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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks Mt. Whiteface, East Sleeper, West Sleeper, South Tripyramid, Middle Tripyramid, North Tripyramid, NH
Trails
Trails: Downes Brook Trail, Kate Sleeper Trail, Rollins Trail, East Sleeper Spur, herd path, Mt. Tripyramid Trail, Sabbaday Brook Trail, Route 112
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Saturday, July 12, 2014
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Downs Brook was empty when I got there; pretty full when I left. Sabadday was a zoo. There is bridge work between them, near Downs Fork, so there is a stop sign where the lane goes down to one. Wait times are way too long, so long people think the light is broken if there is no traffic coming the other way. 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment:  
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Rock hops for the many crossings on Downs Brook and Sabbaday Brook; poles being helpful. Those on Sabbaday were trickier with longer hops and wet rocks that were sometimes slippery, especially at crossings that have washouts. Pepper had no problems but I did slip on one and got wet feet.  
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: Downes Brook in pretty good shape, a mostly nice footbed, waterbars working, and well brushed. There were some washed out sections but these were few. Kate Sleeper also has a nice footbed. cleaned waterbars and well brushed. It's amazing to see all the blowdowns from Sandy that have been cleared on it. I took out a new smaller blowdown; a 6" larger one is still there. Mt. Tripyramid fine. Sabbaday Brook had lots of nice sections but it still showed the damage from Irene in many places. There are a number of short washout sections, few mud spots, and from 2500' up until the steep sections a series of blowdowns, including a handful of multi-stem ones one has to straddle and duck under to get through. But they aren't a problem.  
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes: Pepper gives this a 3 paws up hike. The footbeds were mostly soft, there were so many streams to sip n dip in except along Sleeper and Mt. Tripyramid, and except on Mt. Tripyramid and at the base of Sabadday Brook very few other hikers so he could be relatively free to do as he pleased. There was only one small drainage on Kate Sleeper so he needed to drink from a water container on South and North Tripyramids. But temps for July were comfy and the humidity as well, and with modest slopes he had an easy day. The hottest part of the day was the road walk. I should have done that first in a cooler part of the day, when traffic was almost non-existent. On a warmer day, a dog would likely need more water for the Kate Sleeper and Mt. Tripyramid trails.  
Bugs
Bugs: A few minor nuisances; no big deal. 
Lost and Found
Lost and Found:  
 
Comments
Comments: This is a great hike for tourist season, and for dogs that are in shape, at least when the temps aren't bad. It was another last minute decision when I saw how cool the day began, so I could have planned it better - parking at Sabbaday Brook and doing the road walk first. We didn't see anybody on Downs Brook, none on Sleeper to Rollins & Whiteface, one guy on the return on Rollins with 2 dogs, and two trail runners on Sleeper. Once on Mt Tripyramid we saw a lot of people and dogs on it, with just a few more on Sabbaday. What a nice day and trails for hiking in mid July. The road walk wasn't too bad; the traffic was surprisingly low for mid July. Thanks Pepper for another great hike.  
Name
Name: Pepper and Me 
E-Mail
E-Mail: windriversjohn at gmail dot com 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2014-07-12 
Link
Link: https:// 
Bookmark and Share 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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