NewEnglandTrailConditions.com
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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks None, NH
Trails
Trails: Road walk, Lowe’s Path, Cabin-Cascades Trail, Quay Path, Gray Knob Trail, Hincks Trail, Spur Trail, Randolph Path, Log Cabin Cutoff
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Tuesday, August 11, 2020
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: Rather than pay to park at Lowe’s, I parked on the south side of route two at the start of a grassy, gravelly looking road/path that sort of fizzles out into the woods. I’ve parked there before and never had a problem. I just make sure to pull to one side or the other so other cars can get around me. It’s 1/3mi walk from there to the trailhead. I was the only one there today. Appalachia was mostly full as I drove by around 8:45am as well.  
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment:  
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Nothing but small, easy rock hops.  
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: There is a small-mid sized straddler (or crawl under if you’re short) on Lowe’s Path. I don’t recall exactly where it was but I think it was on the first section of the trail to The Link...probably in the upper portion...so maybe 1-1.5mi into the trail?? A couple of sections of undermined trail. Again, I don’t recall where exactly they were but I believe most or all of these undermined sections were on Gray Knob and Hincks Trail. Maybe some on Cabin-Cascades and Randolph Path. A very large uprooted tree on Cabin-Cascades Trail; trail work has been done and there’s a path around it; just watch your footing. There are probably some other blowdowns I’m forgetting about as well. Lowe’s Path is pretty regularly but not frequently blazed in blue. It’s not hard to follow though. I noticed a couple old, faded, yellow blazes on Cabin-Cascades Trail. It could probably use some more as the trail isn’t too well used and was obscure near its start by the Log Cabin. I don’t recall if Gray Knob, Hincks, Spur Trail, or Log Cabin Cutoff were blazed. If so, they would have probably been blazed in yellow. I didn’t find any of them hard to follow. Randolph Path was regularly but not too frequently, blazed in blue. It wasn’t hard to follow.  
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes: A fit hiking dog could probably do this hike. No scrambles but very rocky and steep at times. Lots of wet footing today too. You’d probably want to bring water for them as well. None seen today.  
Bugs
Bugs: Black flies were present throughout most of the hike but worst at higher elevations. Not all that bad though and I rarely noticed them unless I stopped. There may have been a mosquitos or two down low. Lowe’s Path goes through lots of rock vegetation as it crosses the powerline cut so make sure to check for ticks!  
Lost and Found
Lost and Found: None but I’m realizing that I forgot to say in a previous trail report for last Wednesday that I left a tshirt on The Link Trail I believe. I’m pretty sure it was either on the section of trail between Castle Ravine Trail and Castle Trail, or Castle Trail and Caps Ridge Trail. I feel bad that I forgot to take it with me so if some kind soul would be kind enough to carry it out for me it would be much appreciated!  
 
Comments
Comments: With this hike now complete, I have only one (excruciating) hike left in the northern Presidentials to close out the tab...and one hike (or days worth of hikes) in every other tab to finish redlining :) Of course, the northern Presidentials weren’t going to let me just take this without a fight though...

For starters, there was a lot of wet and slick rock on the trail to begin with similar to when I was inn the area last Wednesday. This was only made worse when it began to rain. I heard some thunder but it wasn’t very close by. My timing was impeccable because I’d just dropped my pack (with all my gear) at Gray Knob Cabin and took out my many sweaty shirts to allow them to dry while I did an out-and-back on the 0.4mi of Gray Knob Trail between the cabin and Spur Trail. Around the area of the spring spur (signed and easy to see if redlining; it was signed on my way down and I think there was a sign for it in the other direction as well) it began to drizzle on the “out” part. Then it began to rain a bit harder, on and off in intensity. As I finally reached the cabin again to see my drenched clothes I’d laid out to dry on the rock it began to rain more intensively (luckily not a downpour but still) and stayed that way for awhile. It was bad enough that not only did the rain jacket come out but also the precipitation pants. Ugh. Luckily, after descending a ways on Hincks Trail things began to lighten up until the rain stopped and never came back :) Although not all that much rain fell (to raise water levels) enough fell to pool water on the trail. I imagine it will dry up quickly though.

Anyway, my route: Road walk —> Lowe’s Path —> out-and-back on Cabin Cascades Trail —> Lowe’s Path —> Quay Path —> Gray Knob Trail to cabin —> out-and-back on Gray Knob Trail from cabin to Spur Trail —> Hincks Trail —> Spur Trail —> Randolph Path to Log Cabin Cutoff —> out-and-back on Randolph Path between this jct and Pentadoi —> Log Cabin Cutoff —> Lowe’s Path —> road walk back to car.

I mapped this out at 10.9mi with 4300ft of gain.add 0.6mi total for the road walk. So this was a PITA considering my last hike in the area included all these trails but I had to cut it short due to time. I cut it short by about 4mi...but to get all these trails again it required an 11mi hike... and then there was the rain: oof.

Before the rain, the trails were mostly dry although there was lots of slick and wet rock, particularly on Lowe’s Path. Is Lowe’s Path often like this? Not too much mud other than a few deep spots on Cabin-Cascades Trail. I didn’t think Cabin-Cascades Trail was quite as bad as the book made it sound to be although the footing was tricky enough that I found it hard to get in a good groove. The trail is signed at its jct with Lowe’s Path but can be hard to see. Look for mud. There’s another sign for it where it starts so look for that very roughly opposite the trail sign for it on the left (Log Cabin aside). The trail almost immediately becomes more obvious and less muddy. It’s clear that it’s not terribly well travelled throughout though.

The Log Cabin is open and seemed to be in good shape. Gray Knob is closed. I only saw three other people. One that passed me as I took a break at the jct of Lowe’s Path and The Link on my way up that was going to do King Ravine. I hope she didn’t get caught in too much rain/thunder. The other two were doing an out-and-back on Lowe’s Path to Mount Adams.  
Name
Name: Liam Cooney 
E-Mail
E-Mail: liamcooney96@gmail.com 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2020-08-11 
Link
Link: https:// 
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