North Twin
Where: North Twin Mountain
When: 9/19/2019
With: Solo
I was out the door just after 5AM and headed north. It was a clear, cold morning, with brilliant sunshine alternating with pockets of fog in the valleys of New Hampshire. I landed at the trail head at the end of Haystack Road three hours later, noting that nearly all of the camping spots along the access road were in use. I thought I heard music as I pulled into the parking area, but all was quiet when I got out of the car. One of the other six cars already parked there had signs of activity (and a small dog), so I figured that was the source of the music. The windows were steamed up, so I decided to ask no questions! I packed up quickly and got on the trail.
It was quite chilly when I started, but I knew I'd warm up quickly. The path was a no-turn, no-decision 4.3 mile route to the summit. It followed an old lumber railroad bed at first, along the Little River, making for easy walking. After a bit it came to the first of three crossings of the river. These crossing were notoriously tough in high water, but the river was very low and rock-hopping would have been easy. Still, I elected to follow a herd path to stay on the east side of the river up to the next crossing. It's a popular choice, and the path was easy to walk.
A short distance along the herd path I saw paths heading up the slope and a hatchet mark on a tree, marking the start of another unmaintained but popular trail, the Fire Warden's trail to Mount Hale. A route for another day. I continued along to where the official North Twin trail recrossed, then up to the third crossing, where I made my way across the river.
The trail began to climb more, following a feeder stream. About an hour into my walk I noticed a path heading off toward the stream and looked to see a nice campsite with a fire ring and water access. Noted for future reference.
The trail continued to climb more seriously. I started taking rest breaks, but mostly I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. I'd look up the trail, pick a landmark (rock, tree, etc.), walk until I got to it, then repeated the process. It was tough going, and I had no views of the summit to help me gauge my progress. Still, I managed to appreciate the area as I walked. At one point I looked around to see I was in a beautiful white birch forest and I stopped just to marvel at it.
I began to see some bits of blue sky through the trees and thought I might be getting close to the top. It turned out to be the first of a series of "almost there" moments. The trail would turn and begin slabbing across the slope, something I've seen on other trails as they approached the summit, then it would turn again and head straight up. At another spot, I looked up and saw nothing but sky above a small rocky knob, but when I rounded it, expecting to find a summit marker, the trail led off and continued up the slope.
It began to get a bit tiresome, and I was tired as well. I knew I was close, and checked my watch to see I was 10 minutes away from two hours into my walk. It seemed reasonable to finish in that time, so I kept pushing on. Finally, the trail leveled off, then made a short scramble up some rocks to come out into the open, with a magnificent sweeping view to the east and north (including Mount Washington). But wait. No summit sign, and the trail continued along a ridge. I looked along its route and saw another rise in the distance. Ugh!
Fortunately, the walk to that rise was smooth and practically level, and a short few minutes later I was at the summit of North Twin. I missed my two hour goal by 15 minutes, but I'd made it. I got a few pictures of the summit signs and cairn, then followed a side path to an outlook, with spectacular views to the south and west. Here, I finally dropped my pack and took a rest (and an early lunch break).
I'd left open the option of continuing on another mile or so to revisit South Twin (and redline the North Twin Spur trail), but I was pretty gassed from my climb. My 2:15 time was an hour and a half faster than the AMC White Mountain Guidebook estimated, so I guess I'd been moving along pretty fast. I quickly decided to skip that additional walk and just enjoyed the views from the outlook. Using binoculars, I was able to make out a figure at the summit of South Twin, the first person I'd seen all day.
I stayed at the outlook a while, then began my return journey. I stopped at the other outlook briefly to take pictures and explore. Yet another small path led to a tiny bivy site in the brush. Emergency protection from a storm perhaps, or a neat place for summit camping.
Since I was descending, I brought out my hiking poles (good for stability on downhills, and they take pressure off my thighs and knees), then left the summit and started down the rocky trail. A few minutes later I encountered a young man and his German Shepherd on their way up. He noted my Hopkinton ball cap and said he'd met someone else wearing one in the area a few years earlier during a winter hike in a raging storm. He said he was planning to go over to South Twin and then back. He seemed to be a frequent visitor to the area.
A few minutes more walking brought me to a second encounter, this time an older woman with a small Jack Russell terrier. The dog had a harness with a handle on the back, so she could lift him up taller steps. She said she'd seen me at the trailhead while she was making coffee. Ah! The steamed-up car. She had a slight accent - Irish, I thought - and I found later (when I looked at her car's license plate) that she was from Quebec. She said she'd been doing hikes all week, apparently sleeping in her car at trail heads. She was considering hiking up & over both Twins, then descending down the Gale River trail. She wondered how far it was from that trail head along the road back to her car in the parking area, and what her chances were for hitchhiking.
We parted, and I walked a good ways further before having my third encounter with another hiker. A young man with a large overnight pack, who noted my ballcap and asked, "Which Hopkinton?" When I said it was Massachusetts, he said he'd been born there, but had moved away. He was heading in for a several days of hiking and camping, with a number of possible routes and destinations, but no set plan.
After that, I had the trail to myself for a while. Since the river was easily crossed, I decided to follow the official trail on my return, making all three crossings. The section I'd bypassed on my way up was a pleasant level walk along the old lumber railroad bed. I made the final crossing and had my final encounter with another walker, an older gentleman with hiking poles and a tube from a hydration bladder coming out of his day pack.
From there it was an uneventful walk back to the parking lot. I was surprised when I arrived to find the hike down had taken almost exactly the same amount of time as the climb, 2:15. I figured it would go much faster since I'd have the assistance of gravity. I took a few final pictures, tossed my gear in the car, changed my footwear, then began the drive home. Another three hour ride, landing right at 4PM.
More photos
When: 9/19/2019
With: Solo
I've summited South Twin Mountain twice, in 1985 during a Pemi Loop and in 1999 during a semi-Pemi. North Twin was just a one mile walk away on the North Twin Spur trail, but both times I passed on the journey. Now that I'm working on completing my NH 48 4K list, those decisions gave me an excuse for a day trip to claim North Twin.
I was out the door just after 5AM and headed north. It was a clear, cold morning, with brilliant sunshine alternating with pockets of fog in the valleys of New Hampshire. I landed at the trail head at the end of Haystack Road three hours later, noting that nearly all of the camping spots along the access road were in use. I thought I heard music as I pulled into the parking area, but all was quiet when I got out of the car. One of the other six cars already parked there had signs of activity (and a small dog), so I figured that was the source of the music. The windows were steamed up, so I decided to ask no questions! I packed up quickly and got on the trail.
It was quite chilly when I started, but I knew I'd warm up quickly. The path was a no-turn, no-decision 4.3 mile route to the summit. It followed an old lumber railroad bed at first, along the Little River, making for easy walking. After a bit it came to the first of three crossings of the river. These crossing were notoriously tough in high water, but the river was very low and rock-hopping would have been easy. Still, I elected to follow a herd path to stay on the east side of the river up to the next crossing. It's a popular choice, and the path was easy to walk.
A short distance along the herd path I saw paths heading up the slope and a hatchet mark on a tree, marking the start of another unmaintained but popular trail, the Fire Warden's trail to Mount Hale. A route for another day. I continued along to where the official North Twin trail recrossed, then up to the third crossing, where I made my way across the river.
The trail began to climb more, following a feeder stream. About an hour into my walk I noticed a path heading off toward the stream and looked to see a nice campsite with a fire ring and water access. Noted for future reference.
The trail continued to climb more seriously. I started taking rest breaks, but mostly I just kept putting one foot in front of the other. I'd look up the trail, pick a landmark (rock, tree, etc.), walk until I got to it, then repeated the process. It was tough going, and I had no views of the summit to help me gauge my progress. Still, I managed to appreciate the area as I walked. At one point I looked around to see I was in a beautiful white birch forest and I stopped just to marvel at it.
I began to see some bits of blue sky through the trees and thought I might be getting close to the top. It turned out to be the first of a series of "almost there" moments. The trail would turn and begin slabbing across the slope, something I've seen on other trails as they approached the summit, then it would turn again and head straight up. At another spot, I looked up and saw nothing but sky above a small rocky knob, but when I rounded it, expecting to find a summit marker, the trail led off and continued up the slope.
It began to get a bit tiresome, and I was tired as well. I knew I was close, and checked my watch to see I was 10 minutes away from two hours into my walk. It seemed reasonable to finish in that time, so I kept pushing on. Finally, the trail leveled off, then made a short scramble up some rocks to come out into the open, with a magnificent sweeping view to the east and north (including Mount Washington). But wait. No summit sign, and the trail continued along a ridge. I looked along its route and saw another rise in the distance. Ugh!
Fortunately, the walk to that rise was smooth and practically level, and a short few minutes later I was at the summit of North Twin. I missed my two hour goal by 15 minutes, but I'd made it. I got a few pictures of the summit signs and cairn, then followed a side path to an outlook, with spectacular views to the south and west. Here, I finally dropped my pack and took a rest (and an early lunch break).
I'd left open the option of continuing on another mile or so to revisit South Twin (and redline the North Twin Spur trail), but I was pretty gassed from my climb. My 2:15 time was an hour and a half faster than the AMC White Mountain Guidebook estimated, so I guess I'd been moving along pretty fast. I quickly decided to skip that additional walk and just enjoyed the views from the outlook. Using binoculars, I was able to make out a figure at the summit of South Twin, the first person I'd seen all day.
I stayed at the outlook a while, then began my return journey. I stopped at the other outlook briefly to take pictures and explore. Yet another small path led to a tiny bivy site in the brush. Emergency protection from a storm perhaps, or a neat place for summit camping.
Since I was descending, I brought out my hiking poles (good for stability on downhills, and they take pressure off my thighs and knees), then left the summit and started down the rocky trail. A few minutes later I encountered a young man and his German Shepherd on their way up. He noted my Hopkinton ball cap and said he'd met someone else wearing one in the area a few years earlier during a winter hike in a raging storm. He said he was planning to go over to South Twin and then back. He seemed to be a frequent visitor to the area.
A few minutes more walking brought me to a second encounter, this time an older woman with a small Jack Russell terrier. The dog had a harness with a handle on the back, so she could lift him up taller steps. She said she'd seen me at the trailhead while she was making coffee. Ah! The steamed-up car. She had a slight accent - Irish, I thought - and I found later (when I looked at her car's license plate) that she was from Quebec. She said she'd been doing hikes all week, apparently sleeping in her car at trail heads. She was considering hiking up & over both Twins, then descending down the Gale River trail. She wondered how far it was from that trail head along the road back to her car in the parking area, and what her chances were for hitchhiking.
We parted, and I walked a good ways further before having my third encounter with another hiker. A young man with a large overnight pack, who noted my ballcap and asked, "Which Hopkinton?" When I said it was Massachusetts, he said he'd been born there, but had moved away. He was heading in for a several days of hiking and camping, with a number of possible routes and destinations, but no set plan.
After that, I had the trail to myself for a while. Since the river was easily crossed, I decided to follow the official trail on my return, making all three crossings. The section I'd bypassed on my way up was a pleasant level walk along the old lumber railroad bed. I made the final crossing and had my final encounter with another walker, an older gentleman with hiking poles and a tube from a hydration bladder coming out of his day pack.
From there it was an uneventful walk back to the parking lot. I was surprised when I arrived to find the hike down had taken almost exactly the same amount of time as the climb, 2:15. I figured it would go much faster since I'd have the assistance of gravity. I took a few final pictures, tossed my gear in the car, changed my footwear, then began the drive home. Another three hour ride, landing right at 4PM.
More photos
#22 of the NH48 (North Twin)
