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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks Church Mountain, Crane Mountain, Orange Mountain, Rimrock, Mt. Cardigan, Firescrew, NH
Trails
Trails: Woodland Trail, Skyland Trail, West Ridge Trail, Mowglis Trail, Manning Trail
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Sunday, September 17, 2017
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Plenty of parking at the AMC Cardigan Lodge -- by the time we started, after noon, much of the lot had opened up. 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment:  
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Not an issue. 
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: Raspberry canes in open sections of Skyland Trail between Church and Crane Mountains are getting aggressive. A number of blazes on softwoods from Crane Mountain to Orange Mountain have mostly flaked off -- treadway is obvious now, but in winter, route-finding could be a challenge. 
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes:  
Bugs
Bugs: Barely any -- an occasional eye fly and deer fly. 
Lost and Found
Lost and Found:  
 
Comments
Comments: Nice loop hike today on the ridge line south of Mt. Cardigan. We saw a number of people on/near Mt. Cardigan, but no one else for the entire hike.

Faint bits of color showing east and south of Mt. Cardigan. More vibrant color can be found north and east of Firescrew, where the swamp maples have turned red, especially at lower elevations and near the beaver ponds near the Back 80 Trail.

Woodland Trail muddy sections just north of the beaver ponds are still wet and muddy, but draining better than a few years ago. Wet sections just north of the re-route through the glacial erratic are still wet, but recent brushing has exposed the stepping stones necessary for getting through this part. The re-route is bedding in nicely.

We had not been on the Manning Trail without snow for a few years; the trail is much more eroded then we recall -- it clearly gets quite a bit of use. The short, steep scramble just before treeline has a bypass herd path around an older bypass herd path. Also, herd paths have formed around much of the hardscape (even waterbars) on the lower section of the trail.  
Name
Name: Pancks and Tesco Heaney 
E-Mail
E-Mail:  
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2017-09-18 
Link
Link: https:// 
Bookmark and Share 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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