I did the others in 2014 and 2015. I have been thinking about this for the past year (I did Owl's Head 11 months ago), so let's get going!
Wendy will be joining me for the first 2.7 miles - a nice (easy) hike from the Zealand Trail parking lot up to Zealand Falls!! (along the right side of the map:)
I will then give Wendy a hug-and-a-kiss - she will head back to the car, and I will continue up past Zealand Falls Hut to Twinway Trail and "bag some peaks" in the Pemigewasset Wilderness!
It was a beautiful evening Thursday June 9 - our 37th Wedding Anniversary!!
Wendy and I had a nice dinner-by-the-Pemigewasset-River at The Country Cow in Campton, NH, and spent the night at the Day's Inn there. An early 7 AM breakfast at the Sunny Day Diner in Lincoln:
The Zealand Trail is a nice trail:
past pretty streams
and a very nice beaver pond
We had some rain this past week, so the Falls were running nicely:
(aren't we matchy-matchy in our red fleeces)
Zealand Trail connects with Twinway, which crosses the river, heading south. After crossing the river, the trail "goes up for a while" in forest. It is beautiful when it breaks out:
I headed down the side-loop for a View. Um, not much of a "View":
I did have a wonderful time at Zealand Pond:
Made my way up and over to the Zealand summit:
Keep hiking, and the sky clears (somewhat) to see Mount Guyot:
Mount Guyot is not an official 4000-footer because there is not enough up-and-down between it and the surround peaks. But (rumor has it) it has great views!
It is nice hiking through the high-ridge-woods:
I took the .5 mile side trail to West Bond - quite a group up there:
windy - foggy - no view.
I was down to 17% battery, so I plugged in my extender - I did something wrong, so it died at 10 miles right at Mount Bond:
Since Wendy picked me up at Lincoln Woods down on the Kancamagus Highway, and the only way to get there is over Mount Bond and Bondcliff, these photos will have to do:
There are a number of blogs out there with descriptions (and pictures) of Mount Bond/Bondcliff, and I agree with their experiences. The clouds started clearing as I went from Mount Bond to Bondcliff, and the trail up to Bondcliff is above the treeline, so when the views come, they are REALLY COOL!! I do want to go back someday.
Um, when I lose battery power, I also lose the time. With 5 miles to go, 2 guys coming up told me it was 5:25, so I really booked it down to Lincoln Woods to meet Wendy at our scheduled 6:45. I figured I was late, but the Rangers told me it was only 6:05!!! (so the 2 guys were off by an hour - 4:25, not 5:25). Bring a watch next time (and figure out the battery-extender)
Wendy was in the lot at 6:25, burgers at the bar at Black Mtn Burgers, and home by 9:30 - WOW - Thank You God for a GREAT DAY! 20 miles in 9 1/2 hours!
Shameless Plug: if you enjoy this blog, you may like my other one about Art Museums and National Parks (on May 2, 2016 I finished a 4-day trip to NJ-PA-VA-DC)
hyperlink: dixonheadingwest
http://dixonheadingwest.blogspot.com/
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