| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Piper Mountain, Swett Mountain, Belknap Mountain, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
East Gilford Trail, Round Pond Trail, Round Pond - Piper Link, Old Piper Trail, Piper - Whiteface Link, Vista Trail, White Trail, Red Trail, Boulder Trail |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, June 22, 2024 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
I was going to do this hike from the Carriage Rd side but the gate closes at 6pm so that was a no-go so I parked at the new trailhead (still a strict and labelled 5 car limit, lol!) for East Gilford Trail which is on the left very shortly after turning left onto Woods Rd from Bickford Rd. Three out of the five spots were taken at 3pm. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant |
|
 | Recommended Equipment: |
|
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Only some very trivial/small ones on Round Pond Trail and Round Pond - Piper Link I believe. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
|
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Boulder Trail is probably too rough for most dogs. One small section of Vista Trail could be difficult for them as well. According to the guidebook, dogs must be leashed on the lower part of the trail that's on private land protected by a conservation easement. Not sure if the rerouted start of the trail changes this or not. |
|
 | Bugs: |
There were some out but generally not too bad I think as it was pretty wet. |
|
 | Lost and Found: |
None |
|
|
|
|
 | Comments: |
East Gilford Trail is blazed in yellow and its starting location has been changed. Watch for where it leaves the old road on the return trip and becomes a footpath in the woods. Round Pond - Piper Link was blazed in green, Round Pond Trail I believe was blazed in red (and orange where it coincides with Overlook Trail), Old Piper in orange, Piper - Whiteface Link in green, Vista in yellow, White and Red trails in the obvious, and Boulder Trail in blue. Generally speaking, the trails in the Belknaps are very well taken care of and easy to follow. Boulder and East Gilford Trail on the ledge may have been a little trickier to follow but this could have been because I was in the dark. The end of Vista Trail might be slightly obscure too. Trail signs were intact as far as I recall but I don't recall the blowdown situation.
The objective was to finish all the trails on the west side of the Belknaps that I had not yet done. Though I'd done a lot in this area, this still turned out to be a rather obnoxious amount of hiking to get what I still needed as everything was situated sort of oddly. Oh well. My whacky redlining route: East Gilford Trail --> OAB on Round Pond Trail to Overlook Trail --> combined East Gilford and Round Pond trails --> Round Pond - Piper Link --> OAB on Old Piper Trail (south), Piper - Whiteface Link, and Vista Trail to Swett Mtn and back --> Old Piper Trail (north) --> White Trail --> East Gilford Trail to summit --> OAB on Red Trail --> East Gilford Trail --> OAB on Boulder Trail --> East Gilford Trail to car.
I didn't start hiking until shortly past 3pm and, as you can imagine, finished in the dark. It was raining lightly when I started but subsided within a few hours if that. I've found over the yeas that some sorts of rocks/ledge are still rather trustworthy when wet and others are quite slick even when they aren't that wet. Unfortunately, the ledge in the Belknaps fell into the latter category so there was some slow going. Boulder Trail was followable with care in the dark. It's doable for descent for your avg hiker though most will prefer to ascend it, especially if you've got mobility problems. The trail was largely ledge but the boulder part was more difficult. Very short sections that were like hiking in the northern presidentials. One short pitch on Vista Trail that was scrambly as well. Beyond that, the trails may be moderately steep at times, but are usually quite tame in this range.
Not sure if it's technically needed since it's given with a distance but not described as a spur in the guidebook, but I looked for the NE viewpoint to Mack and Anna from Swett thoroughly and did not find anything. If anyone can provide intel as to exactly where this is, that would be swell. I wondered around a bit, but nowhere that seemed to match the description. The trails were very wet of course and there was some deep mud but all in all not too bad. The hike was about 15mi with 3500ft of gain. It took me 6hr47min to complete. |
|
 | Name: |
Liam Cooney |
|
 | E-Mail: |
liamcooney96@gmail.com |
|
| Date Submitted: |
2024-06-27 |
|
 | 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. |
|
