| Hiking Trail Conditions Report |
 | Peaks |
Dixville Mountain - Northwest Peak, Dixville Mountain - West Peak, NH |
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 | Trails: |
Kelsey Notch Trail, Bushwhack |
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 | Date of Hike: |
Saturday, September 12, 2026 |
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 | Parking/Access Road Notes: |
Parked at the gate at the end of Blakely Rd. Blakely had a couple exposed plastic culvers, but otherwise was fine. Easy in mid-clearance. |
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 | Surface Conditions: |
Dry Trail |
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 | Recommended Equipment: |
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 | Water Crossing Notes: |
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 | Trail Maintenance Notes: |
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 | Dog-Related Notes: |
Champ and Tucker don't love ATVs. |
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 | Bugs: |
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 | Lost and Found: |
Someone left a can of grape soda on the western ridge of Dixville W |
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 | Comments: |
Walked up Kelsey Notch Rd to the HOL, and ducked into the woods just shy of a small bridge. Woods were decent heading up to Dixville W and we ended up getting to the western ridge of the summit cone and following through hobblebush to the summit. Easy jar. This was definitely the easy part of the route.
We descended NE aiming to contour around the larger drainage at about 2350. The descent was steep and dense with pencil trees, then turned into a nasty mix of steep, boulders, blowdowns and hobblebush. It got better once it flattened out, with mostly old logging areas that were passable with herd paths. Once north of the the main drainage / minor col to the east, we gradually ascended up the ridge south of Dixville NW, taking care to stick to the more open/hobblebush/fern areas vs. the dense softwoods. Hit the ridge just south of the summit cone and found the jar easily.
Descended just south of west, aiming roughly for a landing around 2100, just west of the drainage. The woods were fine in this area, and the drainage was boggy- but OK given it's relatively dry now. The landing is actually a junction of nicely mown roads, albeit not heading in the right direction. We followed the road NW a bit until it turned more north than west and entered the woods again. These woods were less pleasant, including a really nasty, bordeline impassable blowdown stretch. We aimed for another road just past Roaring Brook, around 1950 and eventually got there. Another lovely road, that we followed west for a bit, then whacked over to the actual ATV trail. Followed the ATV trail south for a bit, then re-entered the woods. These were downright jungle-like for a bit, but opened up a bit closer as we neared the road.
All in 3:30 total. 1hr from car to Dixville W, 1:15 from West to NW, and 1:15 from NW back to the car. If I were doing this again, I would probably prioritize a car spot so as to not have to head west after Dixville NW. I really wish I could have just followed the nicely mown road that seems to follow the eastern tributary to Roaring Brook. If there weren't so many ATVs out, I would have followed the ATV trail back to Kelsey Notch Rd at the end of the day, despite the added mileage/evel gain.
Last real bushwhack of this list for us.
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 | Name: |
Big Al Dente |
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 | E-Mail: |
bigaldentenh@gmail.com |
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| Date Submitted: |
2026-09-13 |
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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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