| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
North Kinsman, South Kinsman, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Lonesome Lake Trail, Fishin' Jimmy Trail, Kinsman Ridge Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, January 26, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked to the left when pulling off 93SB at Lafayette Place. This part isn't plowed, but it is packed down enough that I had no troubles with my Honda Fit w/snow tires, just don't pull too far in as a couple of fellows with a Tacoma got bogged down in the deeper/unpacked snow and needed mats and shovels to get going. Apparently, they had planned on doing Franconia Ridge but were talked out of it by a trail Marshall and opted for Lonesome Lake instead. A wise choice given their gear. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Last week had hoped to do Cannon and the Kinsmen (Kinsmans?), but after 3 hrs of breaking trail over the Cannonballs I had been soaked and spent so called it a day. Needed these two to finish my W48, so here we are. Microspikes door to door. Trail was very well packed and traction was great going up and down, a very fast track. There are a few steep icy sections on Fishin' Jimmy where the path has moved into the trees a bit, which provide useful handholds. (Nothing was anywhere near as dicey as coming down KRT from Cannon towards Lonesome Lake last week). A couple of hikers had camped at KP shelter last night (their summary: Brrrr), and they started the day in snowshoes but quickly switched to spikes. They had come over the Cannonballs on Saturday, and said they had met two other hikers going the opposite direction, so at least 4 sets of snowshoes hit that section of trail over the weekend. Unpopular opinion but I like Fishin' Jimmy, especially in Winter.
The forecast high winds never made its presence known today, even on S. Kinsman. In addition to the Cannonball duo, had a nice chat with Postal Patty (4 Grids!) and a guy on N. Kinsman who had pushed his fat bike up from 116 (2.5 hours) and figured it would take about 15 minutes to get down. He had his program pretty dialed in and said it was his 10th 4000' peak on the bike. |
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 | Name: |
Borealis |
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 | E-Mail: |
kdwelch1@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-01-26 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.strava.com/activities/13460601504 |
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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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