| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Abraham (attempt), ME |
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 | Trails: |
Rapid Stream Road, Fire Warden's Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, January 2, 2026 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
we parked about 0.7 miles before the summer trailhead for Fire Wardens Trail ... from route 16, we drove in 3.5 miles in to Rapid Stream Road, then another 0.7 miles to a spot where there was a plowed spot on the right enough to park two cars, then another 1.5 miles to a fork in the road where we parked ... it wouldn't help much to drive another 0.2 miles on the left fork, as it's a rougher drive and you can't cross the river there as the bridge is out (there is a narrow snowmobile bridge at that crossing) ...
you could park a few cars at the fork where we parked ... if another car or two were already there when you arrive, and you can't park well enough to not block them, then you could park at the pull-off 0.7 back from there on Rapid Stream Road ...
the last couple miles we drove in to where we parked was covered with gritty ice with tire grooves, slow going but a car with low clearance could probably get in to where we parked, until the next big snowstorm ... doesn't look like they're plowing beyond the last house on Rapid Stream Road ?
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
brooks were mostly frozen and bridged over, easily crossable |
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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: |
we barebooted 0.7 miles on the road from where we parked to the Fire Wardens summer trailhead, then snowshoed up Fire Wardens Trail to the campsite ... summer trailhead sign says it's 1.8 miles to that campsite or 3.9 miles to summit, my old map says it was 3.0 miles to the (former FW Cabin?) campsite or 4.5 miles to summit ... guessing the current campsite might be a mile or so before the old Cabin site ? either way it's another 1.5 to 2.1 miles up from the current campsite to Abraham summit ...
there's about a foot or more of snow on the trail, loose powder beneath a 2" crunchy crust to break through ... easy trailbreaking, we could have gone furthur and went for Abraham summit, but we got a late start after our plans to hike Saddlebacks were thwarted by Saddleback ski patrol who told us that trail access to Saddleback summit was off limits above the ski lift because they were making snow above that point that day ... our Plan B of trying for Abraham meant we didn't start up Fire Wardens Trail until almost 11am ... we were happy to get a hike in, scout the trail / road access for a future hike, and enjoy a fun day on the trail ...
Saddleback ski area charges $25 for an uphill pass, route mostly follows Black Cat (subject to change, depending on conditions), and should be open for summit access, where you could opt to hike the AT over to Saddleback Horn ... there's a longer alternate route up Saddlebacks if you'd rather not pay $25 for a Saddleback Uphill Pass, by hiking Saddleback Spur Trail (1.8 miles) to Fly Rod Crosby Trail another 0.9 miles to the AT, then 2.0 miles up the AT to Saddleback summit ...
https://www.saddlebackmaine.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/FRCT-Saddleback-Spur-FINAL-2025.pdf
Abraham is in decent shape right now if you're looking for a Winter hike in this area ! |
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 | Name: |
arm |
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 | E-Mail: |
winterhiker@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2026-01-03 |
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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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