| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Mowglis Mountain, Welton Falls, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Manning Trail, Back 80 Trail, Elwell Trail, Old Dicey Road, Lower Manning Trail, bushwhack |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Monday, January 3, 2022 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Plenty of parking at AMC Cardigan Lodge. Shem Valley Rd. is well-sanded and in good shape. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Snow - Unpacked Powder |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
Snowshoes, Light Traction |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
All of the smaller stream crossings were no issue. The two crossings of the Fowler River on Lower Manning were tricky. The lower crossing was impassable, so I bushwhacked upstream about 0.1 mi. to a fallen log with another log next to it for a handhold. The upper crossing was done on partly-submerged rocks with loose ice and slush on top. Even with spikes, footing was slippery. |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
Nothing crazy for this area. Several scattered blowdowns. On Elwell Trail, descending toward Carter Gibbs Trail from Mowglis Mtn., there's a significant flagged relocation, presumably to ease the steep grades of the former route. However, the trail sign at the old junction of these two trails now makes no sense and needs to be moved. The trail sign at the junction of Old Dicey Road and Back 80 Loop does not indicate that Old Dicey Road turns here for Elwell Trail. |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
On Old Dicey Road, I found a Thermarest sleeping pad complete with stuff sack. Odd find. If it's yours, email me a description and I can get it back to you. Also, if anyone is missing a two-wheeled Jeep, that's also on Old Dicey Road. |
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 | Comments: |
A good day to be in the Cardigan backcountry, out of the wind and not on exposed summits.
Back 80 had a decent snowshoe track up to the cellar hole. Beyond there, it was one set of boot prints to the junction with Elwell. Elwell was untouched aside from myself and two other hikers who passed me below the summit of Mowglis. Old Dicey Road was a choppy mix of boot, snowshoe, and snowmobile traffic. Lower Manning was very choppy and beat up. I opted for spikes round-trip as the snowpack was fairly solid with little sinkage, but some might opt for snowshoes along the Mowglis ridge, which was a bit more powdery. Overall snow depths are still pretty thin with rocks and bare ground visible. Welton Falls was rockin'!
On the way out, at the upper crossing of Fowler Brook on Lower Manning, I came upon two hikers. They tried to cross the river, and one slipped off a rock and dunked his boots and pants. He was switching into dry socks and they were going to try it again, but I urged them that it wasn't worth the risk, especially since there had already been one slip. They said they would turn back and I hope they did. |
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 | Name: |
KenM |
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 | E-Mail: |
kmacgray@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2022-01-03 |
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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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