| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Baldpate - West Peak, Baldpate - East Peak, Long Mountain, Puzzle Mountain, Bald Mountain, Stowe Mountain, Sunday River Whitecap, Old Speck Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Grafton Loop Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, October 28, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at the AT/Old Speck parking lot at the north end of Grafton Notch on Wednesday, and there was plenty of room. There were a lot more cars there when I returned on Saturday, but still a few spaces available. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant, Leaves - Significant/Slippery |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
There are LOTS of stream crossings on this loop. Several of the crossings on the east side require wading or very creative (risky) rock hopping. I bushwhacked from the waterfall at Lane Campsite south along the brook to the trail in order to avoid two crossings. It wasn't an easy bushwhack, but it was only 0.3 to 0.4 mile. I think it was worth it to avoid the two crossings. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trail is in mostly very good shape. There are a few blowdowns (some large ones) throughout the loop. Blazes are very faded in many sections. There were lots of leaves covering the trail at lower elevations, and this made it difficult to see the trail sometimes. There are some places where additional blazes would be helpful (the southern half of the west side in particular). I was thankful to have Farout (Guthook) to help redirect me to the trail on the multiple occasions when I found myself off the trail. The comments on Farout and in this forum indicate that the trail section between Slide Mt Campsite and Old Speck Mt is very overgrown, but I found that not to be the case. That section was in very good shape; it looks like someone has done a lot of trimming there this year. The ladders going up Stowe Mt look new and they are fantastic. This would be a difficult climb without the ladders. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Didn't see any dogs |
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 | Bugs: |
No bugs in late October |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing. Trail was very clean. |
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 | Comments: |
With a forecast of several warm days at the end of October, this seemed like a perfect time to do the GLT, which has been on my radar for several years. My intention was to complete the loop in three days, but the trail had other ideas, so I took four days (I had brought four days worth of food in case I needed it). This trail is rugged and challenging, with steep ascents and descents and lots of water crossings (some tricky). I hiked at a significantly slower pace than usual. In addition to the ruggedness of the trail, I think the leaves slowed me down quite a bit too, and the trail was much wetter than I expected. The leaves not only obscured the trail sometimes, but they also made it difficult to see obstacles like roots, rocks, and mud, so I found myself slipping around a lot. I tried to step very deliberately to avoid falling, and I decided to use only one trekking pole so that I would have a free hand to hold onto trees and rocks when ascending and descending the many slippery rock slabs. I think this helped a lot, though I did fall three times anyway (I was pretty happy that it was only three).
I stayed at Lane Campsite, Bald Mt Campsite, and Bull Run Campsite. All were excellent, with good water sources and privies, and bear boxes at Bald Mt and Bull Run (if there's a bear box at Lane, I didn't see it). Nobody else was at any of the campsites, and I saw only five other hikers in the first three days. I did see quite a few people (25 or so) climbing Old Speck today (a Saturday) as I was heading down.
It's a great loop and I enjoyed it, but I think September or early October would be the perfect time to hike it. |
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 | Name: |
BC |
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 | E-Mail: |
jbcunningham04@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-10-28 |
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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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