Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
| Peaks |
Ice Gulch, NH |
|
| Trails: |
Ice Gulch Path, Peboamauk Loop, Cook Path, Jimtown Logging Road |
|
| Date of Hike: |
Sunday, September 25, 2022 |
|
| Parking/Access Road Notes: |
There is a white RMC sign at the Ice Gulch Path trailhead on Randolph Hill Rd., and the small grassy parking area is across the street, on the south side of the road. When we arrived at 11am, there was only one other car there. |
|
| Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Wet/Slippery Rock, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable |
|
| Recommended Equipment: |
|
|
| Water Crossing Notes: |
The crossings of Moose Brook on Peboamauk Loop are easy with waterproof boots, and a little tricky without - the crossings involve rock hopping on slippery rocks, and a few of the required hops are large if you don't want to step on rocks submerged two inches underwater. |
|
| Trail Maintenance Notes: |
1) There are two RMC signs attached to a tree at the western end of Peboamauk Loop (upper junction), and the lower sign is more confusing than helpful; it seems not to match the naming of trails in the White Mountain Guide. According to the WMG, about 2.0 miles from the road, Ice Gulch Path reaches a fork at the "Marked Birch", follows the southern branch (on the left), and then after the branches rejoin 0.5 mi later (below Fairy Spring) it continues up through Ice Gulch itself; on the other hand, the northern branch (on the right) at "Marked Birch" descends steeply to Peboamauk Fall and crosses Moose Brook four times before rejoining the southern branch, and it is only this 0.5 mi northern branch that is called Peboamauk Loop, which is really only half of a loop. The lower sign on the tree at the upper junction, pointing to the southern branch, confusingly says
PEBOAMAUK
To foot of Ice Gulch
via Peboamauk Trail
R ==> RCF
MC
It should say something like
ICE GULCH PATH
2.5 mi to Randolph Hill Rd.
2) My group did not see the "Marked Birch" sign. Either it was missing, or (more likely) we simply missed seeing it.
3) There is a huge blowdown on Peboamauk Trail (what I called the "northern branch" above), between Peboamauk Fall and the upper junction; it has caused a herd path to develop. There were also a few blowdowns on the initial part of Ice Gulch Path, but they were easy to step over.
Other than the issues above, the trails are in good condition, well marked and easy to follow. |
|
| Dog-Related Notes: |
The path through Ice Gulch itself is not suitable for dogs: too much scrambling with large gaps between boulders. |
|
| Bugs: |
Didn't notice them. |
|
| Lost and Found: |
|
|
|
|
|
| Comments: |
Counterclockwise (up Ice Gulch Path, down Cook Path) is the way to go - Ice Gulch is challenging enough going up! Most of Ice Gulch Path and Cook Path are easy forest trails by White Mountain Forest standards. The part through Ice Gulch itself, however, is special - it reminded me of King Ravine Trail and the Subway, except wetter and mossier. It fully deserves its place on the Terrifying 25 list. We were very glad that we finished the Ice Gulch scramble before the first showers came in the mid-afternoon.
The forest contains a variety of interesting-looking mushrooms. Peboamauk Fall on Moose Brook is a beautiful tall cascade. We looked for ice between the boulders in Ice Gulch, but didn't spot any.
On the way down, we used Jimtown Logging Rd. to cut across east from Cook Path back to Ice Gulch Path, to avoid having to walk along Randolph Hill Rd. to return to our cars. Jimtown Logging Rd. might be called an unpaved dirt road, except that it is blanketed in dense grass and other vegetation a few inches deep, full of wood frogs and salamanders. |
|
| Name: |
mathbp |
|
| E-Mail: |
|
|
| Date Submitted: |
2022-09-26 |
|
| 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. |
|