Two hikers ascended Cannon via Kinsman Ridge Trail from the ski area and traversed to the Kinsmans in early February. Trail conditions were mostly well-packed with some snow, scattered spruce blowdown across the trail, exposure near Cannon's summit, and windy conditions.
Three hikers completed a winter ascent of Carrigain via Sawyer River Road on February 3, 2024. Lower elevations had packed snow suitable for bare-booting, while higher sections required snowshoes. Wind on the exposed ridge was stronger than forecast, but generally pleasant conditions with sun and minimal wind below treeline on descent.</summary>
<parameter name="confidence">High
A trail guide to Mount Chocorua via the Piper Trail in New Hampshire's White Mountains, describing the historic route's open ledges, rock scrambles, and 360-degree summit views from the 3,490-foot peak.
A detailed evergreen guide to hiking Slide Mountain via the Curtis-Ormsbee and Phoenicia East Branch trails, featuring a scenic ascent through varied terrain with optional overlooks and descent via red trail. The Neversink River crossing condition varies seasonally and can sometimes be impassable.
An evergreen trail guide describing the Cascade & Porter hike as a moderate y-shaped route with high scenery-to-effort payoff. The route features muddy sections, slippery rocks, blowdown, and an extremely exposed summit on Cascade, with recommendations to carry microspikes from October to June.
This is a scenic trail guide for Indian Head Mountain on the Devil's Path featuring rock scrambles, cliff ascents, boreal summit, and varied terrain. User comments describe mid-September conditions with damp ground, wet footing, and rooty sections with steep climbs; another July visit is also briefly mentioned.
A long, difficult loop in the Lower Great Range featuring steep cliffs, rock scrambles, slab sections, and significant elevation gain. The route encounters mud on Armstrong Mountain, steep trails, and challenging terrain across multiple summits including Gothics, Sawteeth, and the Wolfjaws.
Kaaterskill Falls is a 260-foot two-stage waterfall accessible via multiple routes with easy to moderate hiking. Terrain consists of loose and exposed rocks on often wet and slippery ground; microspikes recommended in winter months; summer hikers should use boots with excellent traction.
This is an evergreen trail guide describing the Indian Head hiking route in the Adirondacks. The trail is a 9-mile out-and-back with 1650 feet of elevation gain featuring a large double ledge with views of the Ausable Lakes and surrounding high peaks, suitable for intermediate hikers with some scrambling sections.
An evergreen trail guide to Giant Ledge, a popular short out-and-back hike featuring multiple scenic ledges and rocky terrain. The route offers reliable water access and primitive camping options, though parking is very limited and cell service is spotty in the area.
Vroman's Nose is a popular short moderate loop hike with significant cliff exposure and dramatic valley views. The trail features multiple scenic ledges, notable exposure hazards, and seasonal trail closures for peregrine falcon nesting.
The Eastern Devil's Path is a challenging 12-mile Catskill thru-hike traversing four peaks with nearly 5,000 feet of elevation gain and loss; features rugged terrain, steep notches, rock scrambles, and relentless ups and downs requiring 8–12 hours to complete with limited water sources.
A weekend backpacking trip to Lower Wolfjaw, Upper Wolfjaw, and Armstrong via Johns Brook Lodge, with snow patches and scrambling sections at higher elevations and typical muddy, rooty Adirondack trail conditions lower down. The party encountered mixed weather including rain overnight and afternoon clouds, with good summit views from Armstrong.
An evergreen trail guide to the classic lollipop route up Stissing Mountain to a 90-foot fire tower offering 360° views of the Hudson Valley, Catskills, and Taconics. The hike takes 60–75 minutes through mixed forest with abundant wildlife.
This is an evergreen route guide for the Van Wyck to Table and Peekamoose loop in the Catskills, described as one of the most difficult hikes in the range. The route involves steep ascents, bushwhacking between peaks, and challenging terrain including talus fields and cliff exposure.
Hikers summited Old Speck via Grafton Notch State Park on March 8, 2023, finding fairly well-packed trail with steep initial climbing and some trail-breaking needed. Near the summit, an exposed section with deep snow drifts was encountered; the summit was cloud-covered with no views.
A winter traverse of Sugarloaf, Spaulding, and Abraham in Maine on March 7, 2023, with unbroken trail most of the ridge and significant trail-breaking required above treeline. Recent snowfall (nearly 3 feet in 7 days) left the route largely untracked except for scattered evidence of prior hikers, though some broken trail appeared on the Fire Warden's descent. The 16-mile traverse took 12 hours with cloud coverage and wind on the exposed ridge.
An evergreen trail guide to the Devil's Path, a 24-mile point-to-point hiking route through the Catskills known for extreme difficulty, relentless elevation gain/loss, and significant winter mountaineering hazards on iced western flanks. The guide covers seasonal closures, water scarcity, trailhead information, and route details for the eastern and western halves.</summary>
<parameter name="confidence">Low
Jay Mountain Ridge is described as a challenging bushwhack route with exposed terrain, rock scrambles, and rugged footing between the two summits. The ridge offers panoramic Adirondack views but requires strong backcountry navigation skills and appropriate gear and timing, especially in cold or exposed conditions.
Kaaterskill High Peak via Hurricane Ledge is a long lollipop route from Platte Clove featuring wet trails, deep mud on lower slopes, and a steep, tricky ledge climb. The route includes old woods roads, boardwalks, bushwhack sections, and historical sites. Winter ascents of Hurricane Ledge are extremely dangerous due to icy conditions and cliff exposure.</summary>
<parameter name="confidence">Medium
Trail guide to Inspiration Point in Kaaterskill Clove, featuring multiple scenic ledges and lookouts with dramatic cliff views. The main trail from Scutt Road parking is described as mostly easy with relatively flat terrain and some rugged spots, offering excellent vistas of Kaaterskill High Peak and surrounding landscape.
Giant Mountain is a steep, challenging 8-mile loop with 3,600 feet of elevation gain, featuring rock slab sections and boulder scrambles that are treacherous when wet. The trail is relentlessly steep with stunning views above 3,000 feet and includes a stream crossing and wooden ladder. Best attempted on dry conditions; not recommended after rain due to extensive exposed rock sections.
Evergreen trail guide describing Jay Mountain as a scenic undulating out-and-back hike with multiple lookouts, wooded terrain until the summit, and views of Hurricane Mountain and Lake Champlain. The route features excellent fall foliage conditions and is popular with visitors.
Long rugged route to Lower Wolfjaw via Rooster Comb featuring a difficult rock scramble section at 4000 feet with wet rock and cliff exposure; passes through quiet forest with peekaboo views and steep terrain.
The Nun-Da-Ga-O Ridge Loop is a difficult, challenging route featuring multiple scrambles, open ledges, and panoramic views. The trail includes white-blazed sections that transition to unmarked terrain requiring good navigation skills and steady nerves. Trailhead access via unmaintained O'Toole Road can be muddy or require walking in winter and spring.</summary>
<parameter name="confidence">Medium
The Woodland Valley route to Panther Mountain is a long, steep out-and-back with significant elevation gain, featuring a narrow, overgrown trail section with exposure, a water source in a moss grotto, and a newly established DEC primitive campsite. The hike offers diverse forest types and excellent views from the open eastern ridge.</summary>
<parameter name="confidence">Low
A trail guide describing the route to Poets Ledge on Kaaterskill High Peak, a steep hike with excellent scenic views and dramatic ridge-top lookouts. The route includes a road walk, steep evergreen forest, and pitch pine terrain, with no specific dated conditions reported.
Winter hiking guide for the safest route to Sugarloaf Mountain via Dibbles Quarry and Pecoy Notch from Roaring Kill trailhead. Microspikes required minimally; snowshoes recommended in deeper snow. Author attempted the route in February 2022 and had to turn back at 3200' due to deteriorating weather before returning two weeks later on better conditions.
Moxham Mountain is an easy out-and-back hike in the Adirondacks featuring scenic views, open rocky summit with spectacular valley views, and well-maintained trail through deciduous woods and spruce. The hike involves moderate difficulty with ledge viewpoints and is suitable for less experienced hikers seeking a rewarding introduction to mountain hiking.
This is an evergreen trail guide for the Gertrude's Nose Loop via Millbrook Mountain in Minnewaska State Park Preserve. The route features scenic open rock ledges, wet rock sections, stream-bed hiking, and steep pitches with views of the Hudson Valley and Catskills; winter conditions require microspikes.
Trail guide for Plateau Mountain via Mink Hollow North, describing a 1.5-mile steep route to the summit and optional extension to Daley Ridge Lookout. The route features rock scrambles, dramatic outcroppings, and a scenic ridge walk through mixed birch and spruce forest.
A comprehensive guide to the Dix Range loop from Elk Lake, described as a 16–20 mile, 5500 ft elevation gain challenge featuring six summits. The route includes a long walk-in, the steep Macomb Slide (with occasional needle ice in cold conditions), unmarked herd paths requiring strong navigation skills, and primitive camping near Slide Brook and Lilian Brook lean-tos.
Route guide for North Point and North Mountain from Scutt Road trailhead, featuring mixed deciduous and evergreen forests, boardwalks, waterfalls, glacial erratics, Badman's Cave, and multiple ledge viewpoints. The author hiked in foggy/whiteout conditions but primarily describes the route characteristics and features rather than specific weather conditions.
This is an evergreen trail guide describing the Colgate Lake route to Stoppel Point, a long but easy out-and-back hike featuring meadows, woods, marshes, stream crossings, and footbridges. The route climbs via Dutcher Notch and Milt's Lookout, passing the site of a 1983 plane crash just below the summit, with views of the Blackhead range and Hudson Valley.
A detailed trail guide for the 10-mile Schunemunk Mountain loop with 1800 ft elevation gain, described as a difficult route featuring open conglomerate rock ridges, exposed terrain, steep and sketchy descents, and significant rattlesnake habitat. The route involves navigating multiple junctions with cairns marking the way, crossing brooks, and traversing the western ridge back to the trailhead.
A scenic out-and-back route to Giant's Nubble with optional side-trip to Roaring Brook Falls. The trail is steep with rugged sections but no technical scrambles, offering views of Giant Mountain, Noonmark, the Dix Range, and surrounding peaks from open rocky summit.
Breakneck Ridge is a steep, exposed scramble that requires hands and feet to ascend 1,100 feet in less than 0.75 miles from sea level. The route includes sketchy ledges with slick rock footing and should only be attempted in bone-dry conditions with proper footwear; it is unsuitable for winter, rain, or wet conditions due to fatal injury risks.
Shaupeneak Ridge is a 936-acre recreation area with nearly 10 miles of well-blazed interconnected trails suitable for walking, hiking, and trail running. The area features easy terrain with minimal elevation gain on most trails, pleasant boardwalks, and overlooks with views of the Hudson River, Taconics, and Catskills. Some blowdown is present on the red trail.
This is a challenging 6.5-mile bushwhack thru-hike over North Dome and Mount Sherrill that requires advanced navigation skills and solid off-trail experience. The route features steep ledges on North Dome's eastern side, dense evergreen forest, and (as of an April visit) significant ice, snow, and icicle formations requiring microspikes.
This is an evergreen trail guide describing the hiking route to Balanced Rocks and Pitchoff Mountain summit, noting it is a short but challenging out-and-back hike with several scenic viewpoints and one tricky rocky section below Balanced Rocks that can be difficult in winter conditions.
Baxter Mountain is a short, family-friendly summit (2.4 mi RT) in the Keene Valley region with well-maintained switchbacks through mixed hardwood forest and rocky upper sections near the top. The trail crosses private land and conditions can be icy in colder months, with the summit partially exposed and subject to wind.
This is an evergreen trail guide to Twin Mountain via Jimmy Dolan Notch describing the route, terrain, and seasonal conditions. The guide notes that winter travel requires microspikes at minimum due to ice-flows and ice-covered boulders on steep sections, and mentions a challenging rock scramble with verglas conditions.
A trail guide describing the Kaaterskill Rail Trail, a flat 1.5-mile converted railroad bed in the Catskills leading to views of Kaaterskill Falls. The guide notes winter conditions with ice and icicles on the falls, emphasizes proper footwear for safety on steep sections near the viewing platform, and warns about the notorious herd path to the top of the falls with serious fall risks.
Huckleberry Point is a popular Catskills ledge hike with a tricky stream crossing after rain; the trail is characteristically wet and muddy year-round with beautiful escarpment views. The route is short and easy, taking about 75 minutes to reach the dramatic vista, and features variable terrain with rock ledges and hemlock-laurel forest.
Chimney Mountain trailhead has been closed to the public since August 2023; access is restricted to cabin guests and residents of Indian Lake. The mountain remains accessible via bushwhack through the Siamese Ponds Wilderness. The standard route is a 2.5-mile out-and-back with gently rolling terrain that becomes steeper near the summit, featuring distinctive chimney rock formations and caves.
A detailed evergreen trail guide describing the Slide-Cornell-Wittenberg traverse, a challenging multi-peak route with technical scrambles, rocky ledges, and narrow exposed sections requiring mountaineering skills; the author reports dry conditions during one summer hike and notes that seasonal variations (especially winter snow and ice) significantly alter difficulty and hazard profiles.
Detailed trail guide for the counterclockwise loop route on Sugarloaf via Mink Hollow and the western "Suicide Side," featuring steep rocky and muddy sections with rugged scrambling, boulders, and rock chasms. The route is not recommended in winter due to avalanche and technical climbing hazards on the western flank; summer/warmer months offer the best hiking with scenic views and moderate bug activity typical of late summer.
This evergreen trail guide describes the Blackhead & Black Dome loop via Batavia Kill, featuring initial easy terrain along a creek followed by steep, rocky scrambling sections with excellent ledge views. The route combines beautiful forest walking with rugged rock scrambles and is recommended as one of the best Catskill hikes, though it is difficult with exposure and tricky rock sections.
Detailed evergreen route guide for Twin Mountain via the Roaring Kill trailhead, describing an out-and-back hike featuring the scenic Dibbles Quarry and Beaver Pond approach, followed by a technically challenging and exposed ascent on the west side from Pecoy Notch to the summit. The upper section contains dangerous boulder scrambles with significant fall risk and ankle-twisting hazards, though a 2019 reroute mitigates some of the original danger.
This is an evergreen trail guide describing a steep, longer northern route to Panther Mountain from Fox Hollow with dramatic rock scrambles, blowdown, and scenic views. The route is noted as less-traveled and offers solitude compared to the southern approach.