| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Whitewall Mountain, Thoreau Falls, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Zealand Trail, A-Z Trail, unnamed trail, bushwhack, Ethan Pond Trail, Thoreau Falls Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, September 2, 2017 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
I was the third one in the Zealand overflow lot @ 8 AM. When I returned @ 4 PM vehicles were overflowing on both sides of the road - with at least one questionable parking job. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Very small ones, no issues. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
No problems encountered on the maintained trails. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw a couple on Zealand Trail. |
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 | Bugs: |
Near zero, though one mosquito managed to sneak a sample at the end of my hike. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
FOUND: a broken Timex watch on the Whitewall summit cairn...huh??? I packed it out and disposed of it. |
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 | Comments: |
My plan to stay away from crowds led me to Whitewall Mountain. From A-Z Trail I took the unnamed southern 'loop' trail shown on USGS maps - but not on the latest USFS maps - for a bit before taking a bearing to the summit (note: this portion of the 'loop' trail is very wet). Once off that 'trail' it was initially open for a short period before some thickening woods for the first half of the whack. However the second half was almost all a gorgeous birch glade but with hobblebush and fern - at times moderately thick and/or shoulder high. I never did have to waver from my bearing and walked right up to the register just in time for lunch. For descent I headed W and did a butt-down feet-first crawl for most of it until I got to Ethan Pond Trail. Realizing I was only a mile or so from Thoreau Falls I took the side trip since it was still early afternoon.
My desire to avoid holiday crowds worked pretty well: other than two folks @ Thoreau Falls and the expected traffic on Zealand and Ethan Pond trails I didn't see anyone else. It was very peaceful atop Whitewall Mountain...but judging by the log book it appears to be that way most of the time.
[ ] Complete solitude on a fine summit.
[ ] Beautiful day.
[ ] Fun hike.
[x] All of the above. |
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 | Name: |
HMJ |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2017-09-02 |
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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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