| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mt. Washington, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
Great Gulf Trail, Nelson Crag Trail, Old Jackson Road, Madison Gulf Trail |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Wednesday, August 14, 2019 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
4 cars in the Great Gulf parking lot at 6:30AM, 3 cars at 6:30PM |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
|
 | Recommended Equipment: |
|
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All hoppable or bridged |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
The section of the Great Gulf past Sphinx to the headwall is the widowmaker mile with lean overs, blowdowns, step overs and duck unders around every corner. Only 2 blowovers obstructing the trail that you can't duck or step over, with 1 looking fairly new. I tried to wrangle the spruce out of the way without any success. It's a long way to this section for axe work unfortunately. Braiding around a section of trail .1 above Spaulding Lake where the actual trail goes up a stream but there are side paths to try to try get around (but end up going nowhere) it's a confusing spot. A cairn or two would help this and avoid further pathfinding? Nelson's Craig Trail needs a good brushing from the AT to treeline as it gets pretty tight on the descent. |
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw a couple with hikers on top of the rockpile who seemed happy |
|
 | Bugs: |
None until very late in the day on the last mile out by the Peabody river |
|
 | Lost and Found: |
Light green outdoor adventure trekking poles with red duct tape on them found 1/4 of the way up the headwall. We tried hiking them up, but I almost wiped out with them in my hand and ended up leaving them leaning against a rock with a cairn 1/2 way up (sorry). |
|
|
|
|
 | Comments: |
Pretty nice day above treeline. Nice walk in via the Great Gulf, see trail notes above. The beaty of this trail in almost the entirety is spectacular. So many cascades and waterfalls and eventually views. The trail on the headwall wasn't as hard to follow as some earlier reports suggested. There are cairns and faint yellow blazes, but essentially, follow the stream up and in places where its hidden under rocks, follow the sound. Every time I thought we had lost the trail a marker showed up. We did not see a single person from the parking lot to Gulfside! Washington was the usual zoo, but it's nice to have a summit snack and watch the crowd. Nelson's Craig Trail was a very cool way to come down and is easy to follow the cairns all the way down to treeline. Saw 2 people on the trail the whole time and both were above the Alpine Garden. Also redlined a few missing chads because the day wasn't long enough already (.1 Gulfside between the Trinity Connectors, .1 of Huntington & .4 of the Alpine Garden trails to the Auto Road, .8 of the bottom of the Osgood trail) and in total it was a 1% day! It's a really long day with a lot of miles but was a nice way to avoid the crowds and maximize our time above treeline. The Mountain Goat was asleep within minutes of getting to the car... |
|
 | Name: |
Mountain Goat and the Professor |
|
 | E-Mail: |
@on_the_redline |
|
| Date Submitted: |
2019-08-15 |
|
 | Link: |
 https://www.instagram.com/p/B1LrUcannJX/ |
|
|
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. |
|
