| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Stairs Mountain (attempt), NH |
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 | Trails: |
Jericho Road, Rocky Branch Trail, Stairs Col Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, March 5, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Jericho is well plowed but heaved. Room for at least 15 cars in the lot. We were first in and last out. |
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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: |
Other than Rocky Branch, none were any problem. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Main track on Jericho road is filled with canine land mines...careful! |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
Not today - one of the many joys of winter hiking! |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
We were inspired to attempt this route by the report filed by Snowflea and Fancypants on Friday. They made this hike much easier and we send our sincere thanks to them! We want to hike with you guys!
We used snowshoes the entire hike. Jericho road was a nice soft snowshoe track that hadn't been touched since S&F returned on Friday. Made good time to the bridge. We had packed a rope but ended up just using the cord that was there as a stirrup, and we had no problems getting up on the bridge. Rocky Branch to the shelter was a beautiful walk in the morning sun, following the soft packed track as it went the best ways over the drainages and took a little whack after the Lower Stairs brook. We noted a few deer tracks crossing the trail heading to and from the river on this stretch.
We stopped briefly at the shelter and then headed up Stairs Col noting that Rocky Branch going north was not broken out. With the change of direction the track was now filled in for about 3/4 of the length of the Stairs Col trail, which slowed us down but the track was always visible and firm underneath. Here we noticed a fox had enjoyed the packed trail for a little stretch. We were glad to have the track to follow and thought route finding must have been challenging for S&F as once in the Wilderness blazes were rare and the canopy partially hidden by branches, and at times signs of brushing were the only clue where the trail was. Over the last half mile the bottom of the trench got lower and lower as the snow depth increased, pushing us further into the branches at the top of the canopy. This section might have turned us around if it hadn't been pre-broken - S&F are some strong hikers. When we reached the junction with Davis Path we were gassed. We noted that Davis Path heading south was not broken out. We backtracked up to the height of land and found a sunny log to eat lunch (hot tea and a PB/honey sandwich) and enjoyed the easterly views to Thorn Mt. in Jackson.
After lunch Notch said he was willing to push for Stairs but Pumba said she wasn't up for it. We had both fasted Wed and Fri and nutrition was not good on Thu so we were both lacking our usual stamina. We made the call to abort and were glad we did as we neared the end of the hike. Down the steeps on Stairs Col we half walked, half snowshoe-skied the soft track. That was fun! It was soft and powdery and like walking on a cloud all the way back to the shelter. We stopped again to retrieve the water bottle we had forgotten there. The sun had warmed Rocky Branch making the snow a little sticky and firm, and a single skier had come in and gone out which also firmed the track. We now know this was Nordic_gal - we didn't notice her snowshoe track diverge from Stairs Col at 2000 feet. Getting back down off of the bridge was not fun but not a problem - the cordage makes all the difference. Be careful around the sides of the log that is used as a step up to the bridge as it's hollow under the snow there and you can punch through the snow - I left a deep hole there and was lucky to avoid injury. Jericho road had been heavily used since the morning and the main track was filled with divots from a barebooter but we mostly smoothed it out again. We had the woods to ourselves the whole day - we saw no people or animals and only a few birds up high. Failure to summit was a little disappointing but otherwise a great day. |
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 | Name: |
notch and pumba |
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 | E-Mail: |
bowmore17@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-03-06 |
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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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