| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
North Brother, Fort Mountain, ME |
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 | Trails: |
Marston Trail, herd path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Thursday, August 30, 2012 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Second car in lot at Slide Dam at 8AM. Only one on return. Seems this side of the park sees little traffic. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Easy rock-hops |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trail from Brothers col to North Brother summit was very overgrown and needs brushing. Trail is also very eroded in the steep sections, particularly above the pond and on the final push to the summit. Some rock work here would be good to prevent further damage.
A little mud around the pond, probably a big mess in wet times though, no rocks to hop on in the worst spots. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Baxter State Park - no pets allowed. |
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 | Bugs: |
None |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Spent the night in a lean-to at Nesowadnehunk, a terrific, quiet place. Rabbits all over in the evening hours, pretty un-afraid. Ascent up trail went fine, though the last section from the trail junction on the ridge to the summit was slow with rough footing. Very windy on the summit, but pretty clear, wonderful views of the Brothers, Coe, Fort, Mullen, Travelers, and of course the Katahdin massif.
Herd path to Fort was very brushy after the initial rock-hop decent off North Brother. Followed it without mishap in both directions, but it is really hard to see in a few spots, and is close to a bushwhack for much of it. As everyone says, just look at your feet and you can pick it out. There is occasional orange flagging along the route right now, not enough to rely on for navigation, but nice confirmation. Went to the Western 2 summit knobs, the "center" one looks to be the high point as everyone says, and it had a part of the plane avionics at the carin. We were very close to our pre-determined turn-around time so didn't go to the plane unfortunately, which would have required probably 2 more hours total to get there and explore for a while. So we just went back to North Brother, and then back to the car. Roughly 1hr 10min each way on the herd path. |
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 | Name: |
madmattd |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2012-09-01 |
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 | Link: |
 https://mattshikes.blogspot.com |
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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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