Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Mt. Monadnock, NH |
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| Trails: |
Old Halfway House Trail, White Arrow Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Monday, February 26, 2018 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Old Toll Road/Old Halfway House Trailhead on Route 124 in Jaffrey. Parking lot is fine with low/minimal snow cover. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Slush |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
Easily passable mostly lower down on Old Halfway House Trail. |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trails are in great shape and White Arrow markings were pretty visible with low snow cover. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
Dogs aren't allowed on Mount Monadnock or in Monadnock State Park. |
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| Bugs: |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
Arrived at trailhead around 9:45. First car in the parking lot. I work at a high school so I'm on school vacation. Old Halfway House Trail had 1-2" of crusty stable snow. A lot of the White Arrow Trail had much of the same but over ice flows around 1-2' thick in places. After breaking out into partially open area around 2,700' the snow was soft and powdery in some spots depending on sun exposure/tree cover. From here on up there were snow drifts/deeper snow maybe 6-12" in some places but soft so easy to walk through and okay if post holed. The temp during this portion of the hike was in the mid 30s and the trees were covered in shimmering ice which made it beautiful. Filtered sunshine up until about 200ft from the summit and then the sun cleared the cloud deck and remained that way for the remainder of the hike/day. When I arrived at the summit I was the only person in sight! It remained that way for another 10 minutes. Summit was 38F and winds were mild for Monadnock's standards, probably in the 20's mph with some gusts maybe up to 30mph. Heading down the snow started to soften up and became a tad slick over the ice flows. Wore microspikes the entire hike up until reaching Halfway House site on descent then removed them. Old Halfway House Trail on return was slush and muddy and wet trail. At this point it had warmed considerably reaching 46F. Saw two people on summit from State Park direction and passed three separate people on my descent. About 4-5 cars in parking lot when I finished. The timing of my hike was almost serendipitous because the ground conditions were ideal, sun came out for summit, and temps/wind fairly mild for February. The people heading up on my way down probably dealt with really soft/slippery/wet conditions. I used microspikes and trekking poles but with the next few days being warm I don't know how conditions will change. |
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| Name: |
Matthew Kuncik |
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| E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2018-02-27 |
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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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