| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
East Osceola, Mt. Osceola, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Greeley Ponds XC Ski Trail, Mt. Osceola Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Wednesday, January 31, 2024 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
As usual, Greeley Pond TH PL not plowed, and probably not even enterable with an off-road capable vehicle. We parked three cars at the ski trail pull-off, and there were already five or six cars there, and upon return there was on more car--so the pull off can accommodate up to nine, maybe ten cars. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Black, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
No issues |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Found an expensive looking cell phone and charger in the middle of the trail on the way down--fortunately the fellow who lost it realized it only a few hundred yards further down and I was able to hand it off to him. Also very fortunate that it was on top of the snow, and I was looking down, or it could have been impaled by my crampons. |
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 | Comments: |
Guy, Doug and I wore snowshoes from the car to Osceola--entire trail a very nice, packed-out track. I switched to crampons shortly before the chimney on the way back, and kept them on until the steeps back down E. Osceola were over. The other two switched to crampons before the beginning of the steeps down E. Osceola. Trail conditions were great--the snowshoes bit well all the way up, and back down to the beginning of the steeps In eight winter hikes of the Osceolas, over twelve years, I've never seen the conditions so good. At the chimney we used the bypass of the the bypass--it was in good condition. I'm glad that I took full, 10-pt mountaineering crampons rather than my usual HS Trail Crampon Pros, as their longer teeth gave better bite in the not fully consolidated snow on the downhill steeps (love those back heel teeth, which of course neither spikes or snowshoe provide, for the steep downhills). As an aside, the fellow who dropped the cell phone did the entire hike in spikes--so it can be done, but of course the risk of serious fall/slide injury is much greater. |
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 | Name: |
RonK |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2024-01-31 |
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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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