| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Ice Gulch, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Ice Gulch Path, Peboamauk Loop, Cook Path, Boothman Spring Cutoff, Mt. Crescent Trail, Peek Path |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Tuesday, October 26, 2021 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
RCF lot has space for about 15-20, room for about 5 cars near the road at the Ice Gulch Path and a couple at Cook Path |
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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: |
Lots of minor streams, rock hops and water puddles hidden under the leaves. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Well blazed for the most part. Lots of nice new rmc signage. Bottom half of the ice gulch is recently blazed but the top half badly needs to be reblazed as there are spots with extremely faded or unobservable blazes |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Would strongly recommend leaving the dogs at home for the ice gulch. Lots of extremely tricky scrambles that are hard for even the most athletic and agile of dogs |
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 | Bugs: |
N/A |
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 | Lost and Found: |
There is a cup hanging from a tree at Boothman Spring. Please leave it as its for drinking outta the spring |
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 | Comments: |
A day of two hikes. The Ice Gulch and wandering the forested maze known as the rmc trail network. Ice Gulch Path to Peboamauk Loop to the section of Ice Gulch Path around Peboamauk as an out and back cuz redlining then thru the Ice Gulch to Cook Path with Boothman Spring Cutoff, down first then up to Mt Crescent Tr and then back, to Randolph Hill Rd, then up Mt Crescent Tr to Castle View Loop then Peek Path to Cook Path and back to the RCF Trailhead. Another nice cleanup for my redline as I broke the 60% mark! All trails well blazed and easy to follow, be careful of leaves and roots as I had a rough go of including faceplanting over a root and twisting my knee in a leaf hidden hole, I'm fine now but was sore yesterday.
The Ice Gulch was an awesome adventure in the realm of type 1.5 fun with nice dry rock and good company. Strongly recommend going counterclockwise and going uphill. I would strongly recommend not descending thru the gulch unless extremely skilled and experienced in scrambling and bouldering. Lot of tricky moves but nothing above V2/V3. Would rate as class 3 as many areas within the ice gulch have consequences for falling but likely nothing beyond severe injury unless extremely unlucky or reckless. I was able to keep my pack on for the entire trip thru and we only almost lost poles a couple times. The bottom half was reblazed recently and then the blazes vary between semi-visible to faded and obscure for the upper half. Whoever the trail maintainer should take advantage of the nice fall weather to reblaze it during this nice period before winter. The trail trough roughly follows the left edge of the gulch when it doesn't stay right in the middle. When looking for blazes or the obvious direction to go straight up or to the left was normally the best move. There are a few crux spots where good hand/foothold placement makes a big difference as quite a few moves require finesse and there are lots of dagged, angular boulders that make the rocks on Watson Path look friendly. More challenging then most of the northern presi ravines and headwalls despite the much lower elevation. Would recommend allowing 2 hours for the trip thru the ravine. The side trip to Peboamauk Falls is well worth it as a beautiful falls for a little additional effort. |
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 | Name: |
Heat Lightning |
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 | E-Mail: |
ecs@mountainlogworks.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2021-10-26 |
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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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