| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Carrigain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Sawyer River Road, Signal Ridge Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Thursday, January 11, 2018 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Winter parking lot at the 302 is nicely plowed. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The first significant crossing on Signal Ridge Trail (after the old junction) was open and flowing, can be rock hopped with care, some snow is unstable and will collapse. The next crossing (after the reroute) is snowbridged. |
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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: |
A big thanks to the individuals who broke out the first two sections of the Signal Ridge Trail! The road is in decent shape, being smoothed out with some snowmobile and hiker traffic. Signal Ridge is pretty well packed from the trailhead to the junction with Carrigain Notch Trail. The official trail reroute is what is broken out, not the old one, but knowing the task ahead, we felt it was better just to follow what was already broken. After the junction, since there was only one person previous breaking, the track was a bit choppier, but we smoothed some of that out. After about a mile, we came to the previous hiker's turn around point. After that it was breaking in 6-18" of sticky snow. Once we got on the switch backs, we hit some icier patches where we only sank 2-3" on snowshoes. The ridge itself is a mix of drifts, ice and bare rock. After the ridge, the last bit to the summit was a mixed bag of deeper section and icier sections. There is now a track to the summit - at least as good as three people could do! Descending certain sections was not much easier than going up. Not sure how the incoming weather will treat that trail.
As a side note, the tower is officially closed, it looks like some of the guard rail is missing. There is a sign at the trailhead and the tower stairs are blocked off.
Huge thanks to Claudette and Kevin for another great day out and grand adventure! |
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 | Name: |
SBanks |
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 | E-Mail: |
summersetbanks@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2018-01-12 |
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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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