| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Sandwich Dome, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Algonquin Trail, Black Mountain Pond Trail, Sandwich Mountain Trail, Mary Cary Falls Spur, Guinea Pond Trail, Sandwich Notch Road |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, October 19, 2013 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Sandwich Notch Road its usual mix of decent gravel stretches punctuated by a few tricky spots. I got in without scraping bottom with a Corolla, but a truck/SUV would make more sense. I parked at the modest designated parking area just up from the Guinea Pond TH and stream. There's room for a half dozen cars there, more further down towards the gate, and a couple along the road. Algonguin's TH has room for maybe 3-4 cars. I came in from the south, which is the better route for cars, and drove out the north to once again see the grand views from the house area. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Standing/Running Water on Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Rock steps |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Guinea Pond trail flooded for a couple of hundred feet or more; lots of signs of active beavers. A couple of blowdowns on Algonguin up to Black Mtn Pond, a few more thereafter. Parts of Algonguin and Black MP require some attention to stay on the trail, but then its pretty easy to stay on trail. I missed the sign where Black MP came in to Algonguin as it was up a bit from a cairn on the ledge and started down until correcting myself. I should have had Pepper in the lead. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Pepper would give this hike 2 paws up. There's some nice streams down low, but little once up on the ledges/ridges. There's a lot of ledge and boulder with sharp crystals which could be tough on soft pads. There were only a couple of places where I wanted to spot him and one on Black Mtn that caused him to look for options before he jumped down. He loved the views from the open ledges and didn't mind hiking through the flooded area on Guinea Pond. A large owl perched on a tree by the trail and he and Pepper had a stare down. |
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 | Bugs: |
None. But I did pull a tick off me yesterday and the vet said the past two weeks they've heard about an uptick in ticks. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
This is a splendid hike, especially at this time of year when the bugs are gone and mud/water levels are low. The hardwood forests are lovely with the crowns open, the regular open ledges on Algonguin have great vistas from unique angles, the Black Mountain Pond steep is a fun scramble, the trail beds are generally good shape and there's very few other hikers. It would be easier to go up Black MP and down Algonguin. The Guinea Pond flooded section is an annoyance for humans; expect wet boots even while picking ones way carefully along the side. There is a trail report that suggests getting around this section that I faintly remembered, but not enough to find an obvious route. Thanks Pepper for a great day.
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 | Name: |
Pepper and Me |
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 | E-Mail: |
windriversjohn at gmail dot com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2013-10-19 |
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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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