Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
East Osceola, Mt. Osceola, NH |
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| Trails: |
Greeley Ponds Trail, Mt. Osceola Trail |
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| Date of Hike: |
Sunday, February 27, 2011 |
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| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Lot hadn't been plowed since the overnight snow, but only 2-3 inches of new snow in it. |
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| Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder, Ice - Blue, Snow - Drifts, Snow/Ice - Postholes |
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| Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Traction, Ice Axe |
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| Water Crossing Notes: |
Solidly snowbridged...for now |
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| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A triple blowdown in the col (East Osceola side, before the chimney) that will probably require an axe to remove. Also, some weird flags were strung up at the East Osceola viewpoint...a bit of an eyesore...didn't feel like digging out my knife to cut them down. |
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| Dog-Related Notes: |
Chimney bypass may be too much for medium to large dogs right now. |
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| Bugs: |
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| Lost and Found: |
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| Comments: |
Greeley Ponds Trail was well packed for snowshoeing. Both XC ski trails had fresh XC ski tracks. Steeps up East Osceola had a few inches of powder on top of frozen granular and blue ice - could be an adventure if we get rain tomorrow. Slide crossing didn't have an established footbed. Broke out the drifts between the peaks, some knee deep. Chimney bypass was tricky due to some underlying blue ice, as well as a few inches of powder on top. Used my ice axe to help pull myself up it. For the descent, I bushwhacked about 10 feet due north at the elbow, then went straight down, then cut back along the bottom of the bypass ledge. Worked very well. Due to folks keeping crampons on after bypass, plenty of postholes lurking under the powder. Back on summit of Osceola, signs of a packed trail from yesterday from Tripoli Road. Back on East Osceola, fresh ski tracks - looks like someone skinned up (booted up the steeps, no damage to the trail) and then skied the slide (from the summit)! |
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| Name: |
rocket21 |
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| E-Mail: |
rocket21 at franklinwebpublishing dot com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2011-02-27 |
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| Link: |
https://www.franklinsites.com/hikephotos/NewHampshire/mteastosceola-2011-0227.php |
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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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