| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
West Quarry Mountain, Rand Mountain, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Reed Road Trail, Dave Roberts Quarry Trail, Old Clough Road |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, January 14, 2024 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Reed Road trailhead parking area is snow-covered but mostly well-packed. There was a slight berm at the entrance that gave me momentary pause before driving in, but with all the vehicles that parked there today, the berm is much smaller now. I was still glad I had a high-clearance vehicle with AWD to get in. The dirt section of Reed Rd. is quite icy. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
No major crossings, however several sections of trail were very wet, with standing and running water instead of snow. Worst was on DRQT between West Quarry and the junction with Reed Road Trail - I've done that section several times and it's always wet regardless of season. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
As noted under Water Crossings, major drainage issues on DRQT near West Quarry. Signs are all in place, though they aren't always obvious. And blowdowns are generally not an issue, though there's one recent blowdown alongside DRQT west of the summit of West Quarry. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Didn't see any, but they'd probably be fine. |
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 | Bugs: |
None. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing. |
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|
 | Comments: |
A group of seven of us headed up Reed Road Trail with an ambitious plan to hit a half-dozen Belknap peaks. However, once we saw the condition of the trail, it was clear that the plan would need to be modified. Once off the road, Reed Road Trail was covered in a foot of snow (a crusty layer on top with somewhat softer snow beneath), and the only tracks on the trail were from a single snowshoer who took very long strides, meaning that it was difficult for us to only step within their snowshoe tracks. After struggling up the lower part of the trail in just spikes, we all put on snowshoes where the trail enters the woods and the switchbacks begin. This was a good decision, and we kept our snowshoes on for the rest of the hike. The trail-breaking was somewhat strenuous up Reed Road Trail but still doable.
When we reached the junction with Dave Roberts Quarry Trail, the section going toward East Quarry was totally untracked. We headed toward West Quarry - the trail conditions were pretty much the same, with a foot of snow with a crust on top that needed to be packed out since the lone snowshoer hadn't had a huge impact here. Once past the wet sections and atop West Quarry, we made sure to take the short spur path to the true summit, marked by a cairn - the trail junction (of DRQT and Marsh Crossing) with the sign is not the actual summit of West Quarry.
The snowshoer must have turned around at West Quarry, because DRQT heading toward Rand Mt. was totally untracked. We packed it out with snowshoes (which are definitely still needed here). There's one section just above the steep descent where the trail goes along the top of a steep, sloping ledge - that spot looked a bit precarious, so some of us chose to do an easy bushwhack through the woods to get around it. We used the bypass for the descent off West Quarry - it was still quite steep, and we needed to be careful. When crossing the col between West Quarry and Rand, there are a few spots where the trail was not obvious (and the white blazes blended in with the white snow), so be careful there. When climbing up Rand, I realized for the first time today that Rand was the only summit of the Belknap 12 that I had not yet done twice, meaning that summitting Rand completed my second round of the Belknap 12! Realizing that we as a group didn't have the stamina to hike Klem or Mack today, and not wanting to re-climb West Quarry, we descended Old Clough Road instead - same snow conditions there.
Despite the tough-ish snow conditions, this was still a very fun hike! We didn't see any other hikers on the trails all day. |
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 | Name: |
GN |
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 | E-Mail: |
ghnaigles@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2024-01-14 |
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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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