1HappyHiker
Well-known member
In a manner of speaking, I suppose North Twin is the ultimate PEAK above the “Peak Above the Nubble”!
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of the Trip Report, Steve & I want to thank the trail-breakers over the past few days who have done such a fantastic job of breaking out the trail to North Twin. All the way from 7 Dwarfs to the North Twin summit, the snowshoe track was in perfect condition.
So anyway, my hiking partner Steve & I did an “out & back” trek to North Twin on 03-Feb-2009. We were uncertain if we were going to get any views since the weather forecast and the sky above were all a bit “iffy”. But, we decided to go for it, and hope for the best.
After leaving the 7 Dwarfs, we walked a short segment of the snowmobile trail to hook-up with the trail that runs along the old railroad bed, which we followed to the North Twin trailhead. We then proceeded up the North Twin Trail. There were no tracks leading across the Little River at the 1st crossing. So, we opted to skip the first 2 crossings by taking the bootleg trail along the east bank of the Little River and proceeding directly to the 3rd crossing point. (It’s sort of like the Monopoly game of passing “GO” and collecting $200, except we didn’t collect $200!).
The trek up to the summit was overall uneventful. The 3rd crossing of the Little River was a solid ice-bridge. So, no problems there! Near the summit, there was some minor drifting that partially obscured the broken trail, but not enough so that the trail couldn’t be followed. The entire summit area was a winter wonderland.
Below is a photo taken just shortly before breaking out above tree-line.
As we approached the first viewpoints, we were delighted to find that we had VIEWS . . . and in all directions!
Plus, as an added bonus, there was very little wind. However, my thermometer did read 9 degrees. So, if it had been windy it would have been uncomfortable. And, we certainly would not have been able to enjoy the leisurely 40 minutes that we spent on the summit area eating lunch and snapping pictures.
Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the summit views, including my backpack!
As seen in the photo below, my pack is lounging on a rock admiring the fine view toward Owl’s Head, Garfield, and the Franconia Range.
Although the summit of Carrigain was somewhat shrouded by a passing snow shower in the photo below, the Carrigain Notch area was (as always) a stunning and awesome sight!
And, it’s always a nice view gazing toward the Willey Range and over the lip of the Zealand Notch.
And then, here’s the obligatory photo of the Presidential Range as viewed from North Twin.
I won’t bore you any longer with a continuing parade of other photos such as the view toward South Twin, or the northward views toward Pilot & Pliny ranges. You’ve seen them all before in other reports. So, I’ll stop with just one composite shot below which shows a few other miscellaneous shots taken along the way.
BOTTOM-LINE TO ALL THIS: What a terrific day in the Whites with awesome summit views! And, the day was made even more enjoyable thanks to the perfect snowshoe track laid by all those trail-breakers who preceded us over the past few days.
1HappyHiker
P.S. Cath, we thought you might surprise us by popping out on the summit after having whacked your way up the old trail that used to lead to North Twin from the Gale River Trail.
Before getting into the nitty-gritty of the Trip Report, Steve & I want to thank the trail-breakers over the past few days who have done such a fantastic job of breaking out the trail to North Twin. All the way from 7 Dwarfs to the North Twin summit, the snowshoe track was in perfect condition.
So anyway, my hiking partner Steve & I did an “out & back” trek to North Twin on 03-Feb-2009. We were uncertain if we were going to get any views since the weather forecast and the sky above were all a bit “iffy”. But, we decided to go for it, and hope for the best.
After leaving the 7 Dwarfs, we walked a short segment of the snowmobile trail to hook-up with the trail that runs along the old railroad bed, which we followed to the North Twin trailhead. We then proceeded up the North Twin Trail. There were no tracks leading across the Little River at the 1st crossing. So, we opted to skip the first 2 crossings by taking the bootleg trail along the east bank of the Little River and proceeding directly to the 3rd crossing point. (It’s sort of like the Monopoly game of passing “GO” and collecting $200, except we didn’t collect $200!).
The trek up to the summit was overall uneventful. The 3rd crossing of the Little River was a solid ice-bridge. So, no problems there! Near the summit, there was some minor drifting that partially obscured the broken trail, but not enough so that the trail couldn’t be followed. The entire summit area was a winter wonderland.
Below is a photo taken just shortly before breaking out above tree-line.
As we approached the first viewpoints, we were delighted to find that we had VIEWS . . . and in all directions!
Plus, as an added bonus, there was very little wind. However, my thermometer did read 9 degrees. So, if it had been windy it would have been uncomfortable. And, we certainly would not have been able to enjoy the leisurely 40 minutes that we spent on the summit area eating lunch and snapping pictures.Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the summit views, including my backpack!
As seen in the photo below, my pack is lounging on a rock admiring the fine view toward Owl’s Head, Garfield, and the Franconia Range.
Although the summit of Carrigain was somewhat shrouded by a passing snow shower in the photo below, the Carrigain Notch area was (as always) a stunning and awesome sight!
And, it’s always a nice view gazing toward the Willey Range and over the lip of the Zealand Notch.
And then, here’s the obligatory photo of the Presidential Range as viewed from North Twin.
I won’t bore you any longer with a continuing parade of other photos such as the view toward South Twin, or the northward views toward Pilot & Pliny ranges. You’ve seen them all before in other reports. So, I’ll stop with just one composite shot below which shows a few other miscellaneous shots taken along the way.
BOTTOM-LINE TO ALL THIS: What a terrific day in the Whites with awesome summit views! And, the day was made even more enjoyable thanks to the perfect snowshoe track laid by all those trail-breakers who preceded us over the past few days.
1HappyHiker
P.S. Cath, we thought you might surprise us by popping out on the summit after having whacked your way up the old trail that used to lead to North Twin from the Gale River Trail.
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