| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Little Haystack Mountain, Mt. Lincoln, Mt. Truman, Mt. Lafayette, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Falling Waters Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Greenleaf Trail, Old Bridle Path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 7, 2013 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of parking at the trailhead lot. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Ice - Blue, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Snow bridges are still intact. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Trails are in great shape -- one small duck-under blowdown (hand-saw-able) on the Falling Waters Trail. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
Uh-oh -- saw our first black fly of the season, down low, near the intersection of the Falling Waters Trail and Old Bridle Path. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
We were surprised at the excellent conditions of the trails -- nice, firm footbed, even at lower elevations in the afternoon sun -- and although we carried snowshoes and crampons, we never needed anything more than light traction.
Trail conditions are consistent firmly packed snow (with a few very small icy spots on the Falling Waters Trail) until the ridgeline, where they alternate between packed snow, bare rock, some easily avoided blue ice, and small (8-to-12-inch) drifts.
The Greenleaf Trail Glacier that is typical on Mt. Lafayette at this time of year was nowhere to be seen; there's nothing but packed powder there.
Excellent day on the ridge; dreary forecast of summit clouds and precipitation never materialized, and the high clouds over the summits broke around noon to reveal brilliant blue, sunny skies the rest of the day.
High winds from the southwest and south were the only other weather factor -- but because we did the loop in counterclockwise fashion, they were at our back most of the way. The only dicey part was coming down Mt. Lafayette on the Greenleaf Trail, where the 50-60-mph crosswinds could make standing up a challenge.
Saw only a few other people on the ridge today, but a few doing up-and-backs to Mt. Lafayette from the hut -- brave souls, as they got the worst of the crosswinds, coming and going.
We witnessed a small celebration on Mt. Lafayette as someone completed their 4000-footer grid moments before we summited -- congratulations!
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 | Name: |
Pancks and Tesco Heaney |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2013-04-08 |
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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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