Firewarden Trail And Lend-A-Hand Trail

[JB]

For those who have done this loop, do you prefer clockwise or counterclockwise?

Thanks.

 

[erugs]

I think three different trails are listed here. The Firewardens Trail would not be part of a loop (unless you are like Tim). Other than that, I have done it counterclockwise, knowing that the two ends are not at the same location (but are off the same road).

 

[JB]

I've seen a few websites that have a GPS track that shows start and finish at the same spot on Haystack Road. I'm not sure what the rules are on this forum for attaching links or I would.

Thanks!

 

[erugs]

I may be confused.

Are you asking about a Loop Hike of Mt. Hale? If you were to do the Old Firewarden Trail to hale, then down Lend a hand to the hut, you'd then have to go agreat long distance over Zealand and the Twins to com back out on the Haystack Road. Is that your intention?

 

[JB]

The loop of Twins, Zealand, Hale using the Firewarden's trail.

 

[erugs]

I would do it counter.

 

[DayTrip]

I wound up not doing the full loop I had planned a few weeks ago so I went up Hale from Zealand Road and then down Lend-A-Hand to Hut and then up Twinway, down Zeacliff Trail and some other meanderings. I still can't say I have a clear preference for the loop. Some considerations:

-Depending on the weather/water levels at the 3rd crossing of the Little River you may want to do the crossing early on to avoid any issues coming back later in the day if storms may bring rising water levels or the water is already high. I don't like to leave a tricky river crossing late in the day where fatigue or darkness might increase the odds of a mishap.
-The climb up to North Twin is a more rugged and more steep compared to Hale. If you like getting the vertical out of the way early I'd go that way first. Hale's vertical is similar but the footing is much better and it doesn't seem nearly as strenuous because you aren't stepping up significant amounts onto big rocks, etc.
-The col between Guyot and Zealand is very rough, climbs more than people realize given a quick glance at the map and has a quite steep section just beyond spur to Zealand summit. I generally prefer descending that section and doing the short 300' climb up to Zealand Spur versus the other way around.
-The views on this loop are definitely in favor of the Twins side of the trails IMO. You have Zeacliff outlook and some nice ledge areas heading back to Hale but after that it's pretty vanilla for a lot of miles back to the car. Lend A Hand had some minor views, wetlands and some pretty forest but it is not as dramatic as the summits of the Twins and that great outlook before you drop down into the trees heading back down. I guess weather would affect this too. If you're expecting clouds later in day hitting Twins early to get views might make more sense.

Wish I could be more definitive one way or the other. After outlining some of the above points I think I'd do Hale first. So I guess what I'm saying is flip a coin.

 

[JB]

This is very helpful. My hiking partner and I have done Zealand, Guyot, and Bonds, so I've seen some of the route. We are thinking about doing this hike over a few days.

Thanks again.

 

[DayTrip]

This is very helpful. My hiking partner and I have done Zealand, Guyot, and Bonds, so I've seen some of the route. We are thinking about doing this hike over a few days.

Thanks again.

Oh. My original post was for a day hike so I looked at it from that perspective. I think you'll be fine either direction if you're breaking it up over more than one day. You really only have a few miles of climb in either direction so it should be a comfortable and enjoyable multi-day hike.

 

[blacknblue]

This is very helpful. My hiking partner and I have done Zealand, Guyot, and Bonds, so I've seen some of the route. We are thinking about doing this hike over a few days.

Thanks again.

Another possibility is to add the Willey Range to this loop, as in:

Ascend FW Trail to Hale, down to Zealand Hut, then over to Tom, Field, and Willey, camping around Ethan Pond. Then over to Mount Zealand via the Hut or Zeacliff, onward to Mount Guyot, tack on the Bonds if you like, then over the Twins to complete the loop. I did this last summer and had a splendid time. Makes for a great 2-3 days in whatever direction you prefer.