| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Adams, Mt. Madison, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Air Line, snowfields, Gulfside, Osgood Trail, Valley Way |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, January 4, 2020 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Black, Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts, Snow - Spring Snow, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Rock hoppable |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Took out one blowdown on upper Air Line. A few remain above the Scaur junction, and a few on Valley Way. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
About a foot of snowpack down low, increasing to 2 to 3 feet higher up in the trees. Lower elevation snowpack was soft, spring snow, while upper elevation was powder and drifted snow. Unfortunately, a parasitic postholer descended Air Line recently, leaving plenty of postholes. One person ahead of us, as well as all of our group, wore snowshoes, so hopefully a decent amount of the damage was fixed before it freezes solid.
From treeline to Gulfside was bony with some ice and some drifts. We left our snowshoes on, as the drifts were deep enough to make it unpleasant with just traction. From Gulfside to the summit, snowshoes were ideal (looked rocky from a distance, but there was continuous snowpack). We bumped over to some snowfields and had good going all the way to the top. Though it was cloudy with snow flurries, wind was minimal and temperatures just below freezing.
We kept snowshoes on down Gulfside to the hut and up Osgood Trail. Osgood had a little more snow than was visible from the hut, though it was bony getting up to the final ridge. Spikes probably would have been adequate.
Upper Valley Way had been beat up by some barebooters, but fortunately the snowshoer in front of us helped to smooth things out. Unfortunately, the group of barebooters was at the hut still, so who knows how beat up the trail will be before it refreezes.
All snow at elevation with some mixed snow showers near the base. |
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 | Name: |
rocket21 |
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 | E-Mail: |
rocket21@franklinwebpublishing.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2020-01-04 |
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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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