| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Owl's Head, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Lincoln Woods Trail, Black Pond Trail, bushwhack, Lincoln Brook Trail, bushwhack, Owl's Head Path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, January 12, 2024 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
A handful of cars at LW when we arrived around 7:30. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Using the bushwhacks, there are only two "significant" water crossings. Both were bridged over, though we had to cross them with care, as the bridges are still not as thick or stable as I'd like them to be. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
No significant blowdowns. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Our first plan was to do the Zealand-Bond Traverse for my husband's birthday, but with concerns about trail conditions, temps and winds, we opted for this instead, with a buddy who needed it for his 48. We thought it would be "easier" than a traverse with the road walk. Boy, were we wrong!!!! LW to the Black Pond junction was great, enough snow to cover roots, railroad ties, etc. but crunchy and packed down. Trail up to the pond was easy as well. A younger hiker caught us at the pond and the four of us worked on navigating the bushwhack, which wasn't broken out. We got a bit off track at one point only, and once we rejoined the main trail, conditions weren't bad. Swapped our spikes for snowshoes shortly after rejoining the main trail, which made travel easier on the breakable crust on top of softer snow.
Once we got to the bushwhack, it was a whole different story. We were very grateful for "Kieran," who navigated and broke out the bushwhack, but even so, the "Brutus" bushwhack was "brutal." It took us 2 1/2 hours to ascend, and it was very discouraging. We kept our snowshoes on for a while on the descent, but once we got to the really steeps parts, I actually felt a bit unsafe in snowshoes (was afraid I would pitch forward awkwardly, and swapped back to spikes. Others might have preferred snowshoes the whole way. After the steep part, we made decent time back to the car, but total trip was 13 hours! |
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 | Name: |
TandemHiker |
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 | E-Mail: |
dsmsbs@comcast.net |
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| Date Submitted: |
2024-01-13 |
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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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