| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Firescrew, Crag Camp, Hanging Rock, Cilley's Cave (Attempt), Mowglis Mountain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Manning Trail, Mowglis Trail, Hanging Rock Spur, Elwell Trail, Cilley's Cave Spur, Oregon Mountain Trail, Carter-Gibbs Trail, Old Dicey Road, Back 80 Loop, Back 80 Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, June 26, 2015 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of parking at the AMC Cardigan Lodge. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant, Leaves - Significant/Slippery |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Back 80 Loop crosses Davis Brook on some mossy ledges. It's passable, but use care to not slip. There are many other minor crossings, all are easily hopped. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Most trails in good shape. Lots of mud and slippery leaves / ledge from the overnight / morning rains. A few blowdowns on the various trails, but nothing significant. The Elwell Trail east of the Back 80 junction is very grown in and brushy. At one point it disappears into a swampy area which requires crossing over a rotting log. I also lost it at an old logging road crossing for a few minutes. It is blazed well though. It's very pretty, wild and remote back there.
I also noticed that a lot of the funky old trail signs in the area have been replaced by new, boring, generic ones. I hope the old signs are going to be auctioned off and weren't tossed. They really added some character. :( |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Didn't see any, but this would be fine for strong hiker dogs. |
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 | Bugs: |
Mostly non-annoying, except for the mosquitos on the Back 80s. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Not really lost, but there's a pair of underwear hanging on a post at Crag Shelter. |
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 | Comments: |
I was originally going to hike a loop over Mowglis and Oregon Mts., but the weather improved when I got to the lodge (it rained all the way up), so I decided to add on Firescrew. Fantastic views as always from the ledges on FS. The steep section where you duck back into the woods was a little tricky due to it being wet and slippery.
From there I dropped down via the Mowglis Trail and stopped at Crag Shelter, which looks like it's in a perpetual state of construction. Pretty neat shelter though. The privy is "interesting".
I took the side trail out to Hanging Rock, which gives you a great view over to the cliffs where Cilley's Cave is. I did locate the path to the cave, but did not find the cave itself. The path led to the cliffs, then ended in a mess of blowdowns. I bushwhacked down a bit, but didn't see anything.
At Mowglis Mountain's summit, I checked out the boulder with the plaque, and hopped on the Oregon Mt. Trail. I was short on time, so I decided to skip Oregon and took the Carter-Gibbs Trail down to the Elwell, to Old Dicey Road and the Back 80s to get back to the lodge. ODR I probably won't hike again. ;) But there was a cool old truck rusting away out there. Mosquitoes were fierce on the Back 80s, so I kept moving until back at my car. |
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 | Name: |
KenM |
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 | E-Mail: |
kmacgray@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2015-06-26 |
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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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