| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Boott Spur, Mt. Washington, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Tuckerman Ravine Trail, Lion Head Trail, Alpine Garden Trail, Lawn Cutoff, Davis Path, Camel Trail, Tuckerman Crossover, Southside Trail, Crawford Path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Wednesday, July 26, 2023 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of room in the lots on both sides of Route 16 at the bottom of the Auto Road. Tickets for the Hiker Shuttle are purchased at the lodge, on the east side of the road. The lodge opens at 8:30. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Nothing this high up. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Not much to report. Signs are all in place. Very little mud. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
The rock-hopping of the trails on the cone of Mt. Washington isn't the best for dogs. Davis Path is probably the most dog-friendly trail I was on. |
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 | Bugs: |
Very few. The steady wind probably had something to do with that. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing. |
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|
 | Comments: |
Today I did something I'd never done before - I took the hiker shuttle both up and down Mt. Washington so that I could redline a whole bunch of above-treeline trails to the south of the summit. The Auto Road makes no guarantees about the availability of the hiker shuttle, but it worked well for me today.
Tuckerman Ravine Trail down from the summit to Lion Head was pretty much all rock-hopping, as was most of Lion Head down to Alpine Garden. This rock-hopping was the most strenuous of the day (this is possibly the only hike I've ever done where the slowest mile was the first one). Alpine Garden back to Tuckerman Ravine was fine, and then Tuckerman Ravine back up to Tuckerman Junction was steep but had OK footing. Lawn Cutoff was a little bit rougher but still not bad. Davis Path had probably the best footing of the day - not a lot of rock-hopping on it, it's more like a normal trail. Took Davis Path down to the junction with Glen Boulder Trail and then back up, and made sure to redline the rest of it up to where it ends on Crawford Path. Camel Trail, Tuckerman Crossover, and Southside Trail were all a bit rougher in general than Davis Path, but they still weren't terrible. 99% of the rocks were dry and there was very little mud, so overall pretty good conditions.
I would've liked to get Westside Trail as well, but in the interest of ensuring I could get a ticket for the hiker shuttle back down, I ascended Crawford Path to the summit rather than do the loop that Westside Trail would've required. I saw a few people on some of the other trails, but encountered a whole bunch of hikers climbing up Crawford Path. Everyone was having a good time, with some groups attempting full traverses. Crawford Path on the cone of Mt. Washington is steep, but rocks have been carefully placed to improve the footing - why couldn't they do that on Tuckerman Ravine Trail?
Despite this hike never dropping below 5,000 feet of elevation, I still gained more than 2,000 vertical feet. Fun and productive day. |
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 | Name: |
GN |
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 | E-Mail: |
ghnaigles@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2023-07-26 |
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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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