| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Osceola, East Osceola, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Mt. Osceola Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Thursday, July 6, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Small fee lot with toilet facility. Often on good weekend days, the parking overflows to Tripoli Road for quite some distance. Parking only allowed on one side of Tripoli Road (signed). Some vehicles parked on the road today.
Tripoli Road is in generally good condition from I-93 to the trailhead. A bit bumpy at times. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Significant |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The brooks on the Mt Osceola from Tripoli Road to East Osceola are not large. So even though the recent rains have swelled these small streams compared to normal levels at this time of year, the crossings were easy on rocks. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trail in good condition. One tree across the trail below Mt Osceola on the way to East Osceola. It is about 18" diameter close to the ground. The limbs have been cut so it is easy to step/straddle over. One small leaner into the trail on Breadtray Ridge that is easy to bend under.
There are spots where there always seems to be mud including watery mud that has invited hikers to use ad hoc paths to the side of the trail. Perhaps bog bridges or stepping rocks could remedy the problem (similar to the improvements on the Hancock Ridge). |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Fine for dogs with a possible exception for the chimney between the two peaks. There is a by-pass to avoid the chimney if the dog is hesitant at using the steep chimney route. |
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 | Bugs: |
Not many. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
I switched my plans and decided to hike the Mt Osceola Trail due to the high temperatures and humidity and the route has no difficult stream crossings. The Mt Osceola Trail has easy to moderate grades with a relatively low elevation for bagging two 4K peaks. The trail is wet in many stretches. The depth is shallow in the places where the water is running on the trail. The trail crosses several ledge spots (as opposed to leading up or down the ledges). In these spots, the pathway follows the bottom edge of the ledges. One has to avoid some protruding roots and some running water at the perimeter of these ledge areas. These spots can be tricky when icy. Not a problem today!
There are some good views including the wide ledge area on Mt Osceola, a rock ledge at the end of a short side trail leading north just before reaching the aforementioned ledge area from the Tripoli Road approach, and a small ledge just off the trail below East Osceola on the stretch between the two peaks. The humidity reduced the clarity of the views. Nevertheless one could see many peaks including the distant Kearsarge North and Moat Mountain.
There is a cairn marking the summit of East Osceola. There is no marking for Mt Osceola's summit but if you reach the wide ledge area you are in the vicinity. There were hikers from both the Tripoli Road and the Greeley Pond approaches. Hiked all the way to East Osceola with Joe from Waterville ME. Met one hiker from Reno NV, a group from NJ, and three UNH hikers conducting a wildlife project. There were local hikers from MA, RI, NH, ME. |
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 | Name: |
WAUMBEK |
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 | E-Mail: |
WAUMBEK@Roadrunner.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-07-06 |
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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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