BIGEarl
Well-known member
June 16, 2007: Lafayette, Lincoln
Trails: Skookumchuck Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail
Distance – Elevation: 12 Miles, 4,300 Feet
The day started a little earlier than usual. I woke up before the alarm and hit the road north a little earlier than planned. Originally, I was hoping to reach the trailhead by 7:00am but with the early start I was there approximately 6:15am. There was a person sitting in one of the cars parked in the trailhead lot. I got out of the truck to prepare for the day and the person in the car also got moving. It turned out to be a hiker named Rols that I had met on Cannon Mountain New Year’s Eve – 2005. We decided to hike together. Since the only trail leaving the lot was the Skookumchuck and the only place it went was Mount Lafayette logic said we were both planning to hike to Mount Lafayette. I was also planning to hike to Lincoln and possibly Garfield but Rols was only interested in Lafayette – at first. I had a few hours of hiking to change his mind.
Hiking the Skookumchuck Trail was recommended by Hikerbob and Kevin Rooney. I value the opinion of both and was looking forward to the hike. We were on the trail by approximately 6:30am. The Skookumchuck Trail is in great shape. The necessary clearing from storm damage during the winter has been done and aside from a few minor mud pits it is a clear and dry trail. Most steep sections have stone stairs that helped make the trail a pleasure. For some reason that isn’t obvious to me this trail is not particularly popular. We saw no other hikers on the trail going in and only three on the way out. I thought it was a great trail and will definitely hike it again. At the bottom sections the trail has a number of areas with beautiful thick fern growth. There is also a substantial population of mosquitoes and black flies. Even with the insect population I never pulled out the deet. Rols was the insect target for the day. Rols is a pleasure to hike with – his ideal speed is the same as my ideal speed. We worked our way along the Skookumchuck Trail taking advantage of periodic photo opportunities, rest stops, and Rols provided an education on it and other areas of interest. He really knows the mountains and trails.
The upper end of the trail is a junction with the Garfield Ridge Trail (GRT). One thought I had was to hike out to Garfield on the return, it’s only a ~5.5 mile side trip. Being able to add this peak would depend on the time, weather, and available energy. We reached the GRT and continued on to Lafayette. Soon after reaching the GRT we moved above the treeline. The views were a little hazy but great. We could see well into Vermont, to the north, and to the east beyond the Presidentials. We both picked up the pace of snapping pictures. The next obstacle to clear on the way to Lafayette is a high spot called North Lafayette. Standing at the treeline looking up suggested it was going to take some work. We continued with our slow-and-steady pace and were on North Lafayette in no time. From there we could see the summit of Lafayette – and the weekend crowd.
There’s a gradual drop of approximately 50 feet before the final ascent to Lafayette. We quickly moved through this last section and found ourselves sitting on the summit enjoying a quick lunch. There was quite a gathering here and looking to the south on the Franconia Ridge Trail (FRT) we could see more people on their way. We stayed long enough to enjoy the snack and get some pictures, and then we were off headed for Mount Lincoln. Rols originally planned to hike to Lafayette and call it a day. His plans changed and we hiked together to Lincoln.
The FRT to Lincoln has a bump in the middle that amounts to roughly 150 feet that we were able to enjoy in both directions. Hiking on FRT is generally easy with a great trail and the added elevation gain wasn’t a real problem. We quickly moved across the .9 miles to Lincoln, enjoyed the views, grabbed some pictures, and headed back to Lafayette. The extra 150 feet going north wasn’t at all welcomed probably because we were also looking at a re-climb of approximately 450 feet to Lafayette. Soon we were able to rejoin the Lafayette crowd for a quick break.
While relaxing on Lafayette we observed some stormy weather headed our way. There were a couple significant areas of rain that were headed to the north from the Kancamagus. One of the storms appeared to be over Owls Head and moving toward Garfield. Suddenly, a side trip to Garfield didn’t seem like a very good idea. After the break we set off on the GRT to the Skookumchuck Trail junction, which was also my final decision point on Garfield. We reached the trail junction; I looked over my shoulder, looked at my watch, and decided to head straight back to the trailhead. Time and weather were both working against me on hiking to Garfield.
The hike back to the trailhead was uneventful. The black flies were out in force but still no deet for BIGEarl – Rols was the main course for the day. I believe we saw three other hikers between the Skookumchuck – GRT trails junction and the trailhead. The hike out went quickly. We were back at the vehicles by mid-afternoon and quickly packed our things away for the trip home.
Overall it was a very good day. I was able to get to know Rols more than the previous meeting on Cannon allowed and enjoy his company for the day. The conditions and views were great, and weather-wise we were able to dodge a couple bullets.
I’ll be back on the Skookumchuck again if for no other reason than to access the section of the GRT between Skookumchuck junction and Mount Garfield for redlining. I’m also hopeful to hike more with Rols.
I have posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
By the way: If you're interested, go full size on picture #18 and you can see two AMC huts in one picture.
Trails: Skookumchuck Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail
Distance – Elevation: 12 Miles, 4,300 Feet
The day started a little earlier than usual. I woke up before the alarm and hit the road north a little earlier than planned. Originally, I was hoping to reach the trailhead by 7:00am but with the early start I was there approximately 6:15am. There was a person sitting in one of the cars parked in the trailhead lot. I got out of the truck to prepare for the day and the person in the car also got moving. It turned out to be a hiker named Rols that I had met on Cannon Mountain New Year’s Eve – 2005. We decided to hike together. Since the only trail leaving the lot was the Skookumchuck and the only place it went was Mount Lafayette logic said we were both planning to hike to Mount Lafayette. I was also planning to hike to Lincoln and possibly Garfield but Rols was only interested in Lafayette – at first. I had a few hours of hiking to change his mind.
Hiking the Skookumchuck Trail was recommended by Hikerbob and Kevin Rooney. I value the opinion of both and was looking forward to the hike. We were on the trail by approximately 6:30am. The Skookumchuck Trail is in great shape. The necessary clearing from storm damage during the winter has been done and aside from a few minor mud pits it is a clear and dry trail. Most steep sections have stone stairs that helped make the trail a pleasure. For some reason that isn’t obvious to me this trail is not particularly popular. We saw no other hikers on the trail going in and only three on the way out. I thought it was a great trail and will definitely hike it again. At the bottom sections the trail has a number of areas with beautiful thick fern growth. There is also a substantial population of mosquitoes and black flies. Even with the insect population I never pulled out the deet. Rols was the insect target for the day. Rols is a pleasure to hike with – his ideal speed is the same as my ideal speed. We worked our way along the Skookumchuck Trail taking advantage of periodic photo opportunities, rest stops, and Rols provided an education on it and other areas of interest. He really knows the mountains and trails.
The upper end of the trail is a junction with the Garfield Ridge Trail (GRT). One thought I had was to hike out to Garfield on the return, it’s only a ~5.5 mile side trip. Being able to add this peak would depend on the time, weather, and available energy. We reached the GRT and continued on to Lafayette. Soon after reaching the GRT we moved above the treeline. The views were a little hazy but great. We could see well into Vermont, to the north, and to the east beyond the Presidentials. We both picked up the pace of snapping pictures. The next obstacle to clear on the way to Lafayette is a high spot called North Lafayette. Standing at the treeline looking up suggested it was going to take some work. We continued with our slow-and-steady pace and were on North Lafayette in no time. From there we could see the summit of Lafayette – and the weekend crowd.
There’s a gradual drop of approximately 50 feet before the final ascent to Lafayette. We quickly moved through this last section and found ourselves sitting on the summit enjoying a quick lunch. There was quite a gathering here and looking to the south on the Franconia Ridge Trail (FRT) we could see more people on their way. We stayed long enough to enjoy the snack and get some pictures, and then we were off headed for Mount Lincoln. Rols originally planned to hike to Lafayette and call it a day. His plans changed and we hiked together to Lincoln.
The FRT to Lincoln has a bump in the middle that amounts to roughly 150 feet that we were able to enjoy in both directions. Hiking on FRT is generally easy with a great trail and the added elevation gain wasn’t a real problem. We quickly moved across the .9 miles to Lincoln, enjoyed the views, grabbed some pictures, and headed back to Lafayette. The extra 150 feet going north wasn’t at all welcomed probably because we were also looking at a re-climb of approximately 450 feet to Lafayette. Soon we were able to rejoin the Lafayette crowd for a quick break.
While relaxing on Lafayette we observed some stormy weather headed our way. There were a couple significant areas of rain that were headed to the north from the Kancamagus. One of the storms appeared to be over Owls Head and moving toward Garfield. Suddenly, a side trip to Garfield didn’t seem like a very good idea. After the break we set off on the GRT to the Skookumchuck Trail junction, which was also my final decision point on Garfield. We reached the trail junction; I looked over my shoulder, looked at my watch, and decided to head straight back to the trailhead. Time and weather were both working against me on hiking to Garfield.
The hike back to the trailhead was uneventful. The black flies were out in force but still no deet for BIGEarl – Rols was the main course for the day. I believe we saw three other hikers between the Skookumchuck – GRT trails junction and the trailhead. The hike out went quickly. We were back at the vehicles by mid-afternoon and quickly packed our things away for the trip home.
Overall it was a very good day. I was able to get to know Rols more than the previous meeting on Cannon allowed and enjoy his company for the day. The conditions and views were great, and weather-wise we were able to dodge a couple bullets.
I’ll be back on the Skookumchuck again if for no other reason than to access the section of the GRT between Skookumchuck junction and Mount Garfield for redlining. I’m also hopeful to hike more with Rols.
I have posted some pictures from the day.
BIGEarl's Pictures
By the way: If you're interested, go full size on picture #18 and you can see two AMC huts in one picture.
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