| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Tecumseh (attempt), NH |
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 | Trails: |
Mt. Tecumseh Trail, ski trails |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, December 24, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Normally a layup in winter, all three are higher than normal. Crossing one (at trailhead) required stepping on submerged rocks. Crossing two required getting across ice covered rocks. Crossing three required a combination of the two. I was able to get across all three with care with mountain snowshoes on (would have probably gone into the drink with my light ones or dull Microspikes). |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Took out a bunch of blowdowns between the trailhead and the ski trail viewpoint. Two stepovers remain in that stretch that will have to be handled later. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Don't let the drive up I-93 and Route 49 fool you; the snowpack up here survived the Festivus Monsoon and it did not turn into a skating rink.
Maybe 6-8" of snowpack at the trailhead, quickly increasing to over a foot. Unfortunately, a Festivus Fool barebooted the first half a mile or so of trail yesterday, leaving nasty frozen postholes. Looks like they eventually gave up. Perhaps they'll buy snowshoes if they decided to become a real winter hiker.
I put on snowshoes (Tubbs Flex Alps) at the trailhead and was very glad I did, due to needing to step off the packed trail to cut out blowdowns. There were a few short stretches of trail that were down to bare ground from the runoff, and there were a few areas that were still flooded and/or running (snowshoes were very helpful here, as I could get around them in the snowpack without trampling vegetation or postholing). The snowpack absorbed the rain and did not crust over, at least up to the ski trail viewpoint.
I had a late start due to the storm, so I only made it up to the ski trail viewpoint before having to call it due to diminishing daylight. Since the ski area was closed for the day at this point, I opted to descend the lower ski trails (the initial Boneyard ski trail would be very difficult without snowshoes with good traction due to pockets of powder and areas of blue ice), avoiding mountain operations and keeping snowshoes on to not disturb the corduroy or posthole (can't imagine paying $100+ for a lift ticket and then encountering a trail trashed by hikers). |
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 | Name: |
rocket21 |
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 | E-Mail: |
rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-12-24 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.franklinsites.com/hikephotos/ |
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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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