| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Mack, Mt. Anna, Mt. Shannon, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Road walk, Mack Ridge Trail, Round Pond-Mt. Mack Trail, Belknap Range Trail, Anna-Old Stage Road Link, Blue Trail, Yellow Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 10, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of room at the Hidden Valley trailhead on the shore of Lake Eileen at the Griswold Scout Reservation. The dirt roads leading there are slightly muddy in places and have a lot of potholes, but everything is quite manageable if you take it slowly. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Significant, Leaves - Significant/Slippery, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All easy rock hops, and one had a bridge. I decided not to use Red Trail (between Goat Pasture Hill and Sunset Lake) due to its major river crossing - I suspect it would've been difficult. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Several blowdowns on the northern section of Blue Trail, a couple of which require short detours to get around. Lots of muddy areas and standing water on the trails - not too surprising since it did rain yesterday. All signs are in place, however the upper part of Yellow Trail on Mt. Shannon could be blazed better, and novices might find it difficult to follow. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Should be fine. |
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 | Bugs: |
Saw one flying insect, and found one tick on me (while I was sitting down eating lunch). They're coming out. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Some sort of electric cord had been placed on the trail sign at the junction of the Old Stage Road and Anna-Old Stage Road Link. I left it there. |
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 | Comments: |
This hike completed my Belknaps redlining! I could have finished my redlining with just a short 2.5-mile hike over Mt. Shannon, but decided to do a longer, more strenuous hike just for the heck of it. Mack Ridge Trail (south) had some wet and muddy areas. Mack Ridge Trail itself is a fun climb with some very nice views, but it had a lot of wet, slippery rocks that could catch you unawares if you're not careful. A few small patches of snow and ice above 1700 feet, mostly off the trail. Round Pond-Mt. Mack Trail up to the summit of Mt. Mack is mostly an old road that is very wet, muddy, and eroded. A couple more small patches of snow there that were easily avoided. At the summit of Mt. Mack, I chatted with a BRATTS volunteer who was checking out the Mt. Klem-Mt. Mack Loop.
Belknap Range Trail between Mt. Mack and Mt. Anna has several wet ledges that are very slippery, particularly during the initial descent from Mt. Mack (I won't say how I know that those ledges are so slippery). The brooks at the base of the descent were running quite well today, but none were difficult to cross. A few small, off-trail patches of snow on Mt. Anna, and a couple small pieces of ice from a former monorail - nothing to worry about. From Anna, I descended the Old Stage Road Link - the lower part of this trail had a lot of standing water and mud.
The northern section of Blue Trail looks flat on a map, but it actually has a whole bunch of small ups and downs, as well as a couple of water crossings that weren't difficult but required caution. This section also had a bunch of blowdowns and at least one major widowmaker. I then followed Yellow/Blue Trail up Mt. Shannon - the water crossings at the base of this trail have nice new-looking bridges, and the middle and upper parts were dry. The view from the summit of Shannon was spectacular.
Finally, I descended Yellow Trail to Sunset Lake. This was my final stretch of trail needed to redline the Belknaps. From the summit of Shannon, there's no blaze to show you where the trail is, but start descending the most likely-looking route (it's steep at the top), and it will become increasingly obvious that it's the trail. There's not much more to say about this trail, other than that I hugged the sign at the junction with Red Trail on the shore of Sunset Lake, which is where I officially completed my redlining.
A fun hike, as always in the Belknaps. And just because I'm done with redlining there, doesn't mean I won't be hiking there anymore - I definitely will. |
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 | Name: |
GN |
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 | E-Mail: |
ghnaigles@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-04-10 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.meetup.com/young-redliners-hiking-group/ |
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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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