| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Belknap Mountain, NH |
|
 | Trails: |
East Gilford Trail, Red Trail, Wayne's Way, Warden's Trail, White Trail, Round Pond-Piper Link, Round Pond Trail, Fire Road |
|
 | Date of Hike: |
Sunday, April 25, 2021 |
|
 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
The parking situation is much better now than it was when I was here last year. A new parking area (5 cars) has been constructed on Wood Rd. right after you turn onto it from Bickford Road. One car there when I arrived at 9:10, three when I got back at 2:30. The former parking area, and the bumpy and extremely narrow access road leading to it, has been closed to vehicles. |
|
 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
|
 | Recommended Equipment: |
|
|
 | Water Crossing Notes: |
Several minor crossings that were easy. Nothing major. |
|
 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
A few blowdowns in various places, none of which required bushwhacking around. No signs for Wayne's Way at either end - I believe it's the short trail that leads from the sign at the upper Carriage Road parking lot to the viewpoint. |
|
 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Saw two. I don't see why not. |
|
 | Bugs: |
Not yet, but I'm sure they'll be out soon. |
|
 | Lost and Found: |
Nothing that I remember. |
|
|
|
|
 | Comments: |
From the new parking area, a short new section of trail has been constructed to connect it with the old East Gilford trailhead. This new trail has some minor ups and downs but nothing serious, however it seems to be already starting to erode in spots despite being new.
I followed East Gilford Trail all the way to the summit of Belknap Mountain. The section I needed for redlining was the part between Round Pond Trail and Boulder Trail. This section starts off in deciduous woods (which have not leafed yet), then gets steeper, enters conifers, and climbs several ledgy areas that were wet today. I never had any issues with traction on the ledges. One description of the trail said that there was one very steep, challenging section, however I did not find any part of the trail to be technically difficult. There's at least one fairly recent reroute here, so follow the blazes carefully (and there are plenty of blazes). Higher up, there were more ledges, which had limited views today due to the cloudiness. A short stretch of trail near the summit has been rerouted to be further from the communications tower - I don't know how long this relocation has been there since I haven't seen the summit of Belknap without snow in at least 3 years, but it too was well signed.
From the summit, I descended the Red Trail. The upper section of Red Trail was, quite frankly, a mess - it was wet, heavily eroded, widened significantly from heavy use, and had several parallel trodden paths at some points. The middle section seems to have been relocated recently, and it was in better condition, and the lower section is well-constructed and in good shape. Wayne's Way was more of a pleasure path than a trail, though the view it leads to is quite nice. I then ascended Warden's Trail back up to Belknap (I needed both Red and Warden's for redlining) - Warden's Trail was a constant uphill grind but generally in fairly good condition. Just watch that you go the right way when the trail crosses under the power line (which it does several times). Saw a couple very small ice fragments on ledges next to Warden's Trail - saw no other snow or ice anywhere else.
As I was taking a break at the summit of Belknap, it started to sprinkle, and it sprinkled on and off for the rest of the hike. The ledges going down White Trail didn't present much difficulty though. I hadn't gone too far on Round Pond-Piper Link when a sign stated that the trail had been rerouted. The reroute was somewhat rough and had some PUDs but was in fairly good shape, and seems to have bypassed a steep, gravelly section that I read about in a trail description online. Past the junction with Boulder Trail, I continued to Round Pond - this section has a couple climbs that weren't the funnest near the end of the hike but weren't too bad. Round Pond, as always, was beautiful. I returned via Round Pond Trail and the Fire Road - the Fire Road seems to have been used as a logging road recently, and several logging cuts were visible from Round Pond Trail (that weren't there last year). It was occasionally muddy in spots but got drier as I descended.
I hoped the weather forecast would mean that the trails would be less crowded, and sure enough I saw only about 10 people the entire time (in 3 or 4 groups). Heard from another hiker that the Carriage Road is still gated. This hike brings me up to 92% complete with redlining the Belknaps. |
|
 | Name: |
GN |
|
 | E-Mail: |
ghnaigles@gmail.com |
|
| Date Submitted: |
2021-04-25 |
|
 | Link: |
 https:// |
|
|
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. |
|
