| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
North Twin Mountain, South Twin Mountain, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
Haystack Road, North Twin Trail, North Twin Spur |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, December 1, 2023 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at the gate to haystack road. The gate was plowed, one other vehicle there, must have been hunting, didn’t see anyone on trail today. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Unpacked Powder, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow - Drifts, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow - Wet/Sticky, Slush |
|
 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All of the small stream crossing and trickles across the trail had no snow or ice in them, running water and mud.
The main water crossing was difficult today and will be for a little while. There are a couple of small ice dams and snow bridges but the majority of the crossing is open running water. We were able to cross these with very careful footing. On the return trip though most of this was broken up and collapsed due to warm weather today. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Great job zippy and crew, love the reroute. |
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
|
|
 | Bugs: |
|
|
 | Lost and Found: |
|
|
|
|
|
 | Comments: |
Disclaimer: take this report as you wish, 10 mines after we got back to the car it started raining and rained the whole drive and is still raining, plus with potential weather this weekend it could change.
Two of us set out for the twins today. Barebooted from the gate on haystack road to the summer parking area, once we reached the trail we saw no one had been out in a while due to no fresh tracks. There was only a small amount of snow so we opted to continue barebooting on the trail. We were able to make it about 1.5 miles before we opted to put on snowshoes, they probably could have stayed off but the snow was deep in some spots with rocks showing In other spots, no clear cut choice. Snowshoes proved helpful for the water crossing as it distributed our weight so the snow bridges would hold us better. After the water crossing, snow became a bit deeper ranging from 2-6 inches with some bare patches (the joys of late fall and early winter hiking). However around 2,700 feet snow became deeper with a consistent blanket and occasional drifting. Once we reached 3,500 feet winter was in full effect. As we got higher the snow kept getting deeper and more consistent. The last .4 to north twin was a slog with consistent 8-12 inches and occasional drifting. We were hoping to see someone had tracked out the spur over to south twin but upon arrival it was clear we would be dealing with deep snow and even deeper drifts. Snow conditions over to south twin ranged from 8-12 inches again but with more drifting and deeper drifts, about 12-18 inches. When we summited south twin and we took a look to see if anyone had come up from the hut and it was very clear no one had and there seemed to be knee deep drifting and no sign of tracks. The return trip was better as we were retracing our broken out path, however with warm temps and the sun popping out from time to time the snow had become a heavy, sticky, slush. The descent was better but not great, kept snowshoes on until the junction with fire wardens trail (there were tracks from today up fire warden). A good base was set but needs some more snowshoe love and colder temps to solidify. |
|
 | Name: |
George Somerset |
|
 | E-Mail: |
|
|
| Date Submitted: |
2023-12-01 |
|
 | Link: |
 https:// |
|
|
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. |
|
