| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Bigelow - West, Bigelow - Avery, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Stratton Brook Pond Road, Firewardens Trail, Appalachian Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 26, 2026 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Stratton Brook Pond Road winter lot is the place to park, or along Route 27 at the AT lot. Beyond the winter lot of SBPR, there are 4 CLOSED signs from the Maine Bureau of Land Management. One person ignored the signs and drove to the summer lot since it’s not gated. I would not recommend this in an effort to keep the road in good shape for future months since it is soft and there is already significant rutting. Maine trailheads are rough enough, let’s not make it worse :( |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All easily hopped. Plenty of running water for filtering water along Firewardens. No water along the ridge. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A handful of newly downed trees, some of which have been partly delimbed in the first few miles of Firewardens, ranging from small diameter to a very large Pine that fell on the first slabs and made quite the mess. I moved a fair amount of brush and small trees off the trail (hoping the maintainers don’t find offense). Only 2 downed trees higher up near the col but have been there for some time. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
A stickered water bottle at the kiosk on SBPR |
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 | Comments: |
Dry trail until roughly 3K ft, then patchy snow and soft ice. Threw on the rock spikes for the remaining ice flows as you approach the col and kept them on for the ridge. Surprisingly little snow left even in the trees along the ridge and quite supportive despite the warm temps. Snowshoes went for a ride. Seems this week’s rescue didn’t serve as a learning experience for the late starters today without any traction wearing just sneakers. |
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 | Name: |
E.T. Fudge |
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 | E-Mail: |
e p u r m o r t a t g m a i l |
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| Date Submitted: |
2026-04-26 |
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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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