| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Sunset Ledge, Mt. Grant, Mt. Cleveland, Little Hans Peak, Mt. Roosevelt, Mt. Wilson, Breadloaf Mountain, Battell Mountain, Mt. Boyce, Burnt Hill, VT |
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 | Trails: |
Long Trail, Lincoln Gap Road |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Friday, January 1, 2021 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Dropped off at end of plowing, east side of Lincoln Gap Road, which necessitated about a 1.5 mile walk 1000 feet up to the Long Trail. One car was parallel parked there. At the Middlebury Gap LT crossing, there is plenty of plowed parking. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
None |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
From Lincoln Gap to Clark Brook Trail, I counted about 25 blowdowns and leaners. From CBT to Middlebury Gap, only about a half dozen. All were easily maneuvered over, under, or around. Being designated Wilderness, there are very few blazes in the section, especially the northern half. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Lincoln Gap south to Middlebury Gap on the Long Trail, the Vermont version of a Press Traverse. Picked up where I left off before end of Calendar Winter last March. Lucked out this day with minimal snow depths, but that is changing (snow!) as I write this.
~1.5 mile/1000 foot climb to Lincoln Gap went quickly. Lots of foot traffic and only an inch or two of snow. LT South was well travelled to Sunset Ledge, and there was one old set of human prints to Cooley Glen Shelter.
From CG Shelter to Clark Brook Trail it was just critter tracks - coyote, bobcat, moose, partridge, vole, squirrel, and rabbits... SO many rabbits! I learned to trust the coyotes - they apparently really like the LT, and I resorted to checking my GPS app in only two questionable spots this day, definitely a rarity for the extremely hard-to-follow Long Trail in winter. Because of so little snow, I also was able to discern the trail depression which was very helpful in the many open hardwood sections.
Barebooted the first 3-4 miles, but ice underfoot was well hidden so I finally threw on the spikes and wore them the rest of the day. A few tricky ice bulges here and there but nothing too crazy. Only spot snowshoes may have helped a little bit was going over Mt. Wilson, which held the deepest snow of the day and some drifts, but it would not have been worth schlepping them that far for so little benefit on this particular day.
Two people had come up Clark Brook Trail for Wilson; one other guy had hiked north from Middlebury Gap to Roosevelt. This made me happy since I could merely follow his footsteps and no longer had to think about where the trail was - yay. I hit all the peaks except for Kirby, an evil little bushwhack that I did previously.
Thanks and gratitude to Fancypants for the drop-off and pickup at day's end. :)
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 | Name: |
Snowflea |
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 | E-Mail: |
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| Date Submitted: |
2021-01-02 |
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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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