| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Madison, Mt. Adams, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Valley Way, Osgood Trail, Gulfside, Airline |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Monday, January 9, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Black, Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow - Drifts, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Postholes, Slush |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction, Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Anything past the hut gets icy. A nice hike to the hut with Fido would be fine. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Used microspikes from the start. Down low, especially at the ice after the second minor crossing if you see rocks with a small amount of snow there’s probably hard, black ice underneath it. Switched to snowshoes about .4 from the hut for the drifts to prevent post holing up to my knees (some post hiking already present) and to give my calves a break (televators).
Left the shoes at the hut and put microspikes back on for the ascent to Madison. Easy climb up the snowpacks but when I attempted to use the rocks around some of the more icy places I noticed most if not all were coated in thick black ice, making things slow going. Switched to Hillsounds at the summit and descended carefully. Almost wished I had used full crampons on the snowpacks to make it easier. Picked up the snowshoes at the hut but didn’t wear them again - the drifts on VW were pretty broken up by the return trip and snow shoes would have made it more difficult. Fully expect drift to fill in overnight. Madison was the only place I would have used full crampons on the hike.
Gulfside to airline was pretty uneventful - kept the Hillsounds on until about a mile to the trailhead on valley way. Careful ascent and descent from adams via Airline but much easier than Madison. Great undercast and a beautiful day. Met two nice ladies on my return trip. |
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 | Name: |
BubblesTheHiker |
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 | E-Mail: |
Kdoer @ yahoo . com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-01-10 |
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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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