Owl's Head - Lincoln Woods Trail, Black Pond Trail, herd path, Lincoln Brook Trail, herd path, Owls Head Path - 4-18-2022

Hiking Trail Conditions Report
	Peaks	Owl's Head, NH

	Trails:	Lincoln Woods Trail, Black Pond Trail, herd path, Lincoln Brook Trail, herd path, Owls Head Path

	Date of Hike:	Monday, April 18, 2022

	Parking/Access Road Notes:	Non-weekend, shoulder season parking at Lincoln Woods -- plenty of room. Fee area.

	Surface Conditions:	Dry Trail, Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Wet Trail, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Frozen Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow - Wet/Sticky, Snow - Spring Snow, Snow/Ice - Postholes, Snow/Ice - Small Patches

	Recommended Equipment:	Snowshoes, Light Traction, Traction

	Water Crossing Notes:	Avoided two big crossings by taking the Black Pond route. Of the three crossings on Lincoln Brook Trail: the tributary was straightforward rockhopping, Liberty Brook was marginally rock-hoppable, and I opted to don lightweight waders for the Lincoln Brook crossing. YMMV depending on water levels and your nimbleness etc.

	Trail Maintenance Notes:	No particular issues. Lincoln Brook Trail could use some treadway stabilization and drainage work in places. I do hope that the USFS attends to the "closed" bridge on the Lincoln Woods Trail.

	Dog-Related Notes:	No dogs seen on this trip today (except at parking lot).

	Bugs:	None noted.

	Lost and Found:	I found an item just above the skid road on the Brutus Bushwhack. I only saw two other hikers (traveling together) so I suspect it's theirs. If you are those hikers, and you dropped something, you can email me to arrange a pick-up or return of the item via mail: pzzzzcrane at zzzmount zzzz washingtonzz dotzzorgzz (Remove z's and spaces for address)


	Comments:	I am mostly posting due to the found item, noted above. I suspect conditions have changed a bit given the weather since Monday. The Lincoln Woods Trail was mostly bare of snow and ice. The Black Pond Trail was also mostly bare. I missed the herdpath from Black Pond in the AM - in part due to the scanty new snowcover hiding the track -- but followed it back in the PM. Lincoln Woods Trail had some "grey ice" which had a grippy coating of new snow/graupel in the AM but which was slipperier in the warmer PM. On the Brutus Bushwhack, the skid road was straightforward and mostly bare; the section above was steep and wet with new snow over wet leaves and then over ice - I started with microspikes but switched to full crampons for this section, to the summit, and back to the skid road. The Owls Head Path was a mix of snow and ice - I appreciated the crampons on the steeper sections there, too, even though prevailing conditions led to some balling up. There remains a lot of snow on the ridge, and though it's a short section, compared to the whole hike, when temperatures warm up it will be prime for postholing, so snowshoes will then be appreciated. And the overnight snow, melting and dripping off the trees in the sunny and not too cold conditions, made raingear very useful.

	Name:	PeterC

	E-Mail:

	Date Submitted:	2022-04-20

	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.