| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Madison, Mt. Adams, Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Mt. Monroe, Mt. Eisenhower, Mt. Pierce, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Valley Way, Osgood Trail, Gulfisde, Airline, Jefferson Loop, Crawford Path, Monroe Loop, Eisenhower Loop, Webster Cliff Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, November 17, 2019 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
N/A |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
One giant blow down on Valley that won't get cleared until the spring |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Piper did his Piper thing and did the thing |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Tricky going in the Presis until we get a bit more snow.
Valley Way was packed down pretty well and Jay, Leah, and I were able to bareboot up to the hut without issue. Not too much ice, but definitely some in the normal spots. The three of us summitted Madison without spikes, but put them on at the summit to make our lives easier. The cone of Madison wasn't terribly snow, but there's enough to fill in the holes between the rocks, making footing dicey. The rocks were also coated in ice in places, so those were also tricky.
Hut to Adams was drifty, as was Adams to Edmands. Many of the drifted areas, especially the low section that always collects water before the jct. with Israel Ridge, could have warranted snowshoes, but the sections are so short right now that I think it would be more of a pain than it's worth. When it wasn't drifted, the snow was 4-6" deep and walking was generally good if you hopped across exposed rocks.
The climb up Jefferson was the worst part of the day. Lots and lots of snow. The snowfield is filling in but is so far unconsolidated, so it's not sketchy yet..just soft. I was reduced to a crawl (literally) at a few points on the way up. The snow was just so deep and there was no good way around it, but still, this section is relatively short. If I had had my Dions I would've like it, but the snow is still so soft that we likely would've just sunk in anyway and ruined the snowshoes.
Jefferson to Washington was slightly better and got even better once we passed the Jewell jct. Again, not much ice to speak of, just snow and some drifts.
Predictably, the Crawford Path from Washington ---> Pierce was well traveled and packed down. As was the theme, ice was not a problem and the deep, drifted sections were short and limited to the areas in which the trail passes through little bits of krum, mostly between Monroe Loop/Crawford Junction and Edmands Path.
Lots of traffic between Eisenhower and Pierce, as well as down Crawford from Pierce, made the rest of the day relatively easy. Some ice on the bottom third of Crawford Path kept us from ditching the spikes prematurely, but trail was overall a blast to bomb down at the end of the day.
Another storm or two and this is all irrelevant, but for now, spikes are good and snowshoes are fine as long as you don't mind switching in and out of them 40 times throughout the day. |
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 | Name: |
Nate |
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 | E-Mail: |
npweeks@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2019-11-18 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.strava.com/activities/2872702036 |
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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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