| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Cardigan, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
Manning Trail, Holt Trail, Clark Trail, South Ridge Trail, Holt-Clark Cutoff, Vistamont Trail, Clark Brook Campsite Spur, Woodland Trail, Nature Loop |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, June 1, 2024 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
By 8am, most but not all of the parking at AMC's Cardigan Lodge was taken. The road was in good shape. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All easily rock hopable. Water is low. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A couple of easy stepovers on Clark Trail |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Holt Trail is not appropriate for dogs. Parts of Clark Trail and South Ridge Trail coming off the summit may also be too steep/scrambly for some dogs. All other trails seemed dog appropriate. |
|
 | Bugs: |
Used bug spray. Mostly deer flies (the ones that hurt but aren't as bad as a horse fly?) and some black flies. No mosquitos. |
|
 | Lost and Found: |
None |
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|
 | Comments: |
Holt Trail is blazed in yellow. It's blazed throughout except for the final hundred or two yards to the top maybe. Down low, especially on some of the scrambles and ledge above treeline, it could have more blaze. Also, while most of the blaze is clearly visible, some of the blaze above treeline is very faded but, if you can find it, can be very helpful in sticking to the true trail. All signage was in place but note that there is no signage at the true summit of Cardigan and while other trails are signed a short ways down the other side, I don't think that Holt is at all. Clark Trail is blazed in white above the cabin and yellow below the cabin. I don't recall the frequency. The section of South Ridge Trail we were on is blazed in white as well. Hurricane Gap, Vistamont, and Holt-Clark Cutoff/Cathedral Forest trails are all blazed in yellow though I don't recall the frequency. A couple of easy stepovers on Clark Trail, maybe a straddler or two o Holt Trail but I don't remember much and overall the trails were in fine shape.
First hike of the day with a very fun group of friends. We split off for parts of it for redlining purposes but my route was basically Holt Trail --> Clark Trail --> South Ridge Trail --> Hurricane Gap Trail to cabin --> spring spur and path to Clark Trail (needed for redlining) --> OAB to left on section of Clark Trail between here and South Ridge Trail --> back down Clark Trail to PJ Ledge and Hurricane Gap Trail --> OAB on Hurricane Gap Trail between here and the cabin --> Clark Trail --> Holt-Clark Cutoff (Cathedral Forest Trail) --> Vistamont Trail --> OAB on section of Clark Trail between here and Holt-Clark Cutoff Traill --> Clark Trail --> Woodland Trail --> OAB to Clark Brook Campsite --> Woodland Trail --> OAB on 0.5mi abandoned section of Clark Trail to Shem Valley Rd --> Woodland Trail --> Nature Loop --> OAB on missing portion of Woodland Trail --> Woodland Trail to car.
Holt Trail has a number of scrambles, some of which are below treeline. The most infamous pitch is the last truly scrambly part and is awhile after the others. Most of the scrambling on slab can be done using a crack which makes a lot of people feel safer. One friend compares it to the slab on Huntington Ravine Trail but with less exposure though I'm not sure I agree (I thought the actual slab part of Huntington Ravine was a cake walk and pretty safe and it was the other parts that were challenging; here, on this section of Holt Trail, I would not want to fall though I'm sure if you just lied flat you wouldn't go far). The slabs were very dry and while there were of course some very wet and muddy areas down low, overall, it was pretty dry. Above treeline and maybe just once or twice below treeline, the trail could be a bit hard or at least ambiguous to follow (see trail maintenance notes about blaze above). In particular, there's a spot, just above the sketchiest and most challenging scramble, where all my friends, quite naturally continued up the ledge, but the trail, somewhat randomly, bore left into the woods (without much marking) and climbed steeply in shrub briefly before popping back out (lots of blaze in the shrub just not much directing you to it).
The new firetower was not open. A number of people at the summit at 10:45am but it didn't feel crazy busy. Quite steep coming off the summit before a more gentle ascent once below treeline. Make sure not to miss the required spur to the spring that ten crosses it and continues to Clark Trail by the cabin. I believe it is signed by the cabin but you'd only see the sign if ascending. It is not signed on Clark Trail and it would be VERY difficult to find the start of it from this end so I recommend going the direction that we did. The guidebook says that there's another spur to a spring below this on Hurricane Gap Trail as well but it is not given with a distance so is not needed for redlining. I kept an eye out for it but could not find it. I also was a fan of the way we made a loop around Holt-Clark Cutoff, Vistamont, and Clark Trail; we went down the steeper section and went up the easy/moderate sections. I heard from a friend that when she did the 1/2mi abandoned Clark Trail Spur, they walked down the road back to the trailhead and they were followed by an aggressive dog that stood and barked just a few feet away (but never actually bit/attacked). We avoided this by doing an OAB. Nature Loop Trail was not terribly well travelled or defined though I don't think it was badly overgrown.
For a number of reasons, these Gaia stats may not be as accurate as usual but it had me at about 9.5mi and 2500ft of gain. |
|
 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
|
 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2024-06-03 |
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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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