Total Distance: 20.9 miles Vertical Gain: 5500'
Well, I knew this was going to be one big undertaking, so I enlisted the help of a friend of ours, Jack Shirley, to accompany Thomas and I on this trek. This trip was one that warranted having 3 people vs 2. We knew we'd be trying some big mileage, just didn't know we'd be getting full winter conditions up high. Planning to overnight, the packs grew by quite a bit, also. And away we go............
Here's Thomas and Jack as we're leaving the Zealand Falls trailhead at 8:50 am.
The opening 2.5 miles are relatively flat, as we see our first dusting of the year on one of the many bridges enroute to Zealand Falls Hut.
We are definitely feeling the weight on our backs as we arrive at Zealand Falls and the hut. Thomas, taking a break at the lower falls.
Now the real climbing begins. The Twinway gains roughly 1000' of vertical in 1.2 miles, plateauing out at Zeacliff. It was quite cool on Sat., with a stiff breeze all around.
Here's Thomas, looking every bit the mountain man.
And coming out on the point at Zeacliff.
The cliffs of Whitewall Mtn. with Mt. Willey behind them.
After taking a snack break, and donning traction aides, we continue up at a more moderate angletowards the top of Zealand Mtn. Finally, the spur sign.
We follow the trail to a little hollow with a small cairn. No views to admire, but #8 in the books at 1:30 pm. Summit pic for Thomas and I.
And Jack.
Continuing on, we drop sharply from Zealand and begin a gradual ascent to Mt. Guyot, an unofficial 4Ker. As we crest Guyot, we get hit with a wind like you read about. Our estimates were a constant 50 mph, and gusting to 60-70 mph. It was hard to keep your balance, and we were all blown off the trail a few times.But we were also struck by the beauty of being in the high alpine with full winter conditions in effect.
Looking NW towards South Twin Mtn.
And continuing towards the Bonds on the way to the Guyot campsite.
Once we made it to the cover of the trees, we basically put our heads down and bulled our way to the campsite. Arriving at 3:45pm, we were spent. It took us almost 7 hours to reach the shelter, and we were concerned about daylight remaining and the wind. After resting and discussing options, we decided to attempt West Bond.
Thomas on the summit of West Bond.
And Mt. Bond.
This gave us some perspective on what we were going to try in the morning. With that knowledge, we headed back to camp for a well deserved rest and some hot food. Yeah!
One thing that made the night a bit more pleasant was a tarp the others had brought. We were able to (roughly) seal up the front of the open air shelter with said tarp, and the temp actually stayed steady in the 29-32F range most of the night. I must say I was proud of Thomas, who had never done any cold weather camping before. He said more than once, "This is so cool". We also had a mouse or two running around the shelter. They seemed to know the place better than we did.
Our abobe for the night.
Thomas and I on top, with Bondcliff's rocky ridgeline in the background.
As we drop off the backside, we get a closer view of the ridge we have to traverse over.
I didn't spend a lot of time on pics between the summits. All of the Bond summits have spectacular views, so most pics are from there. Thomas on Bondcliff, with Franconia Ridge behind him.
Jack and I on Top. Who needs a shave more?
And continuing towards the Bonds on the way to the Guyot campsite.
Once we made it to the cover of the trees, we basically put our heads down and bulled our way to the campsite. Arriving at 3:45pm, we were spent. It took us almost 7 hours to reach the shelter, and we were concerned about daylight remaining and the wind. After resting and discussing options, we decided to attempt West Bond.
From the shelter, it would be roughly a 2 mile out and back, without the weight of the big packs on our backs. Jack and I assembled 2 light packs, and the 3 of us headed out, feeling better after the rest. Just below the summit of West Bond, we start to get views through the treetops.
This is looking back at the summit snowfields of Guyot, with a very white Mt. Washington peeking through in the distance.
Thomas on the summit of West Bond.
Looking over to Bondcliff.
And Mt. Bond.
This gave us some perspective on what we were going to try in the morning. With that knowledge, we headed back to camp for a well deserved rest and some hot food. Yeah!
We made the shelter by 6pm, just as the sun was setting, and we were sharing the smallish shelter with 4 other people. While eating, we chatted for a while, but as darkness and cold settled in, we decided to, also.
Thomas, Jack, and I had the lower level, with the other 4 taking the upper level. Here we are getting nestled in.
One thing that made the night a bit more pleasant was a tarp the others had brought. We were able to (roughly) seal up the front of the open air shelter with said tarp, and the temp actually stayed steady in the 29-32F range most of the night. I must say I was proud of Thomas, who had never done any cold weather camping before. He said more than once, "This is so cool". We also had a mouse or two running around the shelter. They seemed to know the place better than we did.
All in all, we slept OK. I was cramping in my legs off and on, and Jack was cold most of the night. Thomas slept peacefully with a slight grin on his face. Go figure.
And night turns to morning. Sunrise at the Guyot campsite.
Our abobe for the night.
We packed up camp, and headed back up to the Bondcliff trail, where we dropped our big packs and again went with 2 light packs. Our plan was to summit Bond, and continue down to Bondcliff, where, after summiting, we would reverse direction and re-hike up Mt. Bond and down to the campsite spur.
Once on the trail, we noticed immediately that it was warmer than yesterday, with much less wind overall. Getting to Mt. Bond through the trees was a beautiful walk, and we were on top before we knew it. Thomas on Mt. Bond, with Mt. Washington in the background.
Thomas and I on top, with Bondcliff's rocky ridgeline in the background.
As we drop off the backside, we get a closer view of the ridge we have to traverse over.
I didn't spend a lot of time on pics between the summits. All of the Bond summits have spectacular views, so most pics are from there. Thomas on Bondcliff, with Franconia Ridge behind him.
Jack and I on Top. Who needs a shave more?
And now for the money shots!!! Thomas, with the scars of West Bond behind him.
And yours truly, with same.
With Bondcliff under our belts, we started back on the long journey home. Thomas caught Jack and I coming off the summit.
And Thomas, heading back up Mt. Bond.
We climbed up and over Mt. Bond again, and made it back to our big packs around 11:15am. Time for lunch. This little loop was roughly 4 miles and took 3 hours. Not fast, but savouring the views. Now it was time to load up and try to beat the 7 hours it took us to get to the shelter. We decided on the way back to take summit photos on Mt. Guyot. At 4580', it's high enough, but doesn't drop enough vertically before going up towards Bond. Hence, it's not on the list; an unofficial 4Ker.
We climbed up and over Mt. Bond again, and made it back to our big packs around 11:15am. Time for lunch. This little loop was roughly 4 miles and took 3 hours. Not fast, but savouring the views. Now it was time to load up and try to beat the 7 hours it took us to get to the shelter. We decided on the way back to take summit photos on Mt. Guyot. At 4580', it's high enough, but doesn't drop enough vertically before going up towards Bond. Hence, it's not on the list; an unofficial 4Ker.
Top of Guyot for Jack...
And Thomas.
From Guyot, we go back over Zealand Mtn. towards Zeacliff. On the way down, this rock formation struck us as very prehistoric looking.
And Thomas.
From Guyot, we go back over Zealand Mtn. towards Zeacliff. On the way down, this rock formation struck us as very prehistoric looking.
Finally, we make it to the Zealand Falls Hut. Thomas taking a well deserved break on a bench.
We made it down at 5pm. Campsite to lot was 5.5 hours, but it was 9 hours hiking for the day, same as yesterday.Let me state again how big a weekend it was. 21 miles, 18 hours of hiking, with 5500' of vertical gain. WWOOWW!!
From the hut, it's 2.5 flat miles back to the road. We're tired, hungry, thirsty, and oddly excited. I think this video says it all.
We made it down at 5pm. Campsite to lot was 5.5 hours, but it was 9 hours hiking for the day, same as yesterday.Let me state again how big a weekend it was. 21 miles, 18 hours of hiking, with 5500' of vertical gain. WWOOWW!!
So many thoughts on this hike.
I'm so proud of Thomas for doing this. There were alot of unknowns for him, and he carried a much bigger load than he was used to. We were all hurting at times, but chins were held high. He was a real trooper along with being a great hiker, and a great son!
A very big thank you to Jack Shirley for taking on the challenge and helping us out. Jack, we loved having you with us, and hope you can join us again.
The Bonds are one of the most remote spots in the White Mountains. There is no sign of civilization from any of the summits. You are looking at and into pure wilderness. Quite a feeling to be out there in it. I hope Thomas can look back on this trip as fondly as I do.
Thomas has asked to take a little break from hiking. Don't blame him as we're both sore after this. But the real reason is that winter is back in the mountains, and he'd rather spend his weekends snowboarding than hiking. (So would I. Skiing, that is. :-) He's promised he'll do more backcountry with me this winter, and maybe a day or two will be peaks on the list, like Moosilauke or Washington. Can't wait to see what we do next. "Til next time.................
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