| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Cooley Hill, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Road walk, Jericho Road Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, December 31, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Logging operations are starting so the gate is open and there are no parking signs there. I parked at a wide-out a couple hundred yards or so down 116 with room for a few cars. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow - Spring Snow |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Minor drainages. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
There are a lot of blowdowns, from pole sized individual stems to multi-stem chain saw worthy larger trees. There's only one before the last log landing and one can walk under it. After that they form a series all along the trail right to the old fire tower. A few are workarounds, the others are straddle overs, step overs or duck unders. For hikers its just a nuisance, but for the bicylists next summer these have to be removed. I kicked/flicked/picked a lot of branches but there's more. The close out waterbars up to the last landing are very soft and instead of going over them one should really go around them in the current or near forecast conditions. I goofed up on one. The trail is generally well brushed and very easy to follow; blazes are present in places. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Great dog hike after getting above the active logging road/trail use. |
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 | Bugs: |
None at least today. Today it felt like tick season could start up with black flies soon thereafter. It would be nice if they came out and then got clobbered by the cold to follow but that is wishful thinking. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
None |
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 | Comments: |
Most of the snow and ice is gone except for the ice on the lowest section of road where logging related vehicles packed the snow down, and even that is going. Except for some of the blowdowns and a few soft spots which are really minor hindrances, it is as easy to hike as in summer. I carried snowshoes, spikes and stabilicers but other than the road ice none were needed. The road/trail up to the last landing is soft, with some melted ice pockets. The trail after that is still pretty solid. I still am mystified that where the trail runs along the clear cuts no buffer was left to keep regen down on the trail, but in winter it is leafless and not yet an issue. There are still views of the Kinsmans and Wolf from the clear cut edge through and over the leafless regen. There was just a harvester running today and then only in the morning. They are operating rather low off the road/trail so most of the hike is unaffected. |
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 | Name: |
Zero |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-12-31 |
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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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