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Ski
Hiking Trail Conditions Report
Peaks
Peaks North Twin Mountain, South Twin Mountain, Galehead Mountain, NH
Trails
Trails: Herd path, North Twin Trail, North Twin Spur, Twinway, Frost Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Gale River Trail, Gale River Road
Date of Hike
Date of Hike: Thursday, February 26, 2015
Parking/Access Road Notes
Parking/Access Road Notes: I think we should have taken the bushwhack at the very end of Little River road, not off to the left; it went all over the place. 
Surface Conditions
Surface Conditions: Snow - Unpacked Powder, Snow - Drifts 
Recommended Equipment
Recommended Equipment: Snowshoes 
Water Crossing Notes
Water Crossing Notes: Fully snow bridged. Part of the trail goes up the middle of the river. 
Trail Maintenance Notes
Trail Maintenance Notes: Branches in the face since you are walking on top of 4-5 feet of snow. My pack was full of fir needles. 
Dog-Related Notes
Dog-Related Notes: None today 
Bugs
Bugs: Zero  
Lost and Found
Lost and Found: I dropped a brand new pair of blue and pink liner gloves as I approached the ridge line on North Twin. Please let me know if you find them. 
 
Comments
Comments: I had heard about the winter access from Little River Road and decided to see if the bushwhack was packed out. I followed a set of tracks to the left of the end of the road that meandered all over the place and then rejoined a more established track just before
Haystack Road. Upon further investigation I think the real path starts at the very end of the road. That might have saved some time.

The North Twin Trail was well-packed by skiers for a mile or two. The track avoids the two major crossings by staying to the left of the Little River. The official trail on the other side hadn't seen much use.

As the trail started to climb we were packing out a few inches of powder that increased as we approached the ridge. From just below North Twin to the summit of South Twin there was major drifting that made for slow going and tricky route-finding. Follow the blue blazes, and when in doubt, go straight. It was cold up there but luckily almost no wind. The ridge is much more exposed in winter thanks to the deep snow. We lucked out with beautiful views, but I imagine it would be tricky on a snowy/windy day.

We broke out the Twinway down South Twin to the junction with the hut through deep powder; I'm glad we were going down and not up. There was one little uphill stretch that took about 10 minutes to go about 10 feet. Thankfully we found the trail well-packed from the hut to Galehead and back down the Gale River trail (kudos to those who did the work earlier this week!). We were tempted to try for Garfield - there was a single snowshoe track covered by a few inches of powder - but the approaching darkness, falling temperatures, and uncertainty of trail conditions made it safer to stroll down the packed trail in the moonlight.

38 down, 10 to go for my winter 48!

 
Name
Name: Liz 
E-Mail
E-Mail: lizwyman at yahoo 
Date Submitted
Date Submitted: 2015-02-27 
Link
Link: https:// 
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