Mt. Hale
Where: Mt. Hale (4054'), NH
When: 5/28/2024
With: Solo
My original plan for this NH48 4K peak was an overnight loop - Haystack Road parking, North Twin trail, Fire Warden's trail, Lend-a-Hand trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur, North Twin trail. It would have tagged Hale, filled in an section of the Twinway that I missed when I took the Zeacliif trail in 1991, and red-lined the North Twin Spur.
At some point earlier this year my plans changed and I decided to claim Hale on a day trip, following a different loop. I can always do the overnight loop another time. The stars aligned and both my schedule and the weather forecasts were clear, so off I went. Out the door around 5:15, and at the Hale Brook Trail trail three hours later. Big storms had come through overnight, and a few lingering showers were around for my ride north, but there were also patches of blue sky.
Two other cars were in the trail head parking lot when I arrived. I grabbed my pack and was on my way quickly. The overnight storms had soaked the forest, and both the temperatures and the humidity began to rise. I shed a layer and laughed at the winter coat it joined in my pack. As usual, I brought a lot of stuff I didn't need or use, but better safe than sorry, right?
About halfway up the 2.2 mile trail I spotted another hiker ahead of me. She was moving slowly, and turned when she heard me, but I kept stopping to take pictures so it was a while before I caught up to her. She said this was her first hike in six months, following knee surgery (or perhaps replacement?). I asked if she was working on the NH48 and she said she'd already completed The Grid, and was now working on a new list (60 over 60?).
We chatted a bit more, then separated as I put my head down and pushed up the trail. Soon I hit the first of a series of switchbacks. There wound up being five of them, each getting me closer to the peak. The trail then changed character in a way I'd seen before (shorter trees, different trail surface), indicating I was nearly at the top. A number of false alarms made it seem endless, but at last it was obvious I was on the final stretch. I met another hiker coming down, a man from Connecticut, who assured me that I was indeed just steps away from the summit. His count of 4K peaks was in the teens, but like me he was taking his time with the list. He'd hoped to see/feed some Canada (Gray) Jays at the summit but none appeared (I mentioned that someone had reported them there three days earlier).
We parted and a few moments later I was alone in the summit area. It was about an hour and a half after I'd started. No views, but there was a huge rock cairn marking the summit and the remains of supports for a long-gone fire tower. I spent 10 minutes at the summit, wandering about, taking pictures and looking for a summit medallion (no luck). After a quick look down the Fire Warden's trail (best maintained unmaintained trail in the Whites!), I found the top of the 2.7 miles long Lend-A-Hand trail and began my descent.
Lend-A-Hand is now my new favorite trail! I had it all to myself, and it had a lot to offer. Steep drops, meadows, bogs, quiet forests, running streams (sometime running down the trail!), and occasional views of the surroundings. One view in particular, of Carrigain Notch was especially nice.
The water on the trail was annoying sometimes, but plank bridges began appearing and were most welcome. Eventually a sign appeared on a tree announcing I was entering the zone around the Zealand Falls AMC Hut and suddenly I was at the Twinway, with the hut just 0.1 miles away. The Twinway is part of the Appalachian Trail and I'd been on it before, but not on this section (the bit I missed in 1991).
To the right, the trail crossed Zealand Brook then continued toward Zealand Mt. and the Twins. To the left was the hut. I made a short detour to check out the water roaring over the rocks, then turned toward the hut. I began running into trail maintenance crews - the first crew was doing rock work, then there were two other workers and a group of new workers being shown the work sites. Further along was another large group. I'm guessing this was the start of the summer trail work season.
I got down to the hut, dropped my pack, and went inside. I'd found a knit cap along the Lend-A-Hand trail and figured I'd bring it to the hut. I'd visited this hut once before, during a winter ski backpacking trip with Chip to Desolation Shelter. The place was empty, but a worker appeared when I called out and took the cap to add to the hut's lost & found collection. I told him I'd post it on the Lost & Found in the White Mountains Facebook group.
The next part of the journey was a short but very steep & rocky drop down to the Zealand Trail. Part way down a sign pointed to Zealand Falls, so time for another side trip, and a very worthwhile detour it was. The falls were spectacular, roaring along with the extra water from the previous night's storms.
I enjoyed the falls a bit before continuing down the trail. Very quickly I arrived at the junction of the Twinway, Ethan Pond, and Zealand trails. I took the latter path, which wound past expansive views of the mountains above Zealand Pond. It then became a fairly smooth, straight path, following one of J.E. Henry's former lumber railroad beds. Easy, pleasant walking, with lots of company. The 2.8 mile walk to the falls and the hut is a popular hike, and I saw a variety of folks. First was a couple, with the woman asking how much further it was to the hut. There were two large (6-8) groups of older hikers (including an all-woman group), and assorted family groups, couples, and the occasional single hiker.
After what seemed like a fairly long walk (actually just under an hour), I arrived at the top of Zealand Road, where the Zealand Trail hikers had parked. My destination was a mile further down the road, the Hale Brook trail parking lot where I'd started. A steady pace dispensed with that mile quickly and I arrived back at the car five hours after I started. Three hours later, I pulled into the driveway.
The numbers:
- #38 of 48 NH 4K peaks
- 8.7 miles of trail
- 2300' of elevation gain
- 5 hours total time (lots of stops for photos, etc.), 4:27 moving time
- AMC White Mt. Guide time estimate for the loop is 6:10
