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Saturday was sunny and cold, Sunday was cloudy, warmer and windy. See my report for 2/16 under trail conditions. Both days saw lots of hikers flocking to one of the most climbed mountains in the U.S. Sunday there were more accidents on Poole Road (the access road) than on the mountain as...

Humility I agree that common sense is important and along with that goes humility. I know some hikers who believe that because they are superior athletes and because they are experienced and because they have good gear they can take anything that nature dishes out. And to suggest otherwise is...

Bring Crampons Dear Early Bird, See my trail conditions report for 2/16. Best, Steve

Date of hike: Saturday, 2/16 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trail: White Dot Trail Trail conditions: the Dot has been broken about a sidewalk's width. Snow down low is an icy crust about 1/2 inch thick over softer snow. If you weigh more than 150 pounds you will break through the crust after a few...

That hasn't been my experience Dear Tom, Wow. I'm impressed that you've never lost a screw. I wish I could say the same. I have two pairs of Stabilicers. I bought the first many years ago, and the second pair a year ago. I really like Stabilicers and until I got my microspikes, they were...

As most readers probably know, Kahtoola released their MICROspikes (hereafter referred to as MS), last fall. I got my MS in early January. I have now used them over a dozen times under various conditions and thought I'd tell you how it has gone. The product...

Mink tracks in snow The following website has photos of mink tracks in the snow, one of which looks very similar to yours. http://www.geocities.com/bobarnebeck/mink.htm

Drink the chocolate milk because you like it. Well drink chocolate milk if you like it, but ingesting more calcium is not what this article is talking about. The reason muscles fatigue, according to the study's authors, is that a particular "valve" (the calcium ion channel on the sarcoplasmic...

Date of hike: 2/2/08 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trail: White Dot Trail conditions: Corn snow and slush below the chute. Crusty corn snow and ice from the chute to Paradise Valley. Ice from Paradise to the summit. Equipment: Some sort of traction device essential. Crampons (as opposed to...

Date of Hike: 1/5/08 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trail: White Dot Trail Trail conditions: a little warmer than yesterday, but still fairly firm packed snow from Park HQ to within 25 feet of the summit. Equipment: Because the snow is warmer, it tends to move around a little more when you step on...

Date of Hike: 1/4/08 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trail: White Dot Trail Conditions: Packed snow all the way from the Park HQ to the summit. Special equipment: I saw hikers successfully summit with bare boots, Stabilicers, Kahtoola MICROspikes, and crampons. I wore my crampons and was happy with...

After the shoveling... ... we set out for Monadnock. The first hill on the access road (by the Bible Center) is a no salt area. It didn't have sand on it either and when we got there I could see marks that indicated at least one car had slid down it. I was driving a rental with no snow tires...

Date of hike: 12/31/07 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trails: Portions of Birchtoff Trail conditions: just under a foot of light, fluffy, new snow on top of older crust. Equipment: Snowshoes essential. Comments: We tried to go to the Park HQ first but the access road is a no salt area. For some...

8" inches of new stuff in Keene ... and still falling. - Monadnock Volunteer (sjc)

I know that it's not snowing much in Boston right now, so be aware: Right now (12/31 8 AM) there are 8 inches of new snow on the ground in Keene, it is still snowing steadily and my street hasn't been plowed. So don't let dry roads in Boston mislead you... Monadnock Volunteer (facing several...

Date of hike: 12/30 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trails: White Dot, Pumpelly, Cascade Link Trail conditions: firm, crusty, packed snow on the lower portions of the mountain. Ice and packed snow on the upper portions. Special Equipment required: Traction devices strongly recommended. I did see...

Date of Hike: Saturday, 12/29 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trails: Red Spot, White Dot, portions of Cascade Link & Pumpelly Trail conditions: The mountain is melting. I was breaking through crust that yesterday I was walking on top of. Soft snow on the lower part of the mountain and slushy ice and...

Date of hike: 12/28 Trails: Red Spot, White Dot, portions of Pumpelly & Cascade Link Trail Conditions: An inch of new snow bonded nicely to what was already there, creating superb footing all over the mountain. Special Equipment: None. It was possible to (and people did) bare boot it to the...

Date: Thursday, 12/27/2007 Mountain: Mt. Monadnock Trail: White Dot Trail Conditions: Freezing rain coated everything (including me) above Falcon Spring (Nixon rock, actually) with a thin layer of ice. Underneath that was old ice, crusty packed snow and rock. Equipment: Traction aides of...

The White Dot Trail from the Park HQ to the summit had something for everyone: mostly ice, hard-packed snow and bare rock, but also some soft pack snow, standing and running water, and even a little mud. Mostly bare rock above the last big cairn. Recommendations: some sort of traction...