| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
South Twin Mountain, North Twin Mountain, Galehead Mountain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Beaver Brook XC ski trail, herd path, Gale River Road, Gale River Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur, Frost Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, January 19, 2019 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Beaver Brook parking lot off US 3 was *not* plowed, but it was packed down enough for 2WD vehicles to use it. May be inaccessible after the storm. Restrooms are boarded up. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Drifts, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Snowbridged. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Blowdowns on just about every trail listed. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Snowshoes all the way. Lots of snow, and more coming down as this report is typed.
Someone had barebooted the Beaver Brook XC ski trail; very inconsiderate toward skiers, as the trail was left with lots of divots. And people wonder why hikers get banned from using ski trails in winter.
Gale River Road is well packed out by snowmobiles.
Gale River Trail was broken out and in good shape on the way up, but postholed in places on the return. Snowshoes a must, as a parasitic postholer discovered today. Some nasty deep postholes left on Garfield Ridge Trail. The parasitic postholer went all that way and didn't make it to any peaks, apparently finding out that barebooting in 4-5 feet of snowpack miles from the road isn't a great idea.
Garfield Ridge toward Garfield hadn't been used since the most recent storm, but had a trench established. A group of snowshoers were planning to head that way today.
Twinway had a nice snowshoe track up to South Twin. Did not note any recent tracks heading southbound.
North Twin Spur hadn't seen much use since the most recent storm, but got fairly well packed out by snowshoers later this morning. The broken out track goes astray at a blowdown patch near the col; the actual trail is just west of it, blocked by a blowdown. At least three sets of tracks right now. North Twin Trail had been packed out by snowshoers today. Snow on the ridge is 4-6 feet deep.
Frost Trail also had a decent snowshoe track.
While there is only a foot or two of snow down low, depths are already deep up high. If we get two feet of snow out of this storm, some blazes and signs will be buried. Snow arrived early this afternoon north of the notch and was already accumulating.
If you want to hike winter 4Ks from here on out, get a good set of snowshoes! 4K attempts without them will be negligent and will have low odds of success. |
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 | Name: |
rocket21 |
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 | E-Mail: |
rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2019-01-19 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.franklinsites.com/hikephotos |
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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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