deeper snow here. Haha. That 0.2 mile felt like a half mile, but finally we reached the view ledge. Yay!
The trip back took about a third of the time, and we left a beautiful snowshoe track that was already getting blown in. This is a beautiful route in winter, and I highly recommend it for those who seek solitude and challenge. You might want to bring a rope for the bridge though. |
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 | Name: |
Snowflea & Fancypants |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-03-04 |
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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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