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The Twins and Galehead

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On the partly cloudy morning of July 24, 2014, Kathy Maddock, Rob Bradlee, Hunter, and I, joined Granite Grannies Steve Flanders, Lili, and Kathy Richmond, to climb the Twin Mountains via the North Twin Trail.  Steve, Kathy R, and I arrived at the trailhead along with Margot, while Kathy M. and Rob met us there.  Margot left us, drove to the beginning of the Gale River Trail, and joined Frank Gould to hike to the AMC’s Galehead Hut hoping to meet the rest of us there for lunch.  In September of 1992, Margot and I had hiked over the Twins with some friends, then down to the hut, and out the Gale River Trail in a single day.  Although this circuit, including the short climb up Galehead Mountain, is 12 miles long, I felt I could easily replicate our previous trip.  Margot decided to be less ambitious and eschew the journey over the Twins.

As we started up the North Twin Trail, I explained that the AMC guidebook cautions hikers that the three crossings of the Little River can be quite difficult and that the first two of them can be avoided by following a well-beaten path on the east bank of the river.  We quickly came to the first river crossing, thought it risky, found the path described in the guidebook, and made our way along the alternative route.  Proceeding along the river bank on what appeared to be the sort of trail that fishermen create, we soon came to the second river crossing and resumed walking on the official trail.  In about a half mile, we arrived at the third river crossing and knew we had to cross the river this time.

Each of us tried to find a spot on the river with enough boulders to enable us to hop across the rushing water without falling in.  Steve found a likely place, got across, and everyone else followed except me.  I felt I couldn’t make one of the necessary jumps in the middle of the river, so I wandered upstream for a better crossing spot.  I finally found one, made it across, and then realized I would have to climb up the steep bank into the woods or risk falling into the river as I tried to get back downstream to the trail crossing.  I knew the trail stayed fairly close to the river at this point, so I struggled uphill through some dense woods and finally emerged on the trail to find the others wondering what had happened to me.  I assured them I knew exactly what I was doing, insisting that Hunter had led me the entire way.

We now began the steady climb up North Twin.  I took the lead, but soon became winded at the pace I was setting and asked someone else to go first.  Steve obliged and quickly had us moving at a sustainable pace.  As we neared the summit, a heavy cloud cover appeared, and we wondered what had happened to the prediction for a partly cloudy day.  Emerging from the dense fir forest, we scrambled up the open ledge at the terminus of the North Twin Trail, took the short side path over the true summit of North Twin, and stopped briefly at the sweeping western outlook.  The cloud cover, just about at our elevation,  obscured the peaks to the west, but sunshine was plentiful to the north and in the valleys below.

Retracing our steps, we returned to the open ledge and headed toward South Twin on the North Twin Spur. Clouds enveloped us as we climbed to the summit of South Twin, so we paused for a few minutes and decided to retreat to lower ground.  Descending the Twinway toward Galehead Hut was slow and somewhat difficult due to wet and slippery footing on this very steep trail.  We quickly found ourselves below the clouds and could see the hut at the base of Galehead Mountain.  Hiking cautiously down the rocky trail, we soon arrived at the junction with the Garfield Ridge and Frost Trails and hiked the short distance up the Frost Trail to the hut.  Margot greeted us, asked us what took us so long, said she had lunch over an hour ago, and that Frank had turned around before reaching the hut in order to get home in time for a meeting.  I pointed out that we had hiked almost two miles further and climbed about 1400 additional vertical feet than she by going over the Twins.

We ate our lunch and started up the Frost Trail to the summit of Galehead Mountain.  Margot decided not to accompany us, insisting that since she would be slower than any of us, she would instead start down the Garfield Ridge Trail.  We quickly covered the half mile to the top of Galehead, gazed briefly through broken clouds at the Pemigewasset Wilderness below, and retreated back to the hut.  Stopping only momentarily, we began the descent down the Garfield Ridge and Gale River Trails.  Kathy M. and Rob took off at a fast pace, and about two tenths of a mile from the hut, I realized I left my hiking pole on the front porch of the hut.  Steve once again volunteered to retrieve it, while Kathy R. continued on, and I moseyed along until Steve returned with my pole.  Steve and I found Kathy R. waiting for us at the junction with the Gale River Trail, but she soon disappeared ahead of us as we continued our descent.

I thought Steve and I might catch up with Margot on the long way out on the Gale River Trail, but we never saw any of the rest of our crew until we reached the very end of the trail.  As we hiked down, Hunter would periodically disappear for a period of five or ten minutes, then would reappear running up the trail.  Kathy R. told us later that several times Hunter came up behind her while she was hiking by herself, appear to check her out, and then head back up the trail.  I guess he just wanted to make sure the three of us stayed together on the same trail.  Lili was perfectly content to stay with Steve and would have  none of Hunter’s foolishness.

As Steve and I exited the woods at the trailhead, we found Kathy R. lying in a grassy spot, but no Margot, Rob, Kathy M, or our car.  Kathy R. explained that Margot was driving Rob and Kathy M. back to their car at the North Twin Trail parking area and would be back to pick us up shortly.  The sun was out now, and we quickly forgot about all the clouds we encountered earlier, but, alas, it was too late to stop for my coveted milkshake on the way home.

I was annoyed at myself for leaving my hiking pole behind for the second straight hike and having Steve go chasing back to retrieve it.  I guess I simply am not used to carrying anything in my hands while hiking after all these years in the mountains.  Backpacks are one thing, but poles are another, and I would just as soon not have a backpack if possible.  I do prefer a single pole, rather than two, and, as my balance does not seem as good as it was before my knees were replaced, one pole is certainly helpful.  Surprisingly,  I don’t find a pole very helpful when hopping across streams, since it seems to shorten the length of my jump, causing me to lose my forward momentum and often leaving me teetering on a boulder midstream.  Steve was quick to point this out to me as I slipped off a rock into a shallow brook during our descent of the Gale River Trail.  I do hope using a pole, especially on descents, will prevent me from any more tumbles such as the one I took on the Avalon Trail earlier in the year.

 

 



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