Zealand Falls – Ethan Pond Trail – Ethan Pond Shelter to Crawford Notch – Appalachian Trail NH

Alpha-Gal and M2 planned this as a 4 day hike from Franconia Notch to Crawford Notch using the Hut system for overnights. Day 4 is from Zealand Falls and Hut, past Ethan Pond Shelter, and ends at the parking at Crawford notch. This was a much easier hike than previous days and we made better than expected time to the parking lot. We made a peaceful lunch stop at Ethan Pond Shelter and checked out Ethan Pond. There was some nice trail magic at the Crawford notch parking that “Peach”, “Barrel”, and a couple others had set up. This roving magic is known as “@ThePeachVortex” and some photos can be found over on Instagram.

Over the past couple years I’ve been using a trail guide put out by “Attroll” over at Whiteblaze.com called “WhiteBlaze Pages”. It’s a very informative and detailed guidebook that has community support. I like it a lot. It’s very affordable and can be found over at: https://www.whiteblazepages.com/store/
Go check it out!
WhiteBlaze Forums: https://whiteblaze.net/forum/content.php

Thank you “Attroll” for providing us a ride back to our vehicle at the end of this hike. That was very unexpected and definitely appreciated! 

Miles hiked for the day: 8.8
Total miles hiked for the weekend: 32.6

Day 1 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_baKye0GDnI
Day 2 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4vLxbHBB-4
Day 3 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5OipR2HlSk

Galehead Hut to Zealand Hut and Falls – Mount Guyot – Zealand Mountain – Appalachian Trail NH

Alpha-Gal and M2 planned this as a 4 day hike from Franconia Notch to Crawford Notch using the Hut system for overnights. Day 3 is from Galehead Hut up South Twin Mountain, Mount Guyot, Zealand Mountain, and then down to Zealand Falls and Hut. Alpha-Gal and M2 made a quick stop for lunch at Zealand Mountain and Alpha-Gal bagged the peak. While eating, M2 made a new friend. This day was much easier than the others and we made good time to our destination. It was nice to soak our feet in the cool falls at the end of the day.

Miles hiked for the day: 7.1
Total miles hiked for the weekend: 32.6

Day 1 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_baKye0GDnI
Day 2 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4vLxbHBB-4
Day 4 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px4aLPiv-LU

Mount Garfield via Greenleaf Hut and Mount Lafayette – Galehead Hut – Appalachian Trail NH

Alpha-Gal and M2 planned this as a 4 day hike from Franconia Notch to Crawford Notch using the Hut system for overnights. Day 2 is from the Greenleaf Hut back up Mount Lafayette and then down the backside to the North Peak of Mount Lafayette and down through a steep mossy area across Garfield Ridge before climbing back to Mount Garfield, The Garfield Ridge Shelter and Spring, ending at Galehead Hut. This hike passes over the summits of Mount Lafayette, the North Peak of Mount Lafayette, and Mount Garfield. Alpha-Gal and M2 made a quick stop for lunch near Garfield Pond at a nondescript log near a tent site at that location. The hike down off Franconia Ridge and several places up and down Mount Garfield are extraordinarily steep – much more so than we ever imagined. We proceeded very slowly. The last “flat” section before the hut is not really flat and is riddled with precarious boulders and mini scrambles, slowing us way down and eventually making us late for dinner.

As we descended down from Franconia Ridge, we met another section hiker named “Revisit”. We hiked together for the remainder of our section.

Day 1 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_baKye0GDnI
Day 3 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5OipR2HlSk
Day 4 video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px4aLPiv-LU

Miles hiked for the day: 8.8
Total miles hiked for the weekend: 32.6

Franconia Ridge – Liberty Springs Trail – Greenleaf Hut – Mount Lafayette – Appalachian Trail NH

Alpha-Gal and M2 planned this as a 4 day hike from Franconia Notch to Crawford Notch using the Hut system for overnights. Day 1 is from the Liberty Springs Trailhead up to the Franconia Ridge Trail and back down to Greenleaf Hut. This hike passes over the summits of Little Haystack Mountain, Mount Lincoln, and Mount Lafayette. Alpha-Gal and M2 made a quick stop for lunch at the Liberty Springs Tentsite and checked out the spring and privy and then proceeded the rest of the way up to the ridge. The climb up Little Haystack was more difficult than anticipated and took much longer than planned. After crossing the ridge, summiting Mount Lafayette, and descending down to Greenleaf Hut, Alpha-Gal and M2 enjoyed a good dinner. @17:24 I point out Mount Washington but labeled it as Garfield. It was so clear and it seemed so close.

At the start of the hike, micey, from Camp_micey YouTube channel, stopped by to see Alpha-Gal and M2 on their way off…she had just completed a longer section through the White Mountains, including this part.

Camp_micey: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-h-DEwJwnY

Miles hiked for the day: 8.8
Total miles hiked for the weekend: 32.6

Day 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4vLxbHBB-4
Day 3: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5OipR2HlSk
Day 4: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=px4aLPiv-LU

This was recorded using a Canon M50 and iPhone 6s.