| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Hale, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
Zealand Road, Hale Brook Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Monday, April 21, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at Rte 302, lots of space early AM and early PM when I got back. Zealand Road was bare and dry. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Ice - Black, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow - Spring Snow, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Traction |
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Water crossings open and unbridged. Crossed a bit up or downstream from actual trail for optimal spot. Second brook crossing had slippery mossy rocks and undercut showbank/collapsed snowbridge, but very manageable. First time doing this trail so I cannot compare water levels, but they seemed moderate--water flowing swiftly but not too deep, a foot at most at the crossings. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Some blowdowns but easily navigated around, over, or under. |
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Met a delightful yellow lab at summit. She was loving the snow! |
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 | Bugs: |
None. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
N/A |
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|
 | Comments: |
Left lot at 7am-ish, trailhead 7:50-ish, was back at 12:45pm-ish. Road walk a nice warmup.
Trail was bare and mostly dry (small parches of mud) until about 1/4 or 1/3 of the way in, then well packed monorail to the top. Used microspikes on monorail, it would have been quite slippery without them (some icy patches, including a few rocks with black ice). Snowshoes went for a ride. Saw some fairly deep postholes made by others, but snowpack today was solid, at least in the morning. Overall good footing and no clumping on spikes! Still a lot of snow (few feet) at higher elevations.
Saw no one else on ascent. Met two other hikers (with the friendly Lab) at summit who came up Fire Warden's trial. Saw one other hiker coming up Hale Brook as I was going down. Friendly Jays at summit.
No views at summit, but nice views of Washington and Presidentials through the trees towards the top. Fabulous sunny day, in t-shirt all the way. Overall a great hike.
PS: be sure to check out the lookout on Zealand road on your way back for a great spot to dip your feet in the river. :)
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|
 | Name: |
Catherine |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-04-22 |
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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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