| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Whittier, Bald Mountain (Ossipee), NH |
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 | Trails: |
Logging roads, bushwhack |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, May 31, 2026 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at gate on Gilman Valley Road, which was driveable with my FWD minivan. Room enough for 5-6 cars |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant, Leaves - Significant/Slippery |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
No issues for dogs |
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 | Bugs: |
Mosquitoes - headnet start to finish |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Parked at gate at end of Gilman Valley Road which was in good condition, driveable with FWD minivan. We started on trail at 0840. The mosquitoes immediately swarmed so we donned our head nets. We followed logging roads for 0.8 miles and started our bushwhack before the bridge over a brook. We followed a faint path and decided not to cross the upper brook instead ascending up the eastern ridge, skirting around some thick & steep areas on our way to the summit. We summitted at 1040a after 2.2 miles and 1540 ft of elevation gain. We spotted a small cairn and searched for approximately 10 minutes before we realized we had passed the summit jar. We rehung the jar with bright orange paracord for easy visualization. We agreed to search for the CCC cabin but quickly ditched the adventure when we began to lose elevation and hit some thick spruce. We backtracked to and descended the southwest ridge to the col.
On our way to Bald Mountain, we hit some very thick spruce as we zigzagged our way to what we thought was the summit. We searched for 25 minutes for a jar without success so we decided to hang our own. On our southbound descent Mary spotted a chair cairn which led us to the true summit jar. Unfortunately the register was very damp. We retraced our steps and collected the jar we had previously hung and brought it to the true summit of Bald where we placed a new register. We hung the new jar again with bright orange paracord, next to the old jar with the damp register. As we came off Bald Mountain, we hit some steep ledges just as it began to rain more heavily. I grabbed a small tree for stability but it unexpectedly snapped and I slid down several feet. Luckily I did not incur any injuries. We deliberately and slowly back ourselves down meeting up with some brushy logging roads which we took 2 miles back to our cars. Total mileage was 7 miles, of which 3.7 miles was moderately challenging bushwhacking, and 2000 ft of elevation gain which took us about 7 hours. Only saw one person with her dog as we finished our hike. She said the CCC cabin is an old ski cabin located on the western ridge of Whittier. |
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 | Name: |
Pauline |
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 | E-Mail: |
paulifeng@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2026-05-31 |
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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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