Mob scenes on the trails last weekend

This particular group had most participants carrying a single Nalgene and nothing else.

Tim

I’m wondering about groups that are obviously too big (more than 10) for places like the Great Gulf. If a ranger doesn’t happen along, I guess they just get away with it.

I didn’t count them, but there was a bunch of little kids, at least 10 of them, on top of that boulder on The Bluff last week. No adults in sight, but there must have been some, which would put them way over the limit. I saw five tents through the trees. Yesterday, a group of high school- or college-age young people went past me toward the Great Gulf Wilderness parking lot. It was possibly one of those bonding adventures for college freshmen. Again, I didn’t count them, but I’m sure there were more than 10.

Raymond said:

Yesterday, a group of high school- or college-age young people went past me toward the Great Gulf Wilderness parking lot. It was possibly one of those bonding adventures for college freshmen. Again, I didn’t count them, but I’m sure there were more than 10.

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I believe the Osgood trail and Osgood Campsite are outside of the Wilderness Area, so if there were more than 10 they could still be perfectly legal.

You’re right. The junction of Osgood Trail with Great Gulf Trail is past the wilderness boundary sign (by six minutes, according to the time stamps of my photos of the signs), but the tentsite itself is outside the wilderness boundary, which follows Osgood Trail exactly, apparently. But the group of young kids on The Bluff would have been well inside the wilderness.

The regulation on the sign by the parking lot states, ‘‘Groups of more than 10 are not permitted in the Great Gulf Wilderness.’’ In smaller type, the next sentence is, ‘‘No more than 10 people may use a campsite at one time.’’ My interpretation is that the first sentence precludes 11 or more persons from hiking together. In the Adirondacks, I believe it is against the regulation for a group exceeding the limit to even start legal-sized groups at different locations or at different times if they plan to meet eventually. In the White Mountains, the regulation seems to prevent a large group from hiking together, even if it subdivides later to camp.

But I could be wrong. And there was no one to report it to, anyway.

Timing can make a big difference!! I had the top of Monadnock almost to myself at 6pm this evening. I could only see 2 other people on the mountain and it was beautiful out. I bet tomorrow on a nice holiday Saturday will be very different!!