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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks South Baldface, North Baldface, NH
Trails
Trails: Baldface Circle Trail, Bicknell Ridge Trail
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Monday, March 25, 2019
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Plowed but icy 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow - Drifts, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow/Ice - Postholes 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment: Snowshoes, Traction, Ice Axe 
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: All snow bridged 
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: A few blowdowns to work around 
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes:  
Bugs
Bugs:  
Lost and Found
Lost and Found:  
 
Comments
Comments: Overnight trip to South Baldface shelter and to tag the pair of Baldfaces. First part of Baldface Circle Trail is solid packed to Slippery Brook trail from skier traffic. Heading from there to shelter is unstable monorail with postholes. Using a picture I found online I dug the drift down in front of the shelter in the approximate area of the fire pit. To my delight as the coals melted the snow I exposed the rocks and had built my fire directly in top of the fire pit. Got a late start of noon the next day expecting to move much quicker than I did. I wore crampons up the ledges to South and was surprised how long it took me. There was enough loose snow to kick steps in that I didn't use my ice axe but going forward I would suggest it. Tracks from the day before were somewhat drifted in and didn't follow the true trail. This would be the start of my route finding challenges. Snowshoes went on after the South summit and stayed on the rest of the day. No recent traffic from that point on, just some old snowshoe tracks on the wind slab. Areas that dipped into the trees had drifts to 3 feet and I was breaking a foot or more of powder. Some trail blazes are visible but others are completely buried. I spent a lot of time referencing my GPS to stay on true trail as a lot of the cairns are also buried. Bicknell Ridge trail seemed like it hadn't seen any recent traffic and I post holed occasionally with snowshoes further down. Lower section of Baldface Circle Trail prior to split has a lot of wet areas to avoid. If attempting this hike anytime soon be prepared for route finding challenges and be ready with snowshoes. It was one of the most challenging days I've had in quite some time, especially with a full overnight kit in tow. Still a spectacular bluebird day to be out and didn't see anyone all day.  
Name
Name: BK Noonan 
E-Mail
E-Mail: scrapperbk@yahoo.com 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2019-03-26 
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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