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Mt. Osceola Trail Work - Lodging, BBQ, Bonfire, Fireworks Meeting Time: 8:00 AM Event Coordinator: GandalfWaterville Valley, NH US Max # People: 15 Trip Guiding / Event Fee: No, I will not be asking participants for money
Difficulty Level:
Easy to Moderate |
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SUMMARY: Come join us for our fun 20th Anniversary Trail Maintenance on our adopted trail...twenty years of stewardship and giving back to the mountains! It’s the all-boys sleep-away weekend you wished your parents had sent you to! Free lodging for the weekend, BBQ, bonfire and fireworks at Mad River Lodge on National Trails Day! GayOutdoors Trail Maintenance Weekend is a weekend of camaraderie and fun mixed in with outdoor work as we get the Mt. Osceola Trail ready for the Summer Season! Everyone is invited to spend a FREE weekend at Mad River Lodge Friday and/or Saturday night with breakfast each morning. We only have 8 bunks so the first 8 guys that contact us to reserve will get one. Let us know if it’s the entire weekend or just Saturday night. If we run out of room, you can tent outside; please also let us know if you'll be tenting. [Note that we cannot let you into the house until 7PM on Friday.] Stay for the weekend, for one night or just help us for the day! The Mt. Osceola Trail climbs over two 4,000 footers and is one of the most popular trails in the White Mountains! It’s an experience we promise you’ll never forget. We are fortunate to be part of a club of gay men that has the opportunity to go hiking regularly to take in the beauty of the White Mountains. Now we have the opportunity to be a part of doing something to give back to the hiking community, while working on something we love...hiking trails...and helping make them a place where both ourselves and others can enjoy. We are looking forward to fun, hard work, comraderie, new skills and friendships! At the end of the day we will return back to the Mad River Lodge to enjoy the comraderie, chatter and gossip! Showers our available with towels so everyone can clean up. Bring a change of clean clothing. We first start off on our outdoor deck with appetizers and cold drinks. Please bring your own beer/wine…we do not provide beverages. We’ll then cook up Trail Crew BBQ feast worth working for! After the BBQ we’ll light up a bonfire and shoot off some fireworks! You don't have to be an expert to help and we can easily train you. All tools are provided. The work itself, clipping brush, cleaning out waterbars, and clearing small to medium blowdowns, is fairly easy. But keep mind you will be hiking up a mountain and working at the same time. It involves hiking 7 miles, climbing 2,025 feet and lots of bending up/down to clip brush. If it becomes too much for you, you can turn around on your own and perform a 'second trail maintenance sweep' on the way down. That's OK. You can wait for us back at the cars. We meet at the Mad River Lodge at 8AM with a brief welcoming and orientation to tools & safety. You will need to be prepared for the day and have sturdy hiking boots, work gloves, plenty of water, lunch, snacks, bug spray and other clothing appropriate for the weather. We’ll provide the fire rakes, saws and loppers. We will be working on the trail rain or shine. After orientation, we will carpool to the trailhead of the Mt. Osceola Trail off Tripoli Road and hike up to the summit of Mt. Osceola. We hope you can join us to help celebrate National Trails Day and our 20th Anniversary on Mt. Osceola! Yours on trails, Jon and Mike |
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Driving directions to the location and spot to meet at: If you are spending Friday night with us, we cannot let you in until 7pm since we both work. Otherwise, on Saturday, meet at our house for 8:00 am so we can make introductions, distribute tools, and arrange carpooling to the trailhead. We are meeting at our house: 676 Upper Mad River Road, Thornton, NH. Take I-93 and use Exit 28. At the end of the ramp take right onto Rte 49 East for 3.5 miles and take a left on Burbank Hill Road. During this 3.5 miles, you'll pass a traffic light where there is a dam on your right, then pass a White Mountain National Forest campground and then the Irish Pub on your left. About a mile after the restaurant, you'll see Burbank Hill Road on the left (Goose Hollow Campground sign). If you cross the Mad River on the bridge, you just missed the left turn. Take a left onto steep Burbank Hill Road and you’ll quickly reach the top of the hill where you take your first right onto Upper Mad River Road (Hiking Sign). The road will soon turn into gravel, you'll pass two apartments on your right and then a house. Our property begins right after this house and after about 200 yards you’ll see a mailbox with "676" which is our house. The house is not very visible from the road. We now have parking for a number of cars in a gravel lot at the end of the driveway to the right. Be mindful when you park that we are trying to fit a lot of cars so be considerate of other members. If the lot is full when you arrive, please unload your gear and drive back up to the upper parking lot. |
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