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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks Sable Mountain, NH
Trails
Trails: Baldface Circle Trail, Slippery Brook Trail, bushwhack, Sable Mountain Trail
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Sunday, January 12, 2014
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Route 113 from the north (US 2) is closed in winter, but you can access the trailhead and parking lot from the south. Route 113 between Fryeburg and the road to Conway was closed this evening due to flooding. Route 113 North of there was really rough - lots of thick ice patches, as well as frost heaves, making it very bumpy. The Baldface Circle parking lot was glare ice, two inches thick. Traction is very useful just to get out of your car. Snowshoe crampons were perfect. 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Ice - Blue, Snow - Spring Snow, Slush 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment: Snowshoes 
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Lots of small drainages were open and up high. The large crossing on Slippery Brook (maybe 1.1 miles or so from the road) was sketchy - we crossed on submerged ice in the morning. In the afternoon, the water levels had dropped a good foot or so, resulting in the ice being hollow underneath. Made it across, but it didn't seem too sturdy. 
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes:  
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes: Madison had fun. 
Bugs
Bugs:  
Lost and Found
Lost and Found:  
 
Comments
Comments: April conditions and weather (partly sunny and above freezing)! While the parking lot and Route 113 were glare ice in the morning, the trail was spring snow (ie a thawed/refrozen wet granular, so it didn't stick on snowshoes) with the occasional small patch of blue ice (not an issue with snowshoe crampons). A foot of snowpack remains, top to bottom (with the exception of the heights of land, which had a little less due to fog/inversion).
Slippery Brook Trail had been broken out all the way to the Eastman-Baldface Knob col. Water crossings were tricky, but otherwise it was good snowshoeing. No sign of recent traffic to Eastman. Some tracks heading toward Baldface Knob, but not terribly well packed.
From the height of land, we continued on Slippery Brook Trail for maybe a 50 vertical foot drop, then slabbed initially in open spruce woods on the contour toward South Baldface. We then hit open birch woods, which we had most of the way to the Sable ridge. Never a thick spot. Nice snowshoe track in place, which should be easy to follow until the next weather event.
We hit the ridge in a northern saddle, then hopped on the abandoned Sable Mountain Trail, which is still maintained by the resident moose population. It's also heavily used by the local moose population, though they never check NewEnglandTrailConditions.com, so they didn't know to bring snowshoes. We followed their tracks right up to the recognized highpoint (which I don't think is quite the summit, but pretty close). Slight directional view southeast nearby.
Statistically and terrainwise, it's probably pretty similar to a winter Isolation hike. Other than the distance, this was a pretty good pick up of an otherwise remote peak.  
Name
Name: rocket21 
E-Mail
E-Mail: rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2014-01-12 
Link
Link: https:// 
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