| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Zealand Mountain, Mt. Guyot, West Bond, Mt. Bond, Bondcliff, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Zealand Road, Zealand Trail, Twinway, Zealand Spur, Bondcliff Trail, West Bond Spur, Lincoln Woods Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, March 11, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of parking on Rt 302 |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The water crossings on the Bondcliff Trail were all rock hoppable. Tricky at times with snowshoes. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Blowdowns were all easy to get around. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
With the 3.5 mile road walk up Zealand Road from Rt 302, this is a 23 mile traverse. Zealand Road up to the trailhead and then to the hut is in great shape. Packed solid. Snowshoes, spikes, or bare boots will work. After the hut, our snowshoes went on and stayed on all the way to the final 3 miles of Lincoln Woods. The trail to the Zealand summit had just been broken out the previous day so was still very soft and unconsolidated. Very grateful to the trail breakers on Friday. We knew from chatting with hikers who were leaving the hut that 3 hikers were heading to the Bonds that morning, ahead of us. The steep sections to Zealand were challenging with the deep, soft snow. Just getting to the Zealand summit was the toughest conditions of the hike and took the most time. Once we were heading up to Guyot and above tree line, the snow was wind blown and hard packed. West Bond spur and the trail up to Bond were broken out but soft. The only icy section was approaching the summit of Bondcliff. It was all ice and rocks. Very little snow. Our snowshoes handled it fine. Once back into the trees on the Bondcliff Trail, the snow was deep and soft, but there was a nice snowshoe track the entire way out. We were so happy to get this hike done. With the road walk and conditions, it was over 14 hours. Make sure you have a working headlamp if you tackle this as a day hike. You will be coming out in the dark. |
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 | Name: |
SueS |
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 | E-Mail: |
suemsullivan23@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-03-12 |
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 | Link: |
 https:// |
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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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