| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Madison, Mt. Adams, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Valley Way, Osgood Trail, Gulfside, Airline |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, April 25, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
5 cars at 7:15am, 9 at 2pm. There is a sign at the kiosk asking to count the cars and text that number to help with a study on trail access. I think it is legit? I txt'd. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow - Wet/Sticky, Mud - Significant, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow - Spring Snow, Snow/Ice - Postholes, Slush, Snow/Ice - Small Patches |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
None of note, although most of the trails have running water on them, |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Valley Way was pretty clear, Airline has a lot of blowdowns, but nothing that caused much of a re-route. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Below treeline would be fun for the pooch. Above treeline, the rocks have a very rough texture that is tough on the pads. Left mine at home. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
When opening an energy bar or gel, try not to rip the corner off completely, picked up a bunch of pieces of snack wrappers. Also, if you are going to bag your dog's poop, it's not OK to leave it on the side of the trail. Someone did this about 100 yds from the parking lot just past the power lines. It had obviously been there for a while. If you are going to do that, just do the stick flick off the trail instead.
A pretty new pair of size 11.5 Salomon hiking shoes under the kiosk at Appalachia. |
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 | Comments: |
I think I was second one up Valley Way this AM judging by the tracks. Never saw the person, so guessing they started super early for a Traverse. Bareboots to 3800'. There are patches of snow before that but was able to rock hop or walk "monorail adjacent". At 3800' the trail gets fairly steep and has a serious side slope. Sliding off to your left would be unfun. Both I and the person whose tracks I was following donned micros at that point until the hut. I suspect micros will be useful for the foreseeable future on this section. A little snow after the hut (no problem with bare boots) and then dry rock all the way to the summit and back, and then after a little snow heading out from the hut on Gulfside (~100yds), bare rock all the way to Adams and then back to treeline on Airline (~4300'). From 4300' to 2400', there is alternating snow, ice, and bare sections. I chose to bareboot and was able to pick my way down, but there is much more ice on Airline than on Valley Way (mostly just packed snow). Were I doing Airline again, I would have put on spikes (some of the ice floes are long and steep), or better yet crossed back over to Valley Way. Carried snowshoes thinking I might use them on Airline. Not even close with all the bare sections. You definitely want microspikes for this hike for the near future.
Only saw 2 other hikers all day, Steve and Tania. Steve was on his 28th peak for this month, working on his grid over 70, and they were on their way over to Jefferson as well for a MAJ.
Left my phone on the dashboard so no pics, but it was a great day to be up high. |
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 | Name: |
Borealis |
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 | E-Mail: |
kdwelch1@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-04-25 |
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 | Link: |
 https://www.strava.com/activities/14285278229 |
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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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