Garfield - Galehead Loop, 9/6/2014

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BIGEarl

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Jul 18, 2005
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Location
Nashua, NH
September 6, 2014: Garfield & Galehead Loop

Trails: Mt. Garfield Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Frost Trail, Gale River Trail

Summits: Garfield and Galehead

Hikers: Rebecca Schubert and me



This was my first time out after working through a leg infection that kept me off the trails for two weeks. All of the symptoms were gone and it was time to get back in the woods. The original plan for the day was a traverse from Gale River Road to Lincoln Woods over Garfield and Owl’s Head. After a couple hours on-trail it seemed clear this was probably more of a hike than was reasonable for coming back and we made the adjustment.

The forecast for the day wasn’t good with heavy rain in the later part of the day and possibly thunder showers mid-afternoon. Because of the forecast we decided a sheltered hike made the most sense. We got an early start to be sure to be well past Garfield before any bad weather moved in. The hike to Garfield was a good news-bad news kind of story. On the good side we moved at my usual pace, which is a little faster than book time. Unfortunately, for me the hike was really difficult all the way to the summit. I couldn’t zero in on one specific problem; it just seemed like I started the day burned up.

Slowly we made our way through the climb to Garfield passing various milestones along the way eventually landing at the junction with Garfield Ridge Trail. The thought of turning back had already come up several times but that option wasn’t one I wanted to consider. Again at the trails junction we briefly talked about it. I think that might have been the first time that I mentioned the plan was probably more than I could handle for the day and we started looking at other options.

We continued to the summit, had some refreshment, got a few pictures, met some through hikers, and headed back down to the trails junction. I knew a decision for the day was coming up once we were back to the trails junction. On our way down I thought about the choices we had, the least attractive of which was to simply head back out the way we hiked in. Rebecca had Galehead as an orphan peak for her second time through the list. Suddenly, it became the ideal choice. We decided to head across Garfield Ridge Trail to Galehead, u-turn back to Gale River Trail, and hike down to Gale River Road. We would finish with a 1.6 mile road walk to the Mt. Garfield trailhead.

The bad weather was still holding off but the humidity was very high. I was going through water at a much higher rate than usual. Perhaps I was a little dehydrated causing part of my problems. From the start I knew we were passing the Garfield Ridge Campsite and could reload with water there. I was trying everything to get comfortable including fuel and water. When we arrived to the campsite I pulled out my water reservoir to find it mostly drained; that’s three liters in only a little over five miles. Under normal conditions, three liters is good for over fifteen miles, but this day wasn’t normal.

We made the stop for water. While there we visited with three trough hikers on their way to Maine. We ran into them again at the Galehead Hut enjoying some soup and bread. With the water re-supply taken care of we continued across Garfield Ridge Trail. It’s a rough, rocky trail with a number of PUDs along the way. I’ve hiked this trail quite a few times and knew what to expect. I think this might be the first time I hiked from Garfield to Galehead; every other trip has been in the opposite direction (it’s nice to see the other side of the trees).

As we approached the Gale River Trail junction, Rebecca asked if we should just make the turn and head down. I was feeling incredibly frustrated with the problems I was experiencing that were beyond my control but stubbornness and determination teamed up and said we were going to complete this loop. We were too close to Galehead to quit; it was only .6 to the hut and .5 more to the summit. We continued on to Galehead Hut. At the hut I added more fuel, relaxed for a few minutes, and soon started for the summit with a plan to stop on our return pass to again reload with water. I was still taking on water at a very high rate.

The short climb to the summit was more of the same stop-and-go hiking that I had been enjoying all along. It seemed that I couldn’t get more than fifty yards without making a stop. I knew that I could make it and needed to be patient with myself; simply do what I could do and not try to force anything. In reality, we were still moving at a “book time” pace, which is my “normal”, it just didn’t feel good at all. Soon we passed the viewpoint spur, the grade mellowed out and we finished the trip to the summit. Reaching a summit always feels good but this one was better than usual; and it was Galehead (‘nuff said).

We got a couple pictures at the summit cairn, visited the viewpoint for a few more pictures, and headed to the hut for more water. By now we were into early afternoon but the predicted wet weather was still holding off, and there had been no distant thunder. With everything done at the hut we set off for Gale River Trail and our exit hike.

The trip back to Gale River Trail was a little surprising; the clouds broke up and we had large areas of blue sky with sun to enjoy. Looking to the west and northwest it seemed the nice weather might not last for long. We were able to maintain a good pace to the trail junction. After a short break in the action we started down Gale River Trail. Along the way we met a number of people probably headed for a night at the hut.

We made our way past the bridges leading to the former upper crossing of Gale River, followed the relocated section trail, and were soon on the old trail below the previous lower crossing of Gale River. We were on a low-elevation ~1.5 mile cruise to the trailhead. For no good reason I was feeling pretty beat-up and found myself zoned out in robot mode just getting one foot in front of the other on my way to the trailhead. Rebecca was out in front and I knew she would be waiting for me.

Eventually I made it to the Gale River Trailhead, and Rebecca. All that was left was a short 1.6 mile road walk to the Garfield Trailhead. The wet weather was still holding off but the blue sky was gone. We started heading to the Garfield Trailhead and the rain started. The transition from a light shower to a real downpour didn’t take long. The final mile was pretty wet. We didn’t stop to pull out rain covers, we just hiked. Eventually I reached the Garfield Trailhead; we tossed our things into the back of the truck, and climbed inside.

In the end we managed to complete the loop at “book time” but it sure wasn’t pretty. What a tough day in the mountains. I feel bad for the way the day went because I know we were both ready for a lot more; I just didn’t have it.

Maybe next time will be better.



I’ve posted some pictures from the day.


BIGEarl's Pictures


Straight to the slideshow


:)
 
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