| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Stinson Mountain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Stinson Mountain Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, January 25, 2014 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plowed parking at the trailhead for a few cars. Lower Doetown Road plowed in one direction of travel only. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
A couple of minor stream crossings, all easily stepped over. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
One small tree down just before first crossing of the snowmobile road, easily bypassed. Other than that, the trail is in good shape. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Dogs shouldn't have any trouble right now. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing. |
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 | Comments: |
After Friday's double-header of Lovewell and Kearsarge, I decided on another twofer for Saturday, starting with Stinson Mountain in Rumney. It's been on my list of peaks to check out, and with wind chills again being pretty severe up north, it seemed like a good day to finally go.
The Stinson Mountain Trail trailhead is plowed out, with parking for a few cars. Lower Doetown Road is plowed in one lane of travel only, so if you encounter oncoming traffic, then, well, someone is going to have to back up. :) If this road is not plowed, you can park at its intersection with Cross Road and walk up 0.3 miles to the trailhead.
This is a pretty easy hike overall, I was up and back in two hours for the 4.2 miles. The trail starts off at easy cruise, mostly flat until the first crossing of the snowmobile road. At the second crossing, the trail joins the road for a bit, then splits off to the right just before a bridge. The trail gets steeper from this point forward, but not overly so. I also found the woods more attractive in this upper section. Trail conditions were again a few inches of packed snow with some icy spots. No snowshoes needed, light traction is fine.
Just below the summit, the trail once again joins the snowmobile road, which forms a loop over the top. Following the road, you come to the summit clearing and the remains of the former fire tower. Views are obscured a bit by tree growth in most directions, but there is a fine outlook over to the Tenney Mountain area with its Groton Wind Power Project plainly visible. There is also supposed to be a side path leading to a view over Stinson Lake, which I didn't find as I didn't stick around too long due to the cold.
Coming back down, I ran into two folks who were schlepping up the Stinson Mountain Trail on skis, who were then going to cruise down the snowmobile trail from the summit. Pretty cool. |
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 | Name: |
KenM |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2014-01-26 |
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 | Link: |
 https://flickr.com/gp/kmacgray/m6N18o |
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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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