| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Monroe, Mt. Washington, Mt. Jefferson, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Ammonoosuc Ravine Trail, Crawford Path, Monroe Loop, Cog Rail Trail, Westside, Gulfside, Jefferson Loop, Jewell Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, January 11, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
$10 per person at the Cog lot, I think was plowed sometime since yesterday but had dusting of snow. I dropped my truck at Appalachia where only half was plowed this morning. Both lots had a few inches of fresh snow by the afternoon. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Snow - Drifts |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction, Traction, Ice Axe |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Crossings on Ammo are mostly frozen over and easy. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
No issues on Ammo or Jewell. Spinx Col sign is lying down, but why wouldn't it be? |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Took advantage of the low winds to get up in the Alpine. Mixed bag of surface conditions expected and found. We used all the gear we brought.
A fresh inch of snow when we started out. It was lighting snowing the whole day but only seemed to accumulate a few inches. Ammo above Gem Pool was not icy but was hardpacked and the steeper spots smoothed out from glissading. With the fresh powder covering, Hillsounds had a hard time biting. ET was leading and had better luck with K10s. There was no need for snowshoes up to the hut. From treeline up to Monroe was solid windswept. Ice axes made the steep climb and descent off Monroe a breeze, but shortened trekking poles would work too. I know I certainly couldn't just walk upright down it right now.
We continued up to Washington in our traction choices, though we followed a group of 4 (who came up Crawford Path from the notch) all in snowshoes. There was some exposed rock and light drifts but mostly hardpack. We took the Cog Rail Trail off the summit down to the Westside junction, this had some serious hard ice under the fresh powder, so I tossed my crampons on here. looked to be sketchy further down, as others we talked to confirmed.
Gulfside, Jeff Loop, and upper Jewell were all just loose powder over rock. Very boney, not very fun. If booting you would posthole, if snowshoeing you would beat them up and get all sorts of whacky ankle articulation. We chose to snowshoe as did the others heading to Jefferson today. We mostly stayed true to the trail but veered off on Jeff loop for a more direct shot to the summit. The worst of the surface conditions was the top of Jewell Once in the trees the trail was a nice snowshoe track.
We dropped a vehicle at Appalachia in case we felt like continuing on, but decided to call it at Jefferson and return. There were no tracks headed further north along the ridge.
Only a few groups of hikers encountered and a couple skiers all day. Thanks to the ladies who initially broke out Jewell! |
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 | Name: |
Kyle L & E.T. Fudge |
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 | E-Mail: |
kjlanctot g mail |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-01-11 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.strava.com/activities/13328963879 |
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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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