Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Carter Ledge, Middle Sister, NH |
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| Trails: |
Carter Ledge Trail, Middle Sister Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Thursday, April 14, 2016 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
I parked to the side of the entrance to the White Ledge campground thus avoiding blocking the gate. A couple of cars could do that on each side. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Ice - Blue, Standing/Running Water on Trail |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
Nothing significant |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Carter Ledge has some blowdowns scattered along its length, and a few spots that are eroding badly. Middle Sister had but one minor blowdown that couldn't be tossed out of the way. It might be a bit brushy but I had no problems following it. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
Pepper had fun. He thoroughly enjoyed lots of sip n dips on both trails. There is some serious ice on the Middle Sister trail's upper sections, but he did his usual controlled slide down them. Dogs that don't like ice won't want to descend this trail. The ledges were dry and easy, and the views grand of course. |
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| Bugs: |
None |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
I had new boots and decided to just do the Carter Ledge & Middle Sister loop with a side trip to Middle Sister. We went up Carter Ledge and found it almost all snow/ice/water free except for a large ponded ice section before Middle Sister, and a couple of solid ice bulges near the top. I put my older Hillsounds on for these. Middle Sister, in contrast, had a lot of hard ice in its upper section, no doubt due to the aspect and crown closure, so even with the Hillsounds I took my time. It would have been better to have ascended Middle Sister and descended Carter Ledge. The other advantage of ascending Middle Sister is we could have done the bigger loop including Chocorua and then over to Weetamo and down to Piper, then hiked back up to Nickerson and down to the car. We had a nice visit with the one hiker we saw all day; he who was doing the loop from the Piper parking area.
What a nice day to take off from work. Thanks Pepper for the excuse. We stopped at Ferncroft on the drive back and did a quick loop of Gordon Path. No ice but plenty of "reading" for Pepper on this popular dog walk trail. |
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| Name: |
Pepper and Me |
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| E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2016-04-14 |
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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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