MA State Parks & the Ice Storm

[Jasper]

Has anyone seen a listing of MA state parks impacted by the Ice Storm? I am looking at doing some hiking/snowshoeing in Central or Western MA. I know the trails at Mt. Wachusett are closed until further notice.

I saw the listing for NH parks. MA DCR has not responded to my e-mail and there web-site does not provide any information.

 

[BobC]

There's a post about this in the NH trail conditions forum, saying Monadnock was closed. Here's the link saying which other parks are closed:

http://www.nhstateparks.org/ice-storm-dec08.aspx

 

[bcskier]

I don't know if this is typical of all of the individual webpages at the DCR site but here is what is posted on the Greylock page:

"Current Trail Conditions:

Due to the ice storm of Dec. 11-12, 2008 many trails remain obstructed by downed trees and are mostly impassable. Should you decide to hike, snowshoe, ski or snowmobile, please take appropriate caution. Snowmobiling is currently permitted on the road system except Notch Road, which remains impassable. Rockwell Road has been cleared from Visitors Center parking area to the summit, one lane only. Trail grooming is delayed until reasonable road clearances are achieved.

Contact the Visitor Center 413-499-4262 for more information."

Try some of the webpages for the parks you are interested in and see what you find there.

 

[jfb]

I spent a few hours hiking on Mt. Greylock (Gould Trail) Saturday and didn't see any signs prohibiting anything. There were lots of broken branches and trees blocking the trail which made routefinding much more challenging than usual.

 

[smitty77]

Has anyone seen a listing of MA state parks impacted by the Ice Storm? I am looking at doing some hiking/snowshoeing in Central or Western MA. I know the trails at Mt. Wachusett are closed until further notice.

I saw the listing for NH parks. MA DCR has not responded to my e-mail and there web-site does not provide any information.

Thanks for this - I was thinking of going there Friday.

This begs the question: If "closed until further notice", how will they post when it is time for a "futher notice"?

 

[kevinmac]

I spoke with one of the Directors at DCR Parks in Boston earlier today and he said they were working on getting something up on the website today. He wasn't optimistic that it would happen right away due to snow and holiday. Wachusett is closed and I believe Leominster is also.
Further confirmation and information for this area may be obtained from:
Dwayne Ericson
Recreation Facility Supervisor IV
Wachusett Mountain State Reservation
345 Mountain Road, PO Box 248
Princeton, MA 01541
978-464-2987

 

[PShaw]

Wachusett closure

I drove out to hike Wachusett last weekend and found the same closure you guys are referring to. I called the number they had posted and the gentleman who answered (perhaps Wayne?) was very polite, but very noncomittal about what constituted further notice. He said there's a possibility that they might be able to open a single trail within a month or so but certainly couldn't promise anything.

 

[Jasper]

MA DCR Posting on Closed Parks and Forests

The MA DCR has posted a listing of State Parks and forest closed to their web-site at mass.gov/dcr/ The second group in the listing appears to be those with significant damage or questionable trail conditions.

 

[Stan]

We hiked (bareboot) Watatic last Sunday (1/3) and most of the trail had been well cleaned up ... thank you maintainers. There was about 1/4 mile of the Midstate Trail south of the NH state line that hadn't been cleared yet and it was like a bushwhack. Made for a well rounded day and the views went from Greylock to the Boston skyline.

 

[billski]

The secondary forests are in bad shape. The primary forests (read: most popular) in the Berks (i.e., Mohawk Trail) are fully cleared).
Here's my report on Catamount from Monday:
http://rocksontop.com/phpbb2/viewtopic.php?t=5812