BIGEarl
Well-known member
September 5, 2010: Twins and Galehead
Trails: Gale River Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur, Frost Trail
Summits: North Twin, South Twin, Galehead
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
After the previous day, we decided to start a little later than usual. Sue and I met at the Exit 6 Park & Ride a little after 6:00am (actually closer to 6:30am) and took a very leisurely approach to the day. We made our way to the trailhead lot for Gale River Trail via the usual stops along the way. Once we were geared up and ready to go it was roughly a couple hours later than originally planned, but we had plenty of day for the hike we were taking on. The conditions weren’t great but not bad either; we expected dry conditions all day, occasional sun but generally overcast, and moderate temperature. The trailhead lot was pretty full when we arrived and while we were preparing to set off quite a bit of additional traffic came through. A number of vehicles were dropped off indicating some folks were hiking a traverse from east or west and ending on Gale River Trail.
We started into the hike and the first thing I noticed was my legs weren’t warming up to the idea of another day in the mountains. I assumed they would come around, eventually, and just kept walking. The lower part of the Gale River Trail through the two crossings of Gale River is a relatively mild but long approach. By the time we reached the second crossing, at 2.5 miles we had gained only 700 feet. The next 1.5 miles would have roughly 1100 feet in elevation gain. In other words, the climb to the Garfield Ridge Trail is a steep one especially when you consider that roughly half of the distance is very mild grades.
We generally kept moving knowing our plan for the day and that we probably had enough hike to take us all of the way to darkness with it. As usual, Sue was in front when we completed the final climb to Garfield Ridge Trail, she made the turn, and kept on moving toward the Galehead Hut. I followed and we continued to work on staying with our plan. When we reached the vicinity of the hut we had a choice between making the turn onto Twinway and heading for South Twin or make a stop at the hut. We had gained some time so a stop at the hut was the decision. I made up a couple quarts of Gatorade, drank one there and had one for the road. Plus, I packed in some fuel. I was feeling pretty good when we left the hut which was good because the climb to South Twin, our next target, involves .8 miles and 1150 feet – steep!
We returned to the Garfield Ridge – Twinway trails junction and started the climb. Twinway from the hut is very steep but it is also very rough with great footing most of the way up. Unfortunately, most of the trail is rocks that tend to get slippery when wet. They weren’t wet on our ascent but were wet on our descent. Eventually we completed the climb to South Twin. Just below the open summit area Sue stopped to add a couple layers – I had made the move earlier at the hut. When we stepped into the open area we were hit with a strong, cool breeze and the clouds were moving in. We got a couple quick summit pictures and set off for North Twin. We both knew we would be back again a little later and could get more pictures then.
The hike to North Twin via North Twin Spur is pretty interesting. During this time of year there is a trail that passes through thick coniferous growth. During winter the area is a huge snowfield without markings. Go there in poor visibility and you better know what you’re doing. We passed through the area of thick growth and dropped into the conifer forest between the summits. The hike from South to North Twin didn’t take long and we were soon on the summit getting more pictures. We didn’t bother going out to the viewpoint since we were headed back to South Twin and there were great views to enjoy there.
We made the u-turn and set off back to South Twin. Heading in both directions it was clear the amount of work that was done to open the place up after the significant damage from last winter’s storms. Mtndave has done a terrific job on the North Twin Spur. Last year Sue and I bumped into Dave and his chocolate Lab Coco on the N. Twin Spur. They were camped there for a few days performing trail maintenance. You’re doing a great job Dave. Thanks for all of your hard work.
As we were hiking back to South Twin there is an open area from which the summit is normally visible but not today. The clouds had taken over. Wind was blowing an interesting layer of cloud cover through. We were in and out of the clouds for the remaining hike back to South Twin. As we reached the final approach to South Twin a hole in the cloud layer came through and we were able to see the summit area and the people that were there. We made the final climb and found some terrific mixed views in all directions. To the south we could see out of the dark cloud cover we were in to sunny conditions. At times Franconia Ridge and Garfield were in the clear, and at other times they were completely hidden. The wind was blowing the clouds through quickly. Just before leaving the weather started to turn and the rain started. Instead of waiting around to see how long it would last we took off. We still had Galehead to climb before heading back to the truck. I made a quick check and we were still right on plan. At this point our expected exit to the trailhead lot was a little before 8:00pm.
We started the steep descent to the Galehead Hut. Now we’re on wet and slippery rocks and needed to really pay attention to our moves. Sue and I said very little all of the way down, concentrating on the trail, our next foot placement, and moving as quickly as we could. We reached the hut, paused briefly to provide a little photo assist, and kept moving on Frost Trail to Galehead. The Frost Trail is clear but has some mud pits that take a little effort to get past with clean boots and there are wet rocks and roots on the steep sections that require additional attention. On the climb Sue asked if I wanted to stop at the viewpoint and I suggested perhaps on the exit we might have sun, at that time it was generally cloudy but conditions were changing constantly. We hit the summit, got a few pictures at the summit cairn, made the u-turn and started back out. We made a quick pass by the viewpoint but there was no sun at the time and we were soon finishing the hike back to the hut.
On this time through we made one more quick stop at the hut before our 4.6 mile exit hike to the truck. The exit from the Hut was the reverse of our hike in and completely uneventful. Roughly a quarter mile before reaching the trailhead we stopped to pull out the headlights. Sue did a great job of keeping us moving on our hike out. Right on plan Sue stepped into the trailhead lot. We wasted no time packing to leave and changing into some dry clothes. We were soon on the highway south. At first the road was fairly quiet but half-way back to Nashua the Crazies were out, they were everywhere. Nothing like Labor Day weekend traffic.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Gale River Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur, Frost Trail
Summits: North Twin, South Twin, Galehead
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
After the previous day, we decided to start a little later than usual. Sue and I met at the Exit 6 Park & Ride a little after 6:00am (actually closer to 6:30am) and took a very leisurely approach to the day. We made our way to the trailhead lot for Gale River Trail via the usual stops along the way. Once we were geared up and ready to go it was roughly a couple hours later than originally planned, but we had plenty of day for the hike we were taking on. The conditions weren’t great but not bad either; we expected dry conditions all day, occasional sun but generally overcast, and moderate temperature. The trailhead lot was pretty full when we arrived and while we were preparing to set off quite a bit of additional traffic came through. A number of vehicles were dropped off indicating some folks were hiking a traverse from east or west and ending on Gale River Trail.
We started into the hike and the first thing I noticed was my legs weren’t warming up to the idea of another day in the mountains. I assumed they would come around, eventually, and just kept walking. The lower part of the Gale River Trail through the two crossings of Gale River is a relatively mild but long approach. By the time we reached the second crossing, at 2.5 miles we had gained only 700 feet. The next 1.5 miles would have roughly 1100 feet in elevation gain. In other words, the climb to the Garfield Ridge Trail is a steep one especially when you consider that roughly half of the distance is very mild grades.
We generally kept moving knowing our plan for the day and that we probably had enough hike to take us all of the way to darkness with it. As usual, Sue was in front when we completed the final climb to Garfield Ridge Trail, she made the turn, and kept on moving toward the Galehead Hut. I followed and we continued to work on staying with our plan. When we reached the vicinity of the hut we had a choice between making the turn onto Twinway and heading for South Twin or make a stop at the hut. We had gained some time so a stop at the hut was the decision. I made up a couple quarts of Gatorade, drank one there and had one for the road. Plus, I packed in some fuel. I was feeling pretty good when we left the hut which was good because the climb to South Twin, our next target, involves .8 miles and 1150 feet – steep!
We returned to the Garfield Ridge – Twinway trails junction and started the climb. Twinway from the hut is very steep but it is also very rough with great footing most of the way up. Unfortunately, most of the trail is rocks that tend to get slippery when wet. They weren’t wet on our ascent but were wet on our descent. Eventually we completed the climb to South Twin. Just below the open summit area Sue stopped to add a couple layers – I had made the move earlier at the hut. When we stepped into the open area we were hit with a strong, cool breeze and the clouds were moving in. We got a couple quick summit pictures and set off for North Twin. We both knew we would be back again a little later and could get more pictures then.
The hike to North Twin via North Twin Spur is pretty interesting. During this time of year there is a trail that passes through thick coniferous growth. During winter the area is a huge snowfield without markings. Go there in poor visibility and you better know what you’re doing. We passed through the area of thick growth and dropped into the conifer forest between the summits. The hike from South to North Twin didn’t take long and we were soon on the summit getting more pictures. We didn’t bother going out to the viewpoint since we were headed back to South Twin and there were great views to enjoy there.
We made the u-turn and set off back to South Twin. Heading in both directions it was clear the amount of work that was done to open the place up after the significant damage from last winter’s storms. Mtndave has done a terrific job on the North Twin Spur. Last year Sue and I bumped into Dave and his chocolate Lab Coco on the N. Twin Spur. They were camped there for a few days performing trail maintenance. You’re doing a great job Dave. Thanks for all of your hard work.
As we were hiking back to South Twin there is an open area from which the summit is normally visible but not today. The clouds had taken over. Wind was blowing an interesting layer of cloud cover through. We were in and out of the clouds for the remaining hike back to South Twin. As we reached the final approach to South Twin a hole in the cloud layer came through and we were able to see the summit area and the people that were there. We made the final climb and found some terrific mixed views in all directions. To the south we could see out of the dark cloud cover we were in to sunny conditions. At times Franconia Ridge and Garfield were in the clear, and at other times they were completely hidden. The wind was blowing the clouds through quickly. Just before leaving the weather started to turn and the rain started. Instead of waiting around to see how long it would last we took off. We still had Galehead to climb before heading back to the truck. I made a quick check and we were still right on plan. At this point our expected exit to the trailhead lot was a little before 8:00pm.
We started the steep descent to the Galehead Hut. Now we’re on wet and slippery rocks and needed to really pay attention to our moves. Sue and I said very little all of the way down, concentrating on the trail, our next foot placement, and moving as quickly as we could. We reached the hut, paused briefly to provide a little photo assist, and kept moving on Frost Trail to Galehead. The Frost Trail is clear but has some mud pits that take a little effort to get past with clean boots and there are wet rocks and roots on the steep sections that require additional attention. On the climb Sue asked if I wanted to stop at the viewpoint and I suggested perhaps on the exit we might have sun, at that time it was generally cloudy but conditions were changing constantly. We hit the summit, got a few pictures at the summit cairn, made the u-turn and started back out. We made a quick pass by the viewpoint but there was no sun at the time and we were soon finishing the hike back to the hut.
On this time through we made one more quick stop at the hut before our 4.6 mile exit hike to the truck. The exit from the Hut was the reverse of our hike in and completely uneventful. Roughly a quarter mile before reaching the trailhead we stopped to pull out the headlights. Sue did a great job of keeping us moving on our hike out. Right on plan Sue stepped into the trailhead lot. We wasted no time packing to leave and changing into some dry clothes. We were soon on the highway south. At first the road was fairly quiet but half-way back to Nashua the Crazies were out, they were everywhere. Nothing like Labor Day weekend traffic.
Pictures will follow.
