BIGEarl
Well-known member
November 6, 2010: Hale, Zealand, and The Bonds Traverse
Trails: Hale Brook Trail, Lend-A-Hand Trail, Twinway, Bondcliff, Wilderness Trail
Summits: Hale, Zealand, Guyot, West Bond, Bond, Bondcliff
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
More than once while we were walking along the old railroad bed called Wilderness Trail, Sue told me that everybody has a tough day once in a while. But, I’m a little ahead of myself, just a little.
Sue and I met HikerBob at Lincoln Woods to swap keys and we drove HikerBob’s new diesel to the trailhead lot for Hale Brook Trail. We planned to hike a N-S traverse of The Bonds and include Hale and Zealand. HikerBob planned to hike a S-N traverse of The Bonds and include Zealand. Somewhere along the way we expected to meet and swap keys again, at which point we would all be hiking toward our getaway vehicles. Immediately after swapping keys, HikerBob took off on his traverse. We first needed to drive to our start location, take care of final pre-hike prep, and we were soon on-trail. HikerBob had a big head start and we had one additional mountain. Our expectation was to see him somewhere around Zealand.
We started the day with headlights on our climb of Mt. Hale. From the trailhead to the lower crossing of Hale Brook, the trail is in terrific shape. At low elevations the trail is completely clear but wet. Above the lower crossing the trail starts to have small amounts of ice and a dusting of snow. The icing condition slowly gets more significant with elevation. Sue and I managed to bare boot the full climb to the summit with very little difficulty. There were a few more stops than usual but I thought it was nothing more than a tougher warm-up than usual.
We reached the summit of Hale with a low cloud cover in place. After a couple summit pictures, we spent some time making friends with the Grey Jay population. Soon we were on our way hiking Lend-A-Hand to Twinway. Lend-A-Hand is also completely clear of blowdowns but icy and wet, very wet. There are a few sections where the trail is a running brook. A couple of the mud pits were more difficult than usual to get past but we managed to reach Twinway with relatively clean boots and dry feet. There was no need to visit the Zealand Falls Hut so we just kept walking.
Twinway to Zeacliff was the first place where I realized this was going to be a long day. The climb to the ridge is steep, rough, and loaded with ice. We continued to bare boot the hike but I’m sure we spent extra energy in doing so. Going with light traction would have been a good move. The climb would have been easier and less exhausting. As it was, we made quite a few additional stops along the way. We reached the spur to Zeacliff and realized all there was to see was fog and didn’t bother. We kept walking. A short distance from Zeacliff we met a group of three hikers. They were quite frustrated in being unable to find Zealand. After visiting for a while it seemed clear they turned around before actually getting to the summit spur. They had a turn-around time and stuck to it – that was a good thing. Unfortunately, if they had another thirty minutes they probably would have made it to Zealand.
After we left the others the hike became a little easier, for a while, but there was no significant climbing to accomplish between Zeacliff and Zealand. Roughly midway between the trail to Zeacliff Pond junction and Zealand we met HikerBob, had a brief visit, got a trail report from him on what to expect on Bondcliff and Wilderness trails, and swapped keys. Soon we were again underway and headed for Zealand. Finally, Sue decided it was time for MicroSpikes. She said it seemed we were dragging and perhaps the added traction would help. We stopped and pulled out the traction. They made a difference. We were passed by a couple guys from Connecticut headed for Guyot Shelter for the night.
We reached the spur to Zealand, made the short out-and-back, and were soon on the hike to Bondcliff Trail. After dropping into the col between Zealand and Guyot the day got difficult. The best I could do was a hundred yards at a time between stops. The climb to the treeline took forever. I knew the price that was being paid in terms of time and felt terrible about it – but there was nothing I could do except to keep pushing. Sue did everything she could to keep me in the right frame of mind and focused on our next target. I knew once we made it to the treeline things would get better, for a while.
Sometimes great views help improve ones outlook on the day. We were definitely on a great view hike. Unfortunately, there were no views, only fog and clouds. The hike is still a terrific hike even without the views, but they are a great reward that gives a boost when things aren’t going well. I really needed a boost to my day – a big boost. Once we hit the treeline the snow cover became deeper. On the initial part of Bondcliff Trail there were some deep postholes. The snow had been rained on and re-frozen leaving a surface that could generally support our weight.
Since our last time through the area the summit cairn on Guyot has been significantly altered. In the past it was simply a large cairn. Now, it’s a small cairn with a wall built around the west and northwest side of it and a walkway in between. Why the change?
We headed for the spur to West Bond but made a necessary stop south of Guyot. I pulled out a quart of Gatorade, a zone bar, and some crackers trying to load in more fuel. I’m not sure if it helped, it may have – a little. After we passed the spur to Guyot Shelter Sue asked if I wanted to be in the lead and simply hike a comfortable pace. I wasn’t sure there was a comfortable pace. I suggested that she stay in the lead, I’d try to keep up, and when she reached the West Bond Spur to look over her shoulder – it I wasn’t there, please wait for me.
We reached the spur and made the turn for the .5 mile out and back to West Bond. It wasn’t too bad, except for the final climb. The trails are still in great shape. There have been no blowdowns to contend with and we haven’t seen any mud since the area of the spur to Zeacliff. On West Bond we were treated to a break in the cloud cover and got a few area pictures but nothing long distance. With the summit pictures out of the way and most of the daylight gone as well we needed to keep moving.
Our timing for the hike was planned to have us past Bondcliff before dark. Hiking down from Bondcliff and then on the Wilderness Trail after dark isn’t a problem at all. The plan didn’t allow for all of the bonking time and we were running very late versus plan. We arrived to Mount Bond in the dark. There was enough light to see as we dug through our packs for the headlights. We added the lights, some warmer clothing, got a couple summit pictures, and continued on our way.
The hike out from Bond in the dark, with fog blowing through, is really interesting. Leaving Bond is relatively easy since the trail is a well defined corridor through the scrub above the treeline. After breaking out of the scrub the trail is less well-defined. We needed to pay a little more attention to stay on trail. Soon after leaving the scrub we retired the MicroSpikes and didn’t need them again for the remainder of the hike.
From the col between Bond and Bondcliff we enjoyed stars overhead as a section of clear sky came through (or was it a hole in the clouds passed by?). We reached the final climb and started in. Again, it was the same story of hike a distance and rest. As we got close to the summit we also had the cliff on our right. Having the world disappear right beside you creates an interesting sensation. We reached the high point, got some pictures, and continued on our way. The cairns were a little more difficult to locate on the summit and I nearly pulled out my back-up headlight, which has a very nice long-range beam that it throws with the diffuser flipped down. Fortunately, it wasn’t needed. We carefully made our way across the open area, found the trail through the scrub off the summit, and reached the short section of ledge that drops to the wooded trail below. Once we were there we had a very well defined corridor to follow.
Continued.......
Trails: Hale Brook Trail, Lend-A-Hand Trail, Twinway, Bondcliff, Wilderness Trail
Summits: Hale, Zealand, Guyot, West Bond, Bond, Bondcliff
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
More than once while we were walking along the old railroad bed called Wilderness Trail, Sue told me that everybody has a tough day once in a while. But, I’m a little ahead of myself, just a little.
Sue and I met HikerBob at Lincoln Woods to swap keys and we drove HikerBob’s new diesel to the trailhead lot for Hale Brook Trail. We planned to hike a N-S traverse of The Bonds and include Hale and Zealand. HikerBob planned to hike a S-N traverse of The Bonds and include Zealand. Somewhere along the way we expected to meet and swap keys again, at which point we would all be hiking toward our getaway vehicles. Immediately after swapping keys, HikerBob took off on his traverse. We first needed to drive to our start location, take care of final pre-hike prep, and we were soon on-trail. HikerBob had a big head start and we had one additional mountain. Our expectation was to see him somewhere around Zealand.
We started the day with headlights on our climb of Mt. Hale. From the trailhead to the lower crossing of Hale Brook, the trail is in terrific shape. At low elevations the trail is completely clear but wet. Above the lower crossing the trail starts to have small amounts of ice and a dusting of snow. The icing condition slowly gets more significant with elevation. Sue and I managed to bare boot the full climb to the summit with very little difficulty. There were a few more stops than usual but I thought it was nothing more than a tougher warm-up than usual.
We reached the summit of Hale with a low cloud cover in place. After a couple summit pictures, we spent some time making friends with the Grey Jay population. Soon we were on our way hiking Lend-A-Hand to Twinway. Lend-A-Hand is also completely clear of blowdowns but icy and wet, very wet. There are a few sections where the trail is a running brook. A couple of the mud pits were more difficult than usual to get past but we managed to reach Twinway with relatively clean boots and dry feet. There was no need to visit the Zealand Falls Hut so we just kept walking.
Twinway to Zeacliff was the first place where I realized this was going to be a long day. The climb to the ridge is steep, rough, and loaded with ice. We continued to bare boot the hike but I’m sure we spent extra energy in doing so. Going with light traction would have been a good move. The climb would have been easier and less exhausting. As it was, we made quite a few additional stops along the way. We reached the spur to Zeacliff and realized all there was to see was fog and didn’t bother. We kept walking. A short distance from Zeacliff we met a group of three hikers. They were quite frustrated in being unable to find Zealand. After visiting for a while it seemed clear they turned around before actually getting to the summit spur. They had a turn-around time and stuck to it – that was a good thing. Unfortunately, if they had another thirty minutes they probably would have made it to Zealand.
After we left the others the hike became a little easier, for a while, but there was no significant climbing to accomplish between Zeacliff and Zealand. Roughly midway between the trail to Zeacliff Pond junction and Zealand we met HikerBob, had a brief visit, got a trail report from him on what to expect on Bondcliff and Wilderness trails, and swapped keys. Soon we were again underway and headed for Zealand. Finally, Sue decided it was time for MicroSpikes. She said it seemed we were dragging and perhaps the added traction would help. We stopped and pulled out the traction. They made a difference. We were passed by a couple guys from Connecticut headed for Guyot Shelter for the night.
We reached the spur to Zealand, made the short out-and-back, and were soon on the hike to Bondcliff Trail. After dropping into the col between Zealand and Guyot the day got difficult. The best I could do was a hundred yards at a time between stops. The climb to the treeline took forever. I knew the price that was being paid in terms of time and felt terrible about it – but there was nothing I could do except to keep pushing. Sue did everything she could to keep me in the right frame of mind and focused on our next target. I knew once we made it to the treeline things would get better, for a while.
Sometimes great views help improve ones outlook on the day. We were definitely on a great view hike. Unfortunately, there were no views, only fog and clouds. The hike is still a terrific hike even without the views, but they are a great reward that gives a boost when things aren’t going well. I really needed a boost to my day – a big boost. Once we hit the treeline the snow cover became deeper. On the initial part of Bondcliff Trail there were some deep postholes. The snow had been rained on and re-frozen leaving a surface that could generally support our weight.
Since our last time through the area the summit cairn on Guyot has been significantly altered. In the past it was simply a large cairn. Now, it’s a small cairn with a wall built around the west and northwest side of it and a walkway in between. Why the change?
We headed for the spur to West Bond but made a necessary stop south of Guyot. I pulled out a quart of Gatorade, a zone bar, and some crackers trying to load in more fuel. I’m not sure if it helped, it may have – a little. After we passed the spur to Guyot Shelter Sue asked if I wanted to be in the lead and simply hike a comfortable pace. I wasn’t sure there was a comfortable pace. I suggested that she stay in the lead, I’d try to keep up, and when she reached the West Bond Spur to look over her shoulder – it I wasn’t there, please wait for me.
We reached the spur and made the turn for the .5 mile out and back to West Bond. It wasn’t too bad, except for the final climb. The trails are still in great shape. There have been no blowdowns to contend with and we haven’t seen any mud since the area of the spur to Zeacliff. On West Bond we were treated to a break in the cloud cover and got a few area pictures but nothing long distance. With the summit pictures out of the way and most of the daylight gone as well we needed to keep moving.
Our timing for the hike was planned to have us past Bondcliff before dark. Hiking down from Bondcliff and then on the Wilderness Trail after dark isn’t a problem at all. The plan didn’t allow for all of the bonking time and we were running very late versus plan. We arrived to Mount Bond in the dark. There was enough light to see as we dug through our packs for the headlights. We added the lights, some warmer clothing, got a couple summit pictures, and continued on our way.
The hike out from Bond in the dark, with fog blowing through, is really interesting. Leaving Bond is relatively easy since the trail is a well defined corridor through the scrub above the treeline. After breaking out of the scrub the trail is less well-defined. We needed to pay a little more attention to stay on trail. Soon after leaving the scrub we retired the MicroSpikes and didn’t need them again for the remainder of the hike.
From the col between Bond and Bondcliff we enjoyed stars overhead as a section of clear sky came through (or was it a hole in the clouds passed by?). We reached the final climb and started in. Again, it was the same story of hike a distance and rest. As we got close to the summit we also had the cliff on our right. Having the world disappear right beside you creates an interesting sensation. We reached the high point, got some pictures, and continued on our way. The cairns were a little more difficult to locate on the summit and I nearly pulled out my back-up headlight, which has a very nice long-range beam that it throws with the diffuser flipped down. Fortunately, it wasn’t needed. We carefully made our way across the open area, found the trail through the scrub off the summit, and reached the short section of ledge that drops to the wooded trail below. Once we were there we had a very well defined corridor to follow.
Continued.......
