| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Eagle Crag, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Spruce Brook Tentsite spur, Wild River Trail, Eagle Link, Meader Ridge Trail, Baldface Circle Trail, Bicknell Ridge Trail, Eagle Cascade Link, Emerald Pool Spur |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, August 17, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Cars were parked along Route 113 by the time we got back to the Baldface Circle trailhead. Many of those people were probably just visiting Emerald Pool - we saw plenty of people there. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
The crossings of Spruce Brook and Red Brook on Wild River Trail, and Wild River on Eagle Link, were all straightforward rock hops. Water levels are very low. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Eagle Link has a bunch of blowdowns, and some very brushy spots. Signs are all in place. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Bring plenty of water for them - there's no water on Eagle Link above its crossing of Wild River, and no water coming down from the Baldfaces until maybe 1,000 feet of elevation. Also, keep an eye out for them on Bicknell Ridge Trail - it's easy to take a wrong turn there. |
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 | Bugs: |
They only bothered me when we stopped to take significant breaks on our descent of Eagle Crag. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing. |
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|
 | Comments: |
This was Day 2 of a backpacking trip in the Wild River area - Day 1 is here: https://www.newenglandtrailconditions.com/nh/viewreport.php?entryid=78154. The jaunt back up Wild River Trail to the junction with Eagle Link was uneventful, but we were already sweating profusely by the time we got to the junction - even in the morning it was getting hot. Eagle Link is faint and brushy in places, but we never had much trouble following it. While it crosses a few streams above its crossing of Wild River, those streams were all dry today. The lower half of the trail is pretty easy, with gradual grades and mostly good footing. As the trail starts to contour around North Baldface, it gets rougher, and in some places is brushy and overgrown. From a few points near the top, there are views up to North Baldface. Eagle Link was an adventure, but it's really not bad overall for hikers experienced with wilderness trails. When we finally reached the top of the ridge and the multi-way junction there, we did the short hop over to the true summit of Eagle Crag - it has exceptional views in almost all directions.
We then took the short jaunt in the other direction to the junction with Bicknell Ridge Trail. This trail winds around and descends many steep, open ledges with excellent views - the ledges were dry today and provided good grip, but I wouldn't want to do this trail on a rainy day. The open ledges also radiated the heat back to us, making me drink a lot of water (more than I had expected to drink). When we finally reached the junction with Eagle Cascade Link, we descended that trail, which I needed since it was my final trail for redlining in Chapter 9 of the WMG. The upper section is steep, descending about 400 vertical feet in the upper 0.3 miles, but the footing wasn't too bad - we just took our time. I was hoping to filter more water when we reached Eagle Cascade, however unfortunately the cascade was almost completely dry today, with just a few tiny drops of water dripping down from the bottom. I was nonplussed by this, since I really needed more water by this point. The lower section of Eagle Cascade Link is more gradual. We made good time descending Baldface Circle Trail, and about 0.1 before the lower junction with Bicknell Ridge Trail, Baldface Circle Trail crossed another brook, and this one had water. We stopped there for a good while and filtered it for our water bottles and bladders, and I felt much better. The next section of Baldface Circle Trail is heavily eroded, and muddy even in normal conditions, however today it was completely dry so we could just walk down the exposed dry rock. When we reached Emerald Pool, it was a scene of organized chaos, as people from multiple different groups tried to jump off into the water without getting in anyone else's way. Everyone seemed to be having a good time though.
This trip not only finished Chapter 9 of the WMG for me, but also brought me over 99% complete on the Redlining Spreadsheet. Only 6 more trails and 12 more miles to go! |
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 | Name: |
GN |
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 | E-Mail: |
ghnaigles@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-08-17 |
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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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