| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Hale, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Zealand Road, Hale Brook Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, March 8, 2026 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Park on 302 walk zealand rd |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Wet/Sticky, Snow - Spring Snow, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Snow bridge, unstable.. will likely collapse soon, soft spots. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
3 blowdowns over hale Brook trail |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
There was a hat with a Pom Pom, left side trail. |
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 | Comments: |
Snow shoes are an absolute must. We are knee deep in mashed potato snow season… literally. I started up, passed a group of 3 guys & was in for a ride. The snow is soft, unstable with even snowshoes, sticky.. stay center as much as possible, though still unlikely to not sink. As I was coming down saw the 3 guys and another 1 after with snowshoes, this helped pack down some things a little, though nowhere near consolidated at this point. Up past the water crossing some distance, I ran into a long section where someone carpet bombed the trail with post holes, they turned around after some time, leaving the shredded Swiss cheese of a situation behind. I did run into the culprit & politely educated on the safety concern for both them & others, that snowshoes should not be optional in this case of trail conditions & are strongly advised.
I did try my best to stomp some holes in, not to much success they were pretty impressive. I fell into some when trying to stay beside at times, when they were really deep & no exaggeration the consumed my whole leg. Hoping the four guys coming back down put in some more work to straighten things out. The whole trail was pretty ugly, which was unavoidable.. but particularly this lower half. The snowbridge on water crossing was holding but letting go in some spots.. not likely to hold for long.
Zealand rd was also a mushy mess. Totally doable hike, I mean honestly not an entire drag. It was actually rather humorous at points but definitely heeds a bit extra caution on foot placement & keeping upright especially where the trail gets rather narrow.
Be mindful of your fellow hikers & do your trail service you lovely humans, we need them to not freeze over & end up like hell (hale)… unless you are a particular glutton for suffering.
With Love,
TrailDad
PS happy hiking!🥾 |
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 | Name: |
TrailDaddyRik |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2026-03-08 |
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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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