Jeff&Henry
New member
Route: Lincoln Woods Trail > Franconia Brook Trail > Lincoln Brook Trail > Owl's Head Path
Full photo library
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Brief comment about Owl's Head (for those who have yet to do it):
Owl's head gets a bad rap. Yes, it's long. Yes, it'll take a full day, but 80% of it is an easy stroll through remote wilderness. You follow some wonderful rivers (with a few lively crossings, so do you research ahead of time), scramble up a rock slide (we thought most like the south slide off the Tripyramids), and you'll enjoy some unique views of the Franconia Ridge.
See my photo library if you don't believe me! Just do it!
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The day had finally come to take-down the dreaded Owl's Head. We, like many hikers, had slowly pushed Owl's head down lower and lower on our list; for us it would be 42. Accordingly, we found ourselves driving up 93N at 6:30 AM with a beautiful fog obscuring the mountain valleys, but revealing the mountain ridges and a perfect blue sky.
We felt like we had been blessed by the hiking Gods; 48 degrees and low humidity. And we would begin wearing layers! We got started at about 7:30 AM.
So many hikes thrust you immediately into sweat producing, heart pounding climbs. Owl's Head eases you in. The first hour or so (all the way to the Franconia Brook trail) is a delightfully calming stroll along a wide, old rail bed. We both found (1) the hypnotic repetition of stepping over the old rail ties, and (2) the constant rush and gurgling sounds of the East Branch Pemi river, a nice way to begin the day and warm up. The Lincoln Woods Trail, as well as the East Branch Pemi River still reveal the scars of Irene; we would see her work throughout the hike.
At about an hour and ten minutes we left the big rail bed and turned into the woods onto Franconia Brook Trail. After about another hour and some relatively easy stream crossings, we were at the intersection of the Lincoln Brook Trail. Our pace was good, as we covered almost 4.7 miles in two hours. The next 3.4 miles would take about the same amount of time.
Shortly after joining LBT we encountered our first (of two) big river crossings. Thankfully, the river was running rather low, but we had to remove our boots, which felt FANTASTIC. And thanks to the advice from some other hikers, we kept our flip-flops on for the brief 15 minute stroll to the next big crossing of Lincoln Brook. It was great to give our feet a break and let them cool down.
At about the four hour mark, we found ourselves at the intersection with the Owl's Head Path. Time for a break, some lunch and a full hydrating. The real work was finally about to begin. It was also at this point that we paired up with Philip - who would be our hiking partner up and down the slide, and for much of the way back. Hope you got your campsite Philip!
Note: there's a small cairn in the middle of the Lincoln Brook Trail, but that was about it. We built it up a bit and "lined" the start of the Owl's Head Path with some deadfall trees. Personally, without the cairn, I could have easily walked past the trail.
On any other hike, the Owl's Head slide wouldn't seem so bad - we thought it was very similar to the south slide on the Tripyramids. But when you're four hours in, it feels a harder, save for the WONDERFUL views to your back as you're climbing. On the slide, you'll also enjoy some of the first sun in quite some time.
The summit of Owl's Head is a bit misleading. There's a clearing just before the "old summit" which could easily be mistaken as the summit - a party of four that we saw that it was. The "old" summit has a very small rock pile (cairn would be too generous) which has an arrow pointing towards the actual summit, about .2 through a maze of heard paths. I bet you won't go back the same path you came out. The real or "new" summit has a large, hard to miss cairn. And although the summit is wooded, you can easily peak through the trees in some spots to lovely views of Franconia Ridge.
We summited in about 5 hours 15 minutes. And then begin the hike back to the car. ;-) The great thing about this hike - no shortage of water. At the bottom of the slide, we filtered water and all enjoy the nice cold mountain water drink. We'd earned it.
We arrived back at the car at 6:10 PM. nearly 11 hours later. But it was a wonderful day in the Whites. Not only did we knock off the dreaded Owl's Head, we enjoyed it.
And that makes 42. Six more to go...
Just do it!
-------
Full photo library
Best photos of the day:
Autumn leaves?
Washout
Bog
Mushroom 1
Mushroom 2
Don't know what this is...but cool looking
River crossing
-----------------
JW
42/48
[email protected]
PS: Thanks to all those who answered some questions I posted prior the hike. You input was very much appreciated.
Full photo library
-----
Brief comment about Owl's Head (for those who have yet to do it):
Owl's head gets a bad rap. Yes, it's long. Yes, it'll take a full day, but 80% of it is an easy stroll through remote wilderness. You follow some wonderful rivers (with a few lively crossings, so do you research ahead of time), scramble up a rock slide (we thought most like the south slide off the Tripyramids), and you'll enjoy some unique views of the Franconia Ridge.
See my photo library if you don't believe me! Just do it!
------
The day had finally come to take-down the dreaded Owl's Head. We, like many hikers, had slowly pushed Owl's head down lower and lower on our list; for us it would be 42. Accordingly, we found ourselves driving up 93N at 6:30 AM with a beautiful fog obscuring the mountain valleys, but revealing the mountain ridges and a perfect blue sky.
We felt like we had been blessed by the hiking Gods; 48 degrees and low humidity. And we would begin wearing layers! We got started at about 7:30 AM.
So many hikes thrust you immediately into sweat producing, heart pounding climbs. Owl's Head eases you in. The first hour or so (all the way to the Franconia Brook trail) is a delightfully calming stroll along a wide, old rail bed. We both found (1) the hypnotic repetition of stepping over the old rail ties, and (2) the constant rush and gurgling sounds of the East Branch Pemi river, a nice way to begin the day and warm up. The Lincoln Woods Trail, as well as the East Branch Pemi River still reveal the scars of Irene; we would see her work throughout the hike.
At about an hour and ten minutes we left the big rail bed and turned into the woods onto Franconia Brook Trail. After about another hour and some relatively easy stream crossings, we were at the intersection of the Lincoln Brook Trail. Our pace was good, as we covered almost 4.7 miles in two hours. The next 3.4 miles would take about the same amount of time.
Shortly after joining LBT we encountered our first (of two) big river crossings. Thankfully, the river was running rather low, but we had to remove our boots, which felt FANTASTIC. And thanks to the advice from some other hikers, we kept our flip-flops on for the brief 15 minute stroll to the next big crossing of Lincoln Brook. It was great to give our feet a break and let them cool down.
At about the four hour mark, we found ourselves at the intersection with the Owl's Head Path. Time for a break, some lunch and a full hydrating. The real work was finally about to begin. It was also at this point that we paired up with Philip - who would be our hiking partner up and down the slide, and for much of the way back. Hope you got your campsite Philip!
Note: there's a small cairn in the middle of the Lincoln Brook Trail, but that was about it. We built it up a bit and "lined" the start of the Owl's Head Path with some deadfall trees. Personally, without the cairn, I could have easily walked past the trail.
On any other hike, the Owl's Head slide wouldn't seem so bad - we thought it was very similar to the south slide on the Tripyramids. But when you're four hours in, it feels a harder, save for the WONDERFUL views to your back as you're climbing. On the slide, you'll also enjoy some of the first sun in quite some time.
The summit of Owl's Head is a bit misleading. There's a clearing just before the "old summit" which could easily be mistaken as the summit - a party of four that we saw that it was. The "old" summit has a very small rock pile (cairn would be too generous) which has an arrow pointing towards the actual summit, about .2 through a maze of heard paths. I bet you won't go back the same path you came out. The real or "new" summit has a large, hard to miss cairn. And although the summit is wooded, you can easily peak through the trees in some spots to lovely views of Franconia Ridge.
We summited in about 5 hours 15 minutes. And then begin the hike back to the car. ;-) The great thing about this hike - no shortage of water. At the bottom of the slide, we filtered water and all enjoy the nice cold mountain water drink. We'd earned it.
We arrived back at the car at 6:10 PM. nearly 11 hours later. But it was a wonderful day in the Whites. Not only did we knock off the dreaded Owl's Head, we enjoyed it.
And that makes 42. Six more to go...
Just do it!
-------
Full photo library
Best photos of the day:
Autumn leaves?
Washout
Bog
Mushroom 1
Mushroom 2
Don't know what this is...but cool looking
River crossing
-----------------
JW
42/48
[email protected]
PS: Thanks to all those who answered some questions I posted prior the hike. You input was very much appreciated.
Last edited:
I always looked at it as a dreadfully long and boring hike; but seems not so. Looking forward to our attempt in the future.
