| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Big Ball Mountain, Black Snoot, Mt. Shaw, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Mt. Shaw Trail, Tate Mountain Trail, Banana Trail, Black Snout Spur Trail, Black Snout Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, May 3, 2015 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Informal lot was overflowing onto Route 171. Recent selective cut logging also noted, but it appears either they're done, or else are parking the skidder down the road. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
On ascent, none. On descent (Mt. Shaw Trail), rock hoppable on wet rocks. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Lots of blowdowns and deadfall in the Castle property. With some help from some other hikers, I cut out most of the blowdowns on the carriage road portion, but some chainsaw work will be needed. Work will also be needed on the Banana Trail between the peaks, as well as on the Mt. Shaw Trail. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
A few black flies, but none biting yet. Have not found any ticks yet, but they do rather enjoy the grassy carriage roads. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Initial portion of the Mt. Shaw Trail has been recently logged (selective cut of pine), but there's no impact to the hiking trail at this time.
Tate Mountain Trail turnoff is easy to miss (no sign and blazing doesn't start until a few dozen feet up the trail). Trail was dry and snow free.
Banana Trail was dry and snow free to Big Ball Mountain.
Banana Trail was mostly dry between Big Ball Mountain and Black Snoot (I refer to it as Black Snoot, as a very old map labels this peak Black Snoot and the trailless peak on the northern side of the range as Black Snout). Portions of the trail are hard to follow, as the woods are open but there's a lot of deadfall (including on the trail).
Black Snout Spur (carriage road) has some patches of foot deep snow on the east side, but novelty sized. Otherwise, dry trail.
Black Snout Trail from there to Mt. Shaw was initially dry, but then had alternating patches of snow (which generally support foot traffic due to snowmobile use on the upper portion). Probably about 95% snow free.
Mt. Shaw Trail was snow free and mostly dry.
A few trailing arbutus (Tate Mountain Trail, Banana Trail) and trillium (Mt. Shaw Trail) in bloom.
Good to get a 4K-sized hike in without dealing with ice/mud/monorail. |
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 | Name: |
rocket21 |
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 | E-Mail: |
rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2015-05-03 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.franklinsites.com/hikephotos |
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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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