Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Smarts Mountain, NH |
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| Trails: |
Daniel Doan Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Friday, January 13, 2017 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Room for a few cars in a small parking area at the trailhead at the end of Mousley Brook Road. Both Mousley Brook Road and Quinttown Road are clear, smooth dirt roads. The first part of this route is on private property, and briefly passes through someone's yard. Hikers are welcome. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Ice - Blue, Ice - Breakable Crust, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
Mousley Brook was still bridged right at the trail crossing, but didn't look too solid. I crossed a few feet downstream where Bryan did. |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Several blowdowns below the brook crossing. Above the crossing, no issues. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
I guess. |
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| Bugs: |
Nope. |
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| Lost and Found: |
Nothing. |
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| Comments: |
A hard-earned trip up to Smarts, after reading Bryan's recent report. Thank you for doing the initial trail breaking! The word of the day was crust. I started out barebooting to where the trail leaves the snowmobile trail, then switched to snowshoes. There was a long stretch of wet, bare ground, so I took them off again. After this stretch, I put them on again and left them on until this point on the return.
Things weren't too bad before the brook crossing, but right after that the trail became much more difficult, with awkward, crusty snowshoeing conditions. It seemed like every other step I was breaking through. This made for very slow going as the crust became deeper with elevation. Thank goodness for flexible snowshoes. ;) I can't say I'd recommend this trail right now. It needs a big dumping of snow and a large group of snowshoers to fix it.
Great views from the tower and the wind was howling. I could feel the tower swaying a bit. If you go, the door to the cab is heavy and requires a good push, but it will open. Nice and warm in there! |
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| Name: |
KenM |
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| E-Mail: |
kmacgray@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2017-01-13 |
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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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