| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Wampatuck Hill, Nahanton Hill, Chickatawbut Hill, Buck Hill, Tucker Hill, Houghton Hill, Great Blue Hill, MA |
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 | Trails: |
Road walk, cemetery walk, unnamed park road, Skyline Trail, South Skyline Trail, Elliot Circle |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Monday, January 1, 2024 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Dropped & LOCKED bike at commuter lot/trailhead parking at Route 138 (west end of trail). Maybe it's just me but between the trash and semi-sketchy characters here at this lot, I was half expecting my bike to have no tires on it when I returned. I was pleasantly surprised that the bike was OK. After that I drove mostly Blue Hills park roads to scope out the bike return ride - it was about 6 miles by road to eastern trailhead parking at Shea Rink which in general seemed safer but I didn't park at any of the further-in spaces for fear of having someone take my catalytic converter.... just sayin!!! |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
no crossings of note |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
East end of trail had several major large deadfalls. East end of trail that passes Saint Moritz Pond was completely underwater - I walked south on Willard Street to the Pine Hill Cemetery and headed back to the trail area - this added probably an additional mile+. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
lots of dogs - some off-leash but was fine |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Doing the Skyline Trail Traverse has been on my radar for a few years - and NO WAY would I ever travel through Boston or Rte 128 on a normal day so this was my window - New Years Day. Parts of this trail are far more rugged than I was expecting - huge tilted slippery rock slabs here and there and large baby-head rocks of scree fields. I had to take my time on those but there were quite a few places I could actually jog. East end generally had most of the graffiti. Kinda surprised at the forest fire evidence on the east side. Stupidly lost trail at the Route 28 road crossing and lost perhaps another half-mile+ there. Blue Hills Observatory was open today and I could see crowds up there but just didn't feel like more crowds. Great Blue Hill summit buildings were very neat - checked out top of ski area - a few mounds of man-made snow stored but pretty bleak currently.
Bike ride back wasn't too bad - the big hill in the middle wasn't awful and cars were generally courteous!!! Stats for me with all the little add-ons: hiking dist 8.3miles in 4 hours, 1500' elev gain; bike ride for return: 6.1 mi in 45 minutes, about 200' elev gain. |
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 | Name: |
Becca Munroe |
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 | E-Mail: |
beccahiker@yahoo.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2024-01-01 |
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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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