| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Lafayette (attempt), NH |
|
 | Trails: |
Skookumchuck Trail, bushwhack |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, February 3, 2019 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
First car there at 7am and 3rd car there at 4:30. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Lots of little ones that aren’t a real problem except for that the snow/ice over/next to them was starting to collapse in places with all the traffic today which may make it harder to pass over them later this week particularly with the warmer temps. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
As to be expected, lots of things in the way of the trail. I’ve never been scratched up so bad by little twigs in my life. It was awful coming down. I don’t know if it was just the perfect height or if I wasn’t paying attention or what. All blowdowns, leaners, etc. are passed without too much trouble except for the one that obscures the trail near the top mentioned below.
Even though I had trouble finding the trail in a few places, I thought the trail was surprisingly well blazed. Blaze was fresh enough and placed relatively often. |
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
They might be able to do it now with all the traffic today without sinking in too much. Some of the blowdowns may be hard? What the hell do I know, I’ve never owned a dog or really hiked with one. |
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 | Bugs: |
None |
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 | Lost and Found: |
None |
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|
 | Comments: |
More or less broke trail the entire way. Some partially snow covered boot prints down low, then snowmobile tracks briefly, then nothing, then eventually some ski tracks. Around 2 or 2.5 miles in, two skiers passed me and broke trail which helped some. One more skier and a snowshoer that were with the two earlier skiers caught up to me maybe a mile or so later. We all helped pack things but snowshoes are absolutely still a must.
We followed the trail until just a tenth or two from the jct with Garfield Ridge probably. There was a blowdown totally obscuring the true trail and it looked as if the trail went another way anyway so we all followed that. We eventually realized we were off trail but I just kept following the skiers tracks. Where the first two skiers tracks disappeared (they did switch to microspikes and make it to Lafayette though!) the second skier/snowshoer turned around and I quickly caught up and was about to do the same when I saw the sign for the trial jct nearby. Decided to go over to it and then break the true trail back to where we diverged. |
|
 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
|
 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2019-02-03 |
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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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