| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Belvidere Mountain, VT |
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 | Trails: |
Frank Post Trail, Long Trail, Forester's Trail |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Monday, June 30, 2025 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Lot at Tillotson Road trailhead can handle maybe a dozen cars. Two cars on arrival and one when leaving. The extension of Tillotson Road has 2 dips, but even my low clearance car had no issues. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Mud - Significant, Leaves - Significant/Slippery |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All were rock hops today, but it looked like the crossing on Foresters a few hundred meters from the junction with the Frank Post Trail would be very tricky at high flow. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Frank Post and Forester's trails were in great shape, a few blow downs but not bad. The Long Trail, on the other hand was pretty messy. I lost count of the number of blow downs in this relatively short stretch, but it is more than a dozen, maybe 2. Some were step overs/duck or crawl unders. But there were several very significant blow downs consisting of multiple trees that will take quite a bit of work to clear. All have herd paths forming to detour around, but even these are a bit tricky. On several, I simply forged a way through the hobble bush. This increased the time to traverse the trail, too. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Trails would be great for pups. The blow downs may cause some issues, but they always seem to forge a way around them. Several spots with flowing water for drinking and washing. But, be prepared for a pretty muddy pup by the end due to the significant level of mud throughout the trails. |
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 | Bugs: |
Nasty. Bothersome at fire tower summit. And deer flies buzzing all the way down the Forester's trail to car. Fortunately, the ridge traverse was windy, so bugs minimal up there. |
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 | Lost and Found: |
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 | Comments: |
Nice little loop on the NEK challenge list, plus a nice fire tower with great distant views. Only saw 5 people this morning, and 2 of them had stayed on the mountain for the previous nite searching for a Bicknell's Thrush. Like them, I heard 4 Swainson's and one Hermit thrushes on the ridge, and more Hermits down lower, but no Bicknell's.
Trails were fairly muddy, which was mostly avoidable. Often rocks were available for hoping through muddy sections, or the sides of the trail were the best option to avoid mud. Poles are useful for maintaining balance through these sections. And, as noted above, there are many significant blowdowns on the Long Trail. |
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 | Name: |
CookiesOnTop |
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 | E-Mail: |
schwarzmc at yahoo |
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| Date Submitted: |
2025-07-01 |
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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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