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Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks North Weeks, Middle Weeks, South Weeks, Mt. Waumbek, NH
Trails
Trails: York Pond Trail, Kilkenny Ridge Trail
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Thursday, August 15, 2019
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: The gate was open around 6:30am and at 5pm when I drove through. I believe there policy is that they’ll keep it open so long as there aren’t any problems. Only car at the York Pond trailhead at 6:45am and one of three (one leaving right after me) at 4:45pm.  
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment:  
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Getting down to the water crossing by the dam can take a second of thought but all crossings were low enough to rock hop today (albeit on wet rocks, which, when they made me slip and get my foot soaked was my cue to go back to my car and change into hiking boots instead of trail runners 😜)  
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: The section of Kilkenny Ridge Trail that I was on is evidently notorious for being blowdown city but I didn’t think it was all that bad. The only ones I recall were on the north sides of Waumbek and Sourh Weeks with some of the blowdowns encountered being cumbersome (one crawl under). Some have herd paths around them so that in one case the “trail” clearly deviated from where the yellow blaze was. The blowdowns I recall had been trimmed. One had yellow blaze on it. Both trails, especially York Pond Trail, should be trimmed back as should most of the trails in this area. York Pond has some bog bridges that need replaced early on too. The biggest threat to safety is some undermined trail. The most obvious sections were on the norh side of North Weeks but there were other less obvious traps that I crashed and burned into as well, all on Kilkenny Ridge Trail. I saw many yellow blazes but I don’t think they were consistent. Trails weren’t much of a problem to follow. A wee bit of time was taken on the descent usually around where there were blowdowns.  
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes: Didn’t see any but I imagine a very fit dog could do this. Not much water on Kilkenny Ridge Trail though.  
Bugs
Bugs: Surprisingly hardly any! Not bothersome at all until the afternoon when some sort of fly swarmed me by the dozen when I stopped but they didn’t bite and rarely landed. I may have seen a black fly or two but they didn’t bite me. Exactly one mosquito was seen and it was biting me right as I returned to my car... not bad especially for this area!!  
Lost and Found
Lost and Found: None 
 
Comments
Comments: Came up the north side of Waumbek Friday going over the three summits of Weeks for the first time (two of which are nhhh peaks). Third time to do Waumbek for the grid and only the northernmost section of Kilkenny Ridge Trail is left to redline :)

I very ambivalently wore my trail runners on this long but tame hike but after dunking my foot in the dam crossing and seeing all muddy water by the bog bridges shortly thereafter I went back to my car and changed into my hiking boots (only an extra half mile). This is a 17.4mi hike with about 5000ft of elevation gain. That said, it is not very steep and generally ascends/descends on nice grades. Not crowded either and the only hikers I saw were a pair of two at the lookout near the summit of Waumbek and another man doing a traverse of Waumbek and Cabot (good for you!). The traverse from where I was to rt 2 on the south side of Waumbek is about 5mi shorter but is a helluva long car spot.

See my notes about the overgrown, and sometimes undermined trail in the trail maintenance sections. The ridge was mainly dry with some minor mud here and there but the muddy sections of York Pond Trail by the bog bridges were their usual nasty self. I think the high point of South Weeks is just off trail in the ferns. There’s a side path to the summit of North Weeks on your right. The walk along Waumbek’s ridge is long and flat. When the trail starts to bombard to with spruce to the face instead of ferns to the crotch, you’re getting close. Lots of peaks to identify at the clearing just north of the true summit of Waumbek (views in the same direction but more restricted are to be had along the ridge at several points shortly before reaching this point). On my way back down I noticed a couple views through the trees that I hadn’t on the way up mainly back towards Middle and North Weeks and the Mahoosucs (Old Speck, Goose Eye, and Success in particular).  
Name
Name: Liam Cooney 
E-Mail
E-Mail: liamcooney96@gmail.com 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2019-08-16 
Link
Link: https:// 
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