Snowshoeing - Featherstonehaugh State Forest

I have another ADK moonlight snowshoe trip tentatively scheduled for this week, so I needed to do a pre-trip scouting trip to see if there was still enough snow to let it happen.



What I found was about 8" of fairly crusty snow, with numerous washouts, lots of debris, and even a few dicey non-bridged water crossings. Those weren't bad in daylight, but I'm not sure I'd want to lead a bunch of novices through them in the dark. I also broke through the crust into puddles several times. I walked the main ski loop in about an hour, ending by following a curious unofficial "trail" marked by purple duct tape, which led directly back to the parking spot on Tidball Road.



I think I'm going to call this week's moonlight trip a no-go. Featherstonehaugh is beginning to take on its non-winter messy wet personality. Spring is here, and it's time to move on.