| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Mt. Monroe, Mt. Eisenhower, Mt. Pierce, Mt. Jackson, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Cog Railway, Gulfside, Jefferson Loop, Trinity Heights, Crawford Path, Mt. Monroe Loop, Mt. Eisenhower Loop, Webster-Jackson Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 12, 2026 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
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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: |
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 | Comments: |
Barebooted most of the way up the Cog until the just before the Jacobs Ladder section. Upon meeting Gulfside, there was a section of hard ice that was sketchy at first, and softening up fast when returning. Over to Jefferson was mostly icy trail with rocks poking through and rime ice on the boulders that was melting fast in the sun. I barebooted from around the Jewell Junction to Jefferson and stayed that way until the sketchy side hill spot before meeting Great Gulf on the way up to Washington. There’s enough exposed rock to just rock hop around all the ice, just pay careful attention your foot placement. I honestly barebooted 95% of my above treeline travel today, but I like to walk on the wild side, rather than destroy my spikes in one day. Everyone I passed had spikes on. Spikes were useful for the descent down Washington in places, when coverage was more consistent, and the climb up Monroe. I took them off at Monroe and kept them off until the climb up Pierce, save for maybe a couple brief soots. Firm monorail in the scrub sections, and grippy frozen granular. You could bring snowshoes for here, but you won’t want to use them, the monorail is too narrow. From the hut to Jackson was an absolute highway. I did use spikes here, and was able to make easy work of the ledgy flow ice spot. Jackson summit and ledges were bare. I took spikes off when the snow became inconsistent at the Webster-Jackson split. From there, any remaining snow/ice was avoidable or low consequence enough that it could be bare booted.
Beautiful day, where the heck was everyone? I only saw about a dozen people and had every summit but Pierce to myself. |
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 | Name: |
jeffb.23 |
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 | E-Mail: |
jcburtt at gmail |
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| Date Submitted: |
2026-04-12 |
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 | Link: |
 https://strava.app.link/Xkcdyc1bi2b |
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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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