| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Cabot, The Bulge, The Horn, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
York Pond Trail, Bunnell Notch Trail, Kilkenny Ridge Trail, Horn Spur, Unknown Pond Trail |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 9, 2023 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
|
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow - Spring Snow |
|
 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
A few water crossings on Bunnel Notch Trail, but all were rock-hoppable. Water crossings on Unknown Pond Trail were a little more annoying. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Blazes on Killkenny Ridge are peeling off the birch trees. Some blow-downs on Killkenney as well. |
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Passed Shark on Bunnel Notch. Saw some doggy footprints on Unknown Pond as well. |
|
 | Bugs: |
A few on Unknown Pond (which is getting muddy) |
|
 | Lost and Found: |
|
|
|
|
|
 | Comments: |
Bunnel Notch is pristine. The snow was packed and easy to hike the whole way to Cabot with just microspikes.
Killkenney Ridge was a mess of footprints splitting and rejoining. Often, it seemed that the footprints were not following the official blazed trail. Along the way, there was a mixture of bootprints and snowshoes. One other guy and myself crossed Killkenney today with snowshoes, so the trail might be slightly better now. The snow was not solid, nor was it soft. It was CRUNCHY. You may want a map or GPS to follow Killkenney.
There were many different sets of footprints going different ways up the Horn Spur, but it was easy to follow because there's pretty much just one clear way up. The snow was completely melted off the rocks on top of The Horn.
Unknown Pond Trail was easy to follow. It just shoots straight down a river until you get back to the parking lot. The forest near Unknown Pond Trail is rather sparse. As a result, the sun was really coming through the trees and creating a slushy trail. I wore snowshoes most of the way down Unknown Pond to deal with the slush. Around the last mile approaching the trailhead, I took my snowshoes off because there were several long (10-30 feet) sections of mud with no snow.
I also saw some not-dog and not-human prints on the way down Unknown Pond Trail. Another trail report from a week ago said they saw moose prints. Maybe that's what these were? |
|
 | Name: |
Elliot Miller |
|
 | E-Mail: |
elliot@bitoffdev.com |
|
| Date Submitted: |
2023-04-10 |
|
 | Link: |
 https://www.strava.com/activities/8862012635 |
|
|
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. |
|
