BIGEarl
Well-known member
September 12, 2009: Garfield + Franconia Ridge Traverse
Trails: Mount Garfield Trail (end2end), Garfield Ridge Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail (end2end) Osseo Trail (end2end), Wilderness Trail
Summits: 4K’s = Garfield, Lafayette, Lincoln, Liberty, Flume. Others = N. Lafayette, Truman, and Little Haystack.
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
First: Thanks to Tobit for helping out with a car spot. He was headed for Mount Washington and the FOT48 activities there. JT made the side-trips to Lincoln Woods and the Mount Garfield trailhead on the way to Pinkham Notch to transport Sue and me from our ending location to our start. It was a huge help for the day and greatly appreciated. I hope your day was as good as ours.
We arrived to the trailhead for the Mount Garfield Trail and found no activity at all. There were a couple vehicles parked there and I assumed they must be with people camped at the Garfield Ridge Campsite. In a couple minutes we had our things organized and we were off to see some flags. This day was also Flags on the 48 day in the Whites. Our hike plan included five of the forty-eight four thousand footers and we were sure to see at least a couple flags flying. The forecast wasn’t great but the overcast was predicted to be high – a couple thousand feet above the summits. We expected pretty good views under the cloud layer.
The early hike was on a clear and relatively dry trail. The usual mud along the lower section of the Mount Garfield Trail wasn’t there. The stream crossings were all easy. We were soon on the climb to the Garfield Ridge Trail. This upper section of the Mount Garfield Trail is more of the same: clear and dry. We made good time to the junction with the Garfield Ridge Trail. A short distance before reaching the trails junction a couple guys with big sections of aluminum tubes passed. They were hauling the flag rig to the summit of Garfield. We were starting to get some distance views and it looked like there were more low clouds than forecast. He hit the junction, made the turn, and completed the final short climb to the summit. On Garfield, the conditions were calm but the surrounding summits were generally in the clouds. We were hopeful the conditions would open up a little. After a short visit and a few pictures we set off for Mount Lafayette.
The Garfield Ridge Trail between Garfield and Lafayette is in great shape: the trail is clear and the mud pits are generally dry. It was easy to cover this distance and finish with clean boots. A couple that we first saw on Garfield was also hiking this trail section and we leap-frogged each other several times in the course of the day. This is a very sheltered trail with generally no views until approaching the Skookumchuck Trail junction. As we approached the Skook it was clear the conditions weren’t clear. Lafayette and the rest of Franconia Ridge were in the clouds. Even though we had a view hike with no views the hike was still very enjoyable. We made our way over North Lafayette and finally got a view to the summit area on Lafayette with the flag and big crowd. A number of hikers passed us headed east on the Garfield Ridge Trail and we could see other groups leaving Lafayette on the Greenleaf Trail. Still, there was a large and growing crowd on the summit.
We reached Lafayette, paused to look around, and found no familiar faces. We got a couple summit pictures and decided to continue on our hike and our end2end of the Franconia Ridge Trail.
Leaving Lafayette was slower than usual. The steady stream of hikers approaching from the south had us frequently stepping off the side of the trail while the others passed. By the time we hit Truman the traffic died and we were able to just hike for Lincoln. The last couple tenths approaching Lincoln had an increase in trail traffic and progress slowed down again. On the summit of Lincoln we found a significant crowd but not like the one on Lafayette. Again, no familiar faces – except for the couple we first met on Garfield. We’re still generally headed in the same direction. A few summit pictures and we continued south. While on the summit a very nice woman came over to introduce herself to Sue and me – evidently she enjoys reading about some of our adventures. I feel bad that I can’t remember her name – sorry, (along with my very poor hearing I have a poor memory for names).
On the hike south we made a quick stop to adjust footwear and have a snack. While we were out of the action quite a bit of traffic passed in both directions – including the “couple from Garfield”. Soon we were back in the southbound flow and headed for Little Haystack. Roughly half way there we met the other couple and they asked for directions to the Lafayette Place Campground. They had been backpacking in the area and one of their priorities was a hot shower. They hiked with us to the Falling Waters Trail junction and we said goodbye. They had expressed and interest in going into Lincoln. I suggested they hike with us to Lincoln Woods and we could drop them off in town. After they learned we had another nine miles to go they decided to take the Falling Waters Trail and enjoy the falls on their hike out.
After leaving Little Haystack, the trail traffic died – as expected. The remainder of our hike was quiet with only a few people around the junction with Liberty Spring Trail. We made it to the summit of Mount Liberty just as the last of the crowd was leaving. The flag was down, the people were gone, and everything was back to normal. A couple summit shots and we were off for Mount Flume and our last target of the day.
The trail conditions continued to be a surprise. Completely clear and dry hiking. The trails crews are doing a great job of blowdown control. After leaving Liberty there were no others on the trail – evidently we were the last ones through for the day. We hit the summit of Flume, enjoyed the non-view for a few minutes and were off for the end of the Franconia Ridge Trail and the beginning of the Osseo Trail.
Only 5.6 miles to Lincoln Woods. We made the initial descent without any problems. I was a little surprised since I had removed my heavy mountaineering socks in favor of some light hikers back around Lincoln. I was prepared for some discomfort and expected the mountaineering socks would be needed for my beat-up feet. Nice surprise. We continued the hike across the upper flat, down the ladders, through the switchbacks, and down the Osseo ramp that leads to the Wilderness Trail. On the ramp was the only blowdown we came to for the hike. It was a very large pine tree that came down mostly next to the trail. A small portion of the treetop was on the trail but the trail wasn’t completely blocked and it was easy to pass. Soon after the blowdown we reached the Wilderness Trail junction, made the turn, and cruised the final 1.5 miles to Lincoln Woods. The various stops and trail-traffic only cost us about an hour and we hit Lincoln Woods a little earlier than expected.
It didn’t take long to change to comfortable footwear and pack for the ride south. A while after hitting I-93 Sue made the comment we could have included Galehead in the day - and she was right. Well, I guess I’m slipping. Next time we’ll do better.
Pictures will follow.
Trails: Mount Garfield Trail (end2end), Garfield Ridge Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail (end2end) Osseo Trail (end2end), Wilderness Trail
Summits: 4K’s = Garfield, Lafayette, Lincoln, Liberty, Flume. Others = N. Lafayette, Truman, and Little Haystack.
Hikers: Trail Trotter (Sue) and me
First: Thanks to Tobit for helping out with a car spot. He was headed for Mount Washington and the FOT48 activities there. JT made the side-trips to Lincoln Woods and the Mount Garfield trailhead on the way to Pinkham Notch to transport Sue and me from our ending location to our start. It was a huge help for the day and greatly appreciated. I hope your day was as good as ours.
We arrived to the trailhead for the Mount Garfield Trail and found no activity at all. There were a couple vehicles parked there and I assumed they must be with people camped at the Garfield Ridge Campsite. In a couple minutes we had our things organized and we were off to see some flags. This day was also Flags on the 48 day in the Whites. Our hike plan included five of the forty-eight four thousand footers and we were sure to see at least a couple flags flying. The forecast wasn’t great but the overcast was predicted to be high – a couple thousand feet above the summits. We expected pretty good views under the cloud layer.
The early hike was on a clear and relatively dry trail. The usual mud along the lower section of the Mount Garfield Trail wasn’t there. The stream crossings were all easy. We were soon on the climb to the Garfield Ridge Trail. This upper section of the Mount Garfield Trail is more of the same: clear and dry. We made good time to the junction with the Garfield Ridge Trail. A short distance before reaching the trails junction a couple guys with big sections of aluminum tubes passed. They were hauling the flag rig to the summit of Garfield. We were starting to get some distance views and it looked like there were more low clouds than forecast. He hit the junction, made the turn, and completed the final short climb to the summit. On Garfield, the conditions were calm but the surrounding summits were generally in the clouds. We were hopeful the conditions would open up a little. After a short visit and a few pictures we set off for Mount Lafayette.
The Garfield Ridge Trail between Garfield and Lafayette is in great shape: the trail is clear and the mud pits are generally dry. It was easy to cover this distance and finish with clean boots. A couple that we first saw on Garfield was also hiking this trail section and we leap-frogged each other several times in the course of the day. This is a very sheltered trail with generally no views until approaching the Skookumchuck Trail junction. As we approached the Skook it was clear the conditions weren’t clear. Lafayette and the rest of Franconia Ridge were in the clouds. Even though we had a view hike with no views the hike was still very enjoyable. We made our way over North Lafayette and finally got a view to the summit area on Lafayette with the flag and big crowd. A number of hikers passed us headed east on the Garfield Ridge Trail and we could see other groups leaving Lafayette on the Greenleaf Trail. Still, there was a large and growing crowd on the summit.
We reached Lafayette, paused to look around, and found no familiar faces. We got a couple summit pictures and decided to continue on our hike and our end2end of the Franconia Ridge Trail.
Leaving Lafayette was slower than usual. The steady stream of hikers approaching from the south had us frequently stepping off the side of the trail while the others passed. By the time we hit Truman the traffic died and we were able to just hike for Lincoln. The last couple tenths approaching Lincoln had an increase in trail traffic and progress slowed down again. On the summit of Lincoln we found a significant crowd but not like the one on Lafayette. Again, no familiar faces – except for the couple we first met on Garfield. We’re still generally headed in the same direction. A few summit pictures and we continued south. While on the summit a very nice woman came over to introduce herself to Sue and me – evidently she enjoys reading about some of our adventures. I feel bad that I can’t remember her name – sorry, (along with my very poor hearing I have a poor memory for names).
On the hike south we made a quick stop to adjust footwear and have a snack. While we were out of the action quite a bit of traffic passed in both directions – including the “couple from Garfield”. Soon we were back in the southbound flow and headed for Little Haystack. Roughly half way there we met the other couple and they asked for directions to the Lafayette Place Campground. They had been backpacking in the area and one of their priorities was a hot shower. They hiked with us to the Falling Waters Trail junction and we said goodbye. They had expressed and interest in going into Lincoln. I suggested they hike with us to Lincoln Woods and we could drop them off in town. After they learned we had another nine miles to go they decided to take the Falling Waters Trail and enjoy the falls on their hike out.
After leaving Little Haystack, the trail traffic died – as expected. The remainder of our hike was quiet with only a few people around the junction with Liberty Spring Trail. We made it to the summit of Mount Liberty just as the last of the crowd was leaving. The flag was down, the people were gone, and everything was back to normal. A couple summit shots and we were off for Mount Flume and our last target of the day.
The trail conditions continued to be a surprise. Completely clear and dry hiking. The trails crews are doing a great job of blowdown control. After leaving Liberty there were no others on the trail – evidently we were the last ones through for the day. We hit the summit of Flume, enjoyed the non-view for a few minutes and were off for the end of the Franconia Ridge Trail and the beginning of the Osseo Trail.
Only 5.6 miles to Lincoln Woods. We made the initial descent without any problems. I was a little surprised since I had removed my heavy mountaineering socks in favor of some light hikers back around Lincoln. I was prepared for some discomfort and expected the mountaineering socks would be needed for my beat-up feet. Nice surprise. We continued the hike across the upper flat, down the ladders, through the switchbacks, and down the Osseo ramp that leads to the Wilderness Trail. On the ramp was the only blowdown we came to for the hike. It was a very large pine tree that came down mostly next to the trail. A small portion of the treetop was on the trail but the trail wasn’t completely blocked and it was easy to pass. Soon after the blowdown we reached the Wilderness Trail junction, made the turn, and cruised the final 1.5 miles to Lincoln Woods. The various stops and trail-traffic only cost us about an hour and we hit Lincoln Woods a little earlier than expected.
It didn’t take long to change to comfortable footwear and pack for the ride south. A while after hitting I-93 Sue made the comment we could have included Galehead in the day - and she was right. Well, I guess I’m slipping. Next time we’ll do better.
Pictures will follow.
