Bonding in the Bonds--9/7-9/8

Mad Townie · Sep 12, 2006

Last September, just before she started college, my daughter Elisabeth (Boulderdash) and I spent four days in the northern Presidentials, hiking around and enjoying each other's company. It was my way of sending her off into her own life by giving myself a few moments of her time. I never dared to even dream or hope of ever doing anything like that with her again.

Early this summer she did one of those things that make a parent choke up with love and appreciation: she asked me, "Dad, can we do a hike together at the end of the summer, like we did last year?" That was the genesis of what became our two-day adventure in the Zealand-Bond range.

Between the two of us it was hard to find a time that would work. We ended up taking Thursday and Friday, just before she returned to school on Saturday. I figured that gave us enough time to discover those mountains I had read so much about here and heard so much about from many of you. I knew I had to see them, and I had to share them with Boulderdash.

After making our way through the construction mess in North Conway

, we headed up the Zealand Road looking forward to a couple pretty nice days. It was pretty cloudy as we parked and put our boots on, though. Then came the rail bed--what a trail! Flat and even for most of the way to Zealand Hut, it allowed us to move right along. We reached the hut in an hour and three minutes, well under book time. At the hut we stopped for a few pictures, some water and a bit of a rest.

Then came the hike up Zeacliff. I can roll pretty well on the flats, but I'm not in good enough condition to make any kind of time on the uphills. Just ask MEB, Abster SherpaK or anyone else who's hiked with me!

So I was huffing and puffing up that rocky, rooty trail, stopping frequently to catch my breath. The little loop to the top of Zeacliff gave us the opportunity to stop for some food and water and a couple photos. Soon we were back on our way, toward Zealand.

After that hill climb, the fairly gradual rise to Zealand was a fine respite. We stopped at the Zealand spur trail, leaving our packs and zipping up to the summit. When I saw the cool summit sign I was disappointed I had left the camera back with the packs. Oh well, next time. Then we headed out to Guyot.

The sky continued to be quite cloudy, the clouds being dark but not really threatening because of the breaks between them. They made for a nice, cool walk in the woods. We reached the Guyot summit, that strange mountain on which the "other" summit always looks higher than the one you're on. The next day on Bond we saw that the northeasterly hump is definitely higher, though not by much.

We headed down toward Guyot campsite, where we met Alex the caretaker and paid our rent for the night. We had brought a tent in case the shelter was full, but we found only one person in it. As it turned out, we made it to the campsite in just a little over book time despite our frequent breaks. Cooking up an early supper, we decided to watch the sunset from West Bond.

(to be continued)

Mad Townie · Sep 12, 2006

Sunset was a treat. We were alone on the open, rocky summit of West Bond, and we watched the sun go down right behind the Lafayette summit. Although it wasn't one of those spectacular technicolor sunsets, it had its own beauty and splendor. We sat there looking around at the Pemi and its protective mountain fortress and talked quietly, sharing the time and place. Truly a special moment for both of us.

We got back to the shelter, stood on the porch, and watched the full moon rise right in front of us. What a treat! A second person had joined us in the shelter, but to my surprise almost all the tentsites were occupied. I hadn't anticipated that many people on a weekday night after Labor Day. Despite the numbers, the campsite was very quiet. Must have been some "serious" hikers, either serious about hiking

or serious about respecting others. It was a fine night for sleeping, not warm but not too cold, either.

Friday morning we arose, had breakfast and packed up. We stashed our packs at the top of the campsite spur trail and took one small day pack with water, jackets and food. Up the Bondcliff trail to Bond we went. Soon we topped out on the third of our four 4Ks for the trip. The Views From The Top were great. Things north of us were pretty clear, but to the south the mountains were very hazy. A cloud blanket hung in Crawford Notch, but we could see over it to the summits of Washington, Clay and Jefferson. It was warm enough that I went shirtless along the ridge trail to Bondcliff.

I had heard so much about this mountain and this hike, and all the superlatives you all used in describing them were accurate! The light was on the east side of the ridge, leaving the western cliffs in pretty deep shadow. Beautiful! We got to the summit of Bondcliff, then looked back and saw the "posing rock." I had to do "the picture", of course!

I thought it would take Boulderdash forever to snap a couple shots, as my knees started to feel more and more like Jello. I found myself thinking what it would be like to stand there on a windy day.

We headed back the way we came, having met a few people on the ridge and the summits. When we got back to our packs we had hiked 3.8 miles before even starting our hike out. It was somewhere around that time that the batteries in my camera died. As a result I didn't have the temptation to hike that extra two tenths to get a shot of the Zealand sign. We hiked for awhile with a through hiker named "Possum" who wasn't much faster than we were on the downhills. Of course when the trail turned uphill her pace didn't change, and she was soon well ahead of us.

The descent, especially down Zeacliff, was a killer. I'm usually pretty good on the downhills, but this one seems to have bigger than usual steps so that you jar your knees with each step. Good thing mine are still pretty good so far! We stopped at the hut again for water then gave it everything we had on the last 2.8 flat miles back to the truck. Interestingly, it took us longer to come down from the campsite than it had to go up to it the day before. Not a lot longer, but I was surprised.

After a fine dinner at the Moat Mountain Brew Pub we drove home, tired but happy and feeling a little extra close to each other. Saturday was the day to take Liz back to school--it wasn't a hard choice for me, though I would have liked to join all of you who did the Flags on the 48.

Times like these come so rarely for a parent. I'm tremendously lucky to have had these moments with my favorite hiking partner. They'll be something to remember when she's off on her own. Who knows, maybe someday she and I will take a hike with HER kids!

Oh yeah, I finally broke down and tried Webshots. I hope you can find our pictures here.

MEB · Sep 13, 2006

Nice report and pictures!! Yes, you are very lucky to have such a great daughter and hiking partner. I could not think of a better way to spend spend the last few days before heading off to college.

-MEB

darren · Sep 13, 2006

Nice TR and pix. The classic bondcliff shots are always nice to see.

- darren

king tut · Sep 13, 2006

Very nice trip report and pictures. One of my favorite hikes was a couple years ago when my dad hiked from rangeley to sugarloaf with me. He has had knee problems since then and can't do the big hikes at this time. It may have been the last big hikes we do together. Enjoy the moments when they are happening, who knows how often they come around.

Doc McPeak · Sep 13, 2006

Thanks for the delightful read, MT. I hope you guys have many more trips like this one ahead.

West Bond for sunset is one of my Whites highlights for sure. We spent the time basking in the Alpenglow, savoring the light dancing off Bond and Bondcliff which we had hiked earlier that day. I was with my oldest friend in the world whom our parents would pass back and forth over the fence between our yards in Brooklyn at one years old. In and out of touch for years, hiking brought us back in to spending more time together. Sharing a sunset atop West Bond together... priceless. I hope she has a great year!