| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
East Osceola, Mt. Osceola, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Greeley Ponds Trail, Mt. Osceola Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, January 5, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parking lot is open and easy to drive into/park in. There's a base of packed snow but it wasn't slippery. I was the first car there a bit before 7 and it was mostly full (~10 cars?) when I left at ~1pm. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Water crossings were low and had plenty of rocks for rock hopping. They are starting to freeze over but I didn't trust the fresh-looking ice so I stuck to the rocks. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A couple of blowdowns just before the East Osceola summit and along the ridge but all were easy to step over or around. I did hear a lot creaks and pops from trees swaying in the wind so new blowdowns may be arriving soon thanks to the high winds. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
The flatter bits at the start of the hike were packed snow with pretty consistent cover except at the water crossings. I wound up putting on sharp hillsounds at the first water crossing because I was worried about ice on the rocks. Kept them on the whole hike in spite of bringing snowshoes. The snow got softer once I reached the steep parts of the climb up East Osceola but there were enough rocky/bony sections where there would be very shallow snow over ice or rock that it didn't really make sense to switch to snowshoes. Along the ridge the snow was also soft and sometimes had 4-6" drifts where the trail was in the path of the wind. I took the bypass to the bypass at the chimney and that was quite easy. At least 16 other people hiked the Osceolas today so I think everything outside of the windy/drifty areas will be very packed down until the next snow.
Since it's very windy: today the steep climb up to East Osceola was completely sheltered from the wind which was much appreciated. Along the ridge was more of a mixed bag with some stretches getting wind and others being more sheltered. Overall the ridge was much less windy than I was expecting which was very good because direct wind made things extremely cold. |
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 | Name: |
Joanna |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-01-05 |
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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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