Garfield Ridge Campsite 1831.4 to Zealand Falls Hut 1841.2 (9.8 miles, 815.8 total miles)
It was a windy evening up on the ridge, but there was no rain. I must have woken up at the right time in my sleep cycle because I was surprisingly alert and ready to go when my alarm went off early.
I could see a vibrant sunrise past the trees beyond Catchup’s tent through my open vestibule while I packed up. It had been the first night I’d set up my rain fly in weeks.
Most people were up and packed earlier than me. After collecting water I was on the trail at 6:20 with 10.2 miles to go. The day looked pretty chill, as hikers like to say for a low change in elevation day, and I wanted to get to Zealand Falls Hut as early as possible.
The weather was calling for storms starting around noon, and I thought I could be at the hut by then. I used to hike a lot of days where we’d done 10 miles by lunch, so I just channeled that energy.
Right after the shelter water source and around the bend, the trail turned into hiking down an actual waterfall. I’m guessing it isn’t always that extreme and was from the last couple days of rain, but it was very tricky first thing in the morning.
That took a while to get down, with Sunshine a little behind me. Once I cleared that obstacle, I found myself taking too big of a step down a rock into a controlled fall, and yanked out my earbuds with my knee.
My earbuds pulled painfully out of my ears, and they lay on the ground with my phone in the damp earth. Dismayed, I saw that my left earbud had been broken. I could put it back together, but it was cracked and the sound quality was very poor.
The buttons didn’t work anymore, either. I did remembered that there is a Walmart in Gorham, which should have Apple accessories. I can replace my earbuds and get another USB-C charger for my phone. Someone had made off with mine a few days back.
After the descent off Garfield, there were little ups and downs to Galehead Hut. The trail was relentlessly rocky by this point. Still somehow less frustrating than PA rocks, but not easy on the joints.
I passed a couple hikers, and saw Halfway disappearing into the trees ahead. He had stayed in the shelter where I’d camped the night before.
A few miles after my day began, I arrived at Galehead Hut at 7:45AM. My plan had been to see if could get leftover breakfast or buy breakfast there l, but I was a little too early.
I thought I might have been, and would need to wait another 20 minutes to get food. Since I wanted to avoid hiking in the rain on slick wet rocks, I decided to move on.
Coastie, Halfway, Clean Machine and one or two other hikers got there as well in the meantime. Much discussion ensued over where everyone was going for the night. It felt really good to have a hut reservation for the evening.
I hadn’t gotten to stay in the bunkhouse in any of the huts before, and it was nice to know I wouldn’t have to pack up a wet tent in the morning.
The huts are expensive, so a lot of hikers talk about the elitism of them, and things can end up a little political. I’m know there is profit involved, but I can at least enjoy the convenience of them having potable water, food, and bathrooms, and the gift of a stay for the evening.
We had a very steep .8 climb up South Twin Mountain. The grading looked over 1500 feet per mile in some places, so I was a little intimidated. I ate a caffeinated Clif bar and hiked up the mountain, chatting with Coastie.
He pulled a little ahead of me, and hiking up felt like doing hundreds of weighted one legged squats over and over, without stopping. I kept some gas in the tank, and wasn’t expecting it when we hit the top of the ridge.
There wasn’t more than one or two hand over hand climbing spots, so it went quickly and easily, though I was red in the face with a pounding heart at the top. I was getting stronger, though, I could feel it.
Just as Wizard had predicted, the NOBOs were slowing down, and I was speeding up. Especially with all the rest I’d gotten, after 800 miles I was really getting into my stride.
After the summit, with amazing views of Garfield, the Kinsmans, and Franconia Ridge from the other side of the valley, I passed Coastie and stayed ahead of Halfway. Back in CT, Halfway had left me in the dust pace-wise.
I zoomed down the trail, feeling the caffeine take effect. I listened to a comedy podcast, and cackled like a weirdo in the forest alone.
The terrain got beautiful and easy, and I cruised along, over boardwalks and through rock fields, pine and cedar trees on either side of me. The sun was still shining bright.
After 2 miles, the side of the mountain opened up into an unexpected and very pretty view of a bald a little way ahead. We were continuing along the side of the valley, and I came across a young hiker while crossing a rock field.
They gave me the name Beacon, and asked where the next water source was, and I said it was in a few miles. I offered a liter of my water, and Coastie caught up for a moment while Beacon filtered it.
I knew I’d been carrying too much water the last couple days, but it had come in handy for other hikers, so I thought it was a good thing to keep doing. It made me feel good to help others.
Halfway caught up as we were leaving, and I hurried off down the trail, alone again after a minute or two. A little over a mile of steady downhill brought me to the spur trail for Zealand Mountain.
Trash and his friend were hanging out there waiting for their companions, who were right behind me. It was .1 of a flat side trail to the peak, and it was one of New Hampshire’s 4Ks.
I hadn’t done any peak bagging last time I was in the Whites, and had skipped a few already, but I moseyed over to a clearing in the branches with a summit sign. The whole excursion only took a few minutes.
It was 10:06 when I departed with just under 3 miles to go to the hut. I was making excellent time, and had been aiming for noon originally, but thought I could maybe maybe it in an hour.
I passed the side trail to Zeacliff Pond, and found a hiker stopped up ahead on the trail. She was a young woman named Snoopy, going NOBO. She’d seen an aggressive grouse on trail and needed someone to help her scare it off.
We marched down the trail, but after a while she said it must have disappeared. I hiked with her a little bit, and found out she had been a caretaker for the Green Mountain Club in Vermont last year.
She took a side trail to peek at a view, and I continued on, downhill toward the hut. My momentum had slowed, and I felt myself getting a little tired. I’d booked it all day, and told myself to slow down and be careful.
I crossed the beginning of Zealand Falls, and made my way to the hut, which was right on trail. There were a few hikers there already, the ones who had gotten up extra early to backtrack up trail and watch sunrise on Mt Garfield.
I checked in, and was the first for the day. I was shown which bunk room was ours, and found a little room in the very back with four beds. Coasty was getting a bunk, too, and we put our stuff on all four beds.
There was also a little side room right off ours with room for all our stinky gear. It couldn’t have been more perfect, and it was fun being the fast one for a change and getting to set stuff up for my group.
The Cult had taught me how to be a much more considerate hiker, and take care of the people around me and my trail family. I appreciated that immensely.
I had two cups of lemonade, and found bagels, chocolate with caramel, and a packet of tuna in the small hiker box, happy to supplement my food bag.
The waterfall continued on past the hut, and a little after Halfway and Snoopy arrived, I joined Coastie and the others on the flats rocks in the sun next to the falls with a gorgeous view into another little valley across the way.
After hanging out and roasting in the sun a while, I got my gear and headed into the mini bunk room. I had arrived at the hut at 11:10AM, maintaining an over 2MPH pace through a full day in the Whites.
I was very proud of my hiking, but I was certainly feeling tired by then. I laid down for a while, and Catchup and Sunshine arrived around 12-12:30.
I napped for a couple hours, dozing on and off and listening to the sounds of conversation from the others staying at the hut.
It rained for a bit around 2PM, then cleared back up, so I went back to the waterfall to hang out with Sunshine, Catchup, and Coastie.
It was a wonderful afternoon of hanging out and spending time by the falls with the sun shining, soaking our feet and lower legs in the small pools.
Other hikers came and went, and we made conversation with them. By 6:00, we were all famished and couldn’t be more ready for dinner.
Dinner was served family style, and included salad, bread and butter, lentil soup, lasagna, and an amazing apple sauce cake. We all ate until we were absolutely nauseous with how full we were.
After dinner, we sat on the porch for a while, and watched as it began raining again. A faint rainbow came out right over the mountains, and we admired it from the hut and the waterfall. It was another purely magical White Mountains moment.
As darkness fell, Sunshine, Catchup, and I sat on the porch bench, Catchup reading his Kindle, and I watching some of the first episode of Stranger Things. We watched as the stars came out.
It was so kind of Furps to sponsor us for a hut stay, and it ended up being the perfect day and the perfect hut. It was nice to have that experience, and especially the food that came with the hut stay. I was loving life.