| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Gunstock Mountain, Mt. Rowe, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Connector, Round Pond Trail, Overlook Trail, Saddle Trail, Brook Trail, Ridge Trail, Ridge Trail Road Bypass |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, May 7, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Huge amounts of space in both the main Gunstock ski area parking lot, and the Pistol lot to the side (where we parked). There's a sign for the Pistol lot to direct people to it. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Leaves - Significant/Slippery |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Practically nothing - just a few easy one- or two-step crossings. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trails are well-maintained and in good condition. Just one or two blowdowns on the whole route. A little bit of mud in a few places, but nothing too bad. Signage is good. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw a few. They shouldn't have any issues. |
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 | Bugs: |
They're coming out. Bug spray was needed for most of our group. They weren't too bad when we were moving, or at the summit or places with a nice breeze, but when we stopped to take breaks they started to swarm around us. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing. |
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 | Comments: |
This was a great hike with a Meetup group. The connector from the Pistol parking lot to Round Pond Trail, and Round Pond Trail itself, are wide dirt roads that were muddy in places but not too bad. Overlook Trail is signed and blazed in orange - it's a little rocky in places but not bad at all, and never steep. The overlook and mini-waterfall were both very nice. The deciduous trees along the way are starting to leaf, but you can still kinda see the view through the trees (I suspect in a week or two that will be totally obscured). Saddle Trail and Brook Trail up to Gunstock were a little wet and muddy in a few places, but nowhere near as bad as I've seen it in the past. No snow at all on the trails - the only snow remaining is on the ski slopes, and it's just patches that are left. The view from the top of Gunstock was outstanding - Washington's snow-capped summit was clearly visible.
Ridge Trail was a nice descent - not too steep and with nice switchbacks, and the breeze generally kept the bugs away on this section. The climb up to Rowe is fairly short, and the view from the open area there is excellent. For the descent of Rowe, we decided to take the Bypass down. This trail was once signed as "Better Than The Road", but after descending it... I'm not so sure about that. Other hikers in my group complained about the slippery leaves on some sections of the trail, and moved back over to the road about halfway down. I took the bypass the whole way down, since I wanted to redline it, but the bypass also has a large mudpit near the bottom, and the road is shorter and more direct, so if I were to descend Rowe again I'd probably just take the road.
All in all it was a fantastic day with beautiful weather. Never a bad time to hike in the Belknaps! |
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 | Name: |
GN |
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 | E-Mail: |
ghnaigles@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-05-08 |
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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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