PETCH
New member
The Mission: A solo backpack to the Bonds
The Rules:
- No Lincoln Woods (I kinda hate that trail)
- An attack from the North
- Loop hike trying to hit some trail sections I haven't been on
- Lots of miles and elevation gain.
The Plan: Originally was going to park my truck at Zealand trailhead, and take a shuttle and start at Gale River trail. Then after reading Sabrina's report, I decided on, an out and back from the North Twin Trail.
Peaks/Trails: 7 NH 4k’s- The Twins via North Twin trail, North Twin Spur. The Bonds via Twinway, Bondcliff trail and West Bond Spur. Zealand via Twinway and Zealand Spur, Spur trail down to Zeacliff Pond, Hale via Twinway, Lend a Hand trail, Fire Warden's and North Twin Trail.
Trail Conditions: North Twin trail in great shape. Used herdpath to avoid first 2 crossings. Third crossing was rock hoppable by going up stream a little coming down the middle section then crossing to trail. North Twin spur, Twinway, Bondcliff were all fine with some occasional mud. Lend a Hand Trail was wet with some mud down low.
Cast of Characters: Just me
DAY1:
Starting pack weight: about 28 lbs including 3L of water, down jacket, water shoes, tent, sbag,....yadayada. Light enough and managable. Gentlemen's start of 9:50am from the North Twin Trail. Reached N. Twin at 12:10pm, then South Twin at 1pm.
View from North Twin looking towards the Franconia Ridge
View from South Twin looking towards Mt Bond and West Bond
I blistered my right pinky toe (It's the most important toe, you know), so did some toe repairs while on South Twin. Outstanding views from South Twin, the crown of the Northern Pemi. Then off down the Twinway. I've never been on the section of the Twinway from South Twin to Bondcliff trail. So, I was looking forward to this section. I saw a couple "Black Chickens" (Spruce grouse) along the way. Outstanding views along the Bondcliff trail heading near Guyot area. Got to Guyot campsite at 2:30pm. Set up tent, filtered some water and kicked back for a bit. Black flies were brutal, requiring constant applications of deet.
Had an early supper, and headed out to the Bonds just before 5pm. Thunder storms could be seen and heard heading in from the North. I summited Mt Bond with more thunder rumbling heard over my shoulder. No signs of lightning. I looked over towards Bondcliff. I knew I would not have the legs to come back this way tomorrow. But, I would not be denied the cliffs. I had my rain gear with me. As long as there was no lightning, I was going for it. I descended the rough footing of Mt Bond and headed for the cliffs. I think the views along this section of trail are my favorite of all. West: looking across at West Bond, Owlshead, and the Franconia Ridge. East: looking at the Hancocks, Carrigain, and over towards the Willey Range. A wonderous area.
On my final approach to Bondcliff, a thunder storm engulfed the Franconia peaks, one by one. The sheets of rain were completely covering the peaks at times. It was really quite a sight. I figured as long as I could still see Owlshead, I was ok. So, I lingered and watched the show from Bondcliff. I was completely alone. There was a light breeze, and pretty quiet except for occasional thunder. It was really cool.
The Franconia Ridge gets swallowed up by a thunder storm
Mother nature at work
I enjoyed my solitude and turned back. As I reclimbed Mt Bond, I could see more clouds coming from the North. The showers were passing quite quickly, so I decided to put on the raingear, and wait it out for a bit before heading to West Bond. Again, I was completely alone. I hung out on the summit until it started raining, then headed down. By the time I got to the West Bond spur, the rain had stopped. I reached the West Bond summit basking in the sunshine. A shadow was cast across Bondcliff.
View from West Bond of sun setting on Bondcliff
I enjoyed the views for 1/2 hour or so watching the sun descend towards the hills. And yes again, I was complete alone. Three lonely Bonds. Back to the campsite, I cleaned up a bit and called it a night. In the sleeping bag at 9pm. The biggest thought on my mind was how the Bruins were doing in game 7.........
DAY2:
It rained often during the evening, but the morning brought a sunny start and warm temps. I fired up the Jetboil again, and had some oatmeal and coffee. Packed up shop, and was on the trail by 8am. My legs were a little weary after about 5k of elevation gain yesterday. After heading back up the Bondcliff trail I started feeling better and got into the groove. The views were great in all directions. I made the turn on the Twinway and ascended Guyot. I hung around a little while enjoying the views before descending into the trees.
More black chickens on the Twinway. I think I saw 6 different grouse during the coarse of the trip. Down and down and back up to the Zealand spur. Went and tagged Zealand again, and kept heading up the Twinway. At about 10am, I ran into some hikers, and the first words out of my mouth were "Did the Bruins win?" They said “Yes......”. Very good news!
Onward- I missed Zeacliff Pond last time I was here, so this time I took the short walk down to the pond. Very beautiful area.
Zeacliff Pond
Then up again and over to Zeacliff, then down the last section of the Twinway to Zealand Falls. I sat by the falls and took a break. At this point it would have been nice to just walk out on the Zealand trail. I was pretty tired. But my truck was over 6 miles away on the other side of Hale. No point putting it off. I started the climb up the Lend a Hand trail. I've been on the trail once before coming the other way. It's really a nice trail, though a bit wet. It's a gradual climb and really quite scenic. But, I was really feeling tired. I really didn't eat enough for breakfast. I sucked down a 5hr energy drink and made the final push to Hale. There were two massive black crows on the summit when I arrived. Watching the wings of these creatures flying off was wild. Time for the final push of the trip down the Fire Warden's trail.
The Firewarden's trail was also virgin trail to me, and was a nice way to descend. The trail is very easy on the feet, has switchbacks, but was muddy and wet in some areas due to the recent rains. When I got down to the river, I thought about jumping in the water. But, the black flies were so thick, that I decided to just head back to the truck and drive down to Fabyan's and get something cold to drink instead. Back down at the truck at 2:30pm.
Overall, this was the most hiking I've done over a two day period. And, I got to spend some quality time on the Bonds in total solitude. It was a great trip!
Trip stats: Day1: about 8 hrs hiking with some Bond lounging, Day2: about 6 1/2 hrs hiking.
Total numbers: about 25 miles, 7200 ft of gain
Slideshow from this trip^
Ascent List:http://peakbagger.com/climber/climblistc.aspx?cid=1767
All Hiking Pictures:http://picasaweb.google.com/mpetcher/
The Rules:
- No Lincoln Woods (I kinda hate that trail)
- An attack from the North
- Loop hike trying to hit some trail sections I haven't been on
- Lots of miles and elevation gain.
The Plan: Originally was going to park my truck at Zealand trailhead, and take a shuttle and start at Gale River trail. Then after reading Sabrina's report, I decided on, an out and back from the North Twin Trail.
Peaks/Trails: 7 NH 4k’s- The Twins via North Twin trail, North Twin Spur. The Bonds via Twinway, Bondcliff trail and West Bond Spur. Zealand via Twinway and Zealand Spur, Spur trail down to Zeacliff Pond, Hale via Twinway, Lend a Hand trail, Fire Warden's and North Twin Trail.
Trail Conditions: North Twin trail in great shape. Used herdpath to avoid first 2 crossings. Third crossing was rock hoppable by going up stream a little coming down the middle section then crossing to trail. North Twin spur, Twinway, Bondcliff were all fine with some occasional mud. Lend a Hand Trail was wet with some mud down low.
Cast of Characters: Just me
DAY1:
Starting pack weight: about 28 lbs including 3L of water, down jacket, water shoes, tent, sbag,....yadayada. Light enough and managable. Gentlemen's start of 9:50am from the North Twin Trail. Reached N. Twin at 12:10pm, then South Twin at 1pm.
View from North Twin looking towards the Franconia Ridge
View from South Twin looking towards Mt Bond and West Bond
I blistered my right pinky toe (It's the most important toe, you know), so did some toe repairs while on South Twin. Outstanding views from South Twin, the crown of the Northern Pemi. Then off down the Twinway. I've never been on the section of the Twinway from South Twin to Bondcliff trail. So, I was looking forward to this section. I saw a couple "Black Chickens" (Spruce grouse) along the way. Outstanding views along the Bondcliff trail heading near Guyot area. Got to Guyot campsite at 2:30pm. Set up tent, filtered some water and kicked back for a bit. Black flies were brutal, requiring constant applications of deet.
Had an early supper, and headed out to the Bonds just before 5pm. Thunder storms could be seen and heard heading in from the North. I summited Mt Bond with more thunder rumbling heard over my shoulder. No signs of lightning. I looked over towards Bondcliff. I knew I would not have the legs to come back this way tomorrow. But, I would not be denied the cliffs. I had my rain gear with me. As long as there was no lightning, I was going for it. I descended the rough footing of Mt Bond and headed for the cliffs. I think the views along this section of trail are my favorite of all. West: looking across at West Bond, Owlshead, and the Franconia Ridge. East: looking at the Hancocks, Carrigain, and over towards the Willey Range. A wonderous area.
On my final approach to Bondcliff, a thunder storm engulfed the Franconia peaks, one by one. The sheets of rain were completely covering the peaks at times. It was really quite a sight. I figured as long as I could still see Owlshead, I was ok. So, I lingered and watched the show from Bondcliff. I was completely alone. There was a light breeze, and pretty quiet except for occasional thunder. It was really cool.
The Franconia Ridge gets swallowed up by a thunder storm
Mother nature at work
I enjoyed my solitude and turned back. As I reclimbed Mt Bond, I could see more clouds coming from the North. The showers were passing quite quickly, so I decided to put on the raingear, and wait it out for a bit before heading to West Bond. Again, I was completely alone. I hung out on the summit until it started raining, then headed down. By the time I got to the West Bond spur, the rain had stopped. I reached the West Bond summit basking in the sunshine. A shadow was cast across Bondcliff.
View from West Bond of sun setting on Bondcliff
I enjoyed the views for 1/2 hour or so watching the sun descend towards the hills. And yes again, I was complete alone. Three lonely Bonds. Back to the campsite, I cleaned up a bit and called it a night. In the sleeping bag at 9pm. The biggest thought on my mind was how the Bruins were doing in game 7.........
DAY2:
It rained often during the evening, but the morning brought a sunny start and warm temps. I fired up the Jetboil again, and had some oatmeal and coffee. Packed up shop, and was on the trail by 8am. My legs were a little weary after about 5k of elevation gain yesterday. After heading back up the Bondcliff trail I started feeling better and got into the groove. The views were great in all directions. I made the turn on the Twinway and ascended Guyot. I hung around a little while enjoying the views before descending into the trees.
More black chickens on the Twinway. I think I saw 6 different grouse during the coarse of the trip. Down and down and back up to the Zealand spur. Went and tagged Zealand again, and kept heading up the Twinway. At about 10am, I ran into some hikers, and the first words out of my mouth were "Did the Bruins win?" They said “Yes......”. Very good news!
Onward- I missed Zeacliff Pond last time I was here, so this time I took the short walk down to the pond. Very beautiful area.
Zeacliff Pond
Then up again and over to Zeacliff, then down the last section of the Twinway to Zealand Falls. I sat by the falls and took a break. At this point it would have been nice to just walk out on the Zealand trail. I was pretty tired. But my truck was over 6 miles away on the other side of Hale. No point putting it off. I started the climb up the Lend a Hand trail. I've been on the trail once before coming the other way. It's really a nice trail, though a bit wet. It's a gradual climb and really quite scenic. But, I was really feeling tired. I really didn't eat enough for breakfast. I sucked down a 5hr energy drink and made the final push to Hale. There were two massive black crows on the summit when I arrived. Watching the wings of these creatures flying off was wild. Time for the final push of the trip down the Fire Warden's trail.
The Firewarden's trail was also virgin trail to me, and was a nice way to descend. The trail is very easy on the feet, has switchbacks, but was muddy and wet in some areas due to the recent rains. When I got down to the river, I thought about jumping in the water. But, the black flies were so thick, that I decided to just head back to the truck and drive down to Fabyan's and get something cold to drink instead. Back down at the truck at 2:30pm.
Overall, this was the most hiking I've done over a two day period. And, I got to spend some quality time on the Bonds in total solitude. It was a great trip!
Trip stats: Day1: about 8 hrs hiking with some Bond lounging, Day2: about 6 1/2 hrs hiking.
Total numbers: about 25 miles, 7200 ft of gain
Slideshow from this trip^
Ascent List:http://peakbagger.com/climber/climblistc.aspx?cid=1767
All Hiking Pictures:http://picasaweb.google.com/mpetcher/
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