4000 Foot Peaks

Panoramic view from Zealand Cliffs

The next morning began with somewhat of an agonizing decision.  Day two of the hike had been fun but very physically demanding.  Alex and I had performed admirably but one of the options for the day was about three miles longer that the standard hike.  I felt comfortable that we would be able to do it but the thought of slowing up the group was intolerable.  Fortunately two of the faster hikers from our group the day before went off with the fastest trail guide as a separate group and we both knew we could manage with the group going to the Bond Mountains.  So the day began with a 1000 foot climb up to South Twin Peak—what a better way to work off a breakfast?  South Twin offered beautiful 360 degree views and we were amazed when we looked off at Franconia Ridge in the distance just how far we had traveled.  There were chances of showers that afternoon so we made our way to the Bonds as quickly as possible.  The trail getting there was noticeably easier than the ground we traversed the previous day.  It truly was a pleasant walk in the woods.  By mid-morning we had reached the first peak, West Bond, which we slack packed.  Slack packing means to leave behind our packs and climbing with just the essentials—rain jacket and water.  We had been told that the views from the Bonds were incredible—but for us the view was obstructed by fog.  Nonetheless, we had bagged another 4000 foot peak and one member of our group needed only Mt Bond itself to complete all 48 4000 ft peaks in New Hampshire.  We didn’t have far to go to get to Bond and while the view from there was equally cloudy it was exciting to be able to share such a wonderful accomplishment with such a great guy that we had gotten to know in just a few days.  We formed two lines and raised our hiking poles to form a canopy as our compatriot took the final steps to the peak posted by the National Geologic Society.  

Celebrating the 48th on top of Mount Bond

Because of the possibility of rain we descended back into the trees before we had we had a victory lunch which included passing the celebratory bag of potato sticks.  Lunchtime entertainment included an explanation for Arthur from our guide, also a history teacher, about how the Wizard of Oz is an allegory for the Populist movement at the turn of the century.  We loaded up again with Alex in the lead and hiked steadily for a pleasant 1 hour 45 minutes before we stopped again.  Other stops included crossing Mt Guyot, Zealand Peak, and Zealand Cliffs.  Zealand Cliffs overlooks the beautiful Zealand Valley but once again clouds moved in diminishing the view.  We experienced a few rain drops so had to transition into rain mode—pack covers and jackets—but it never really rained.  Today's hike had dramatically increased our “street cred” in the New Hampshire hiking community.  The Bond Mountains are among the most isolated of all the 4000 foot peaks since it usually takes more than a day hike due to their distance from the nearest road.Therefore by boasting the claim, “I’ve climbed the Bonds,” we entered something of a select subgroup. That evening we stayed at Zealand Hut, tired by happy.  One of the leaders packed in potato chips for a treat—delicious.  Zealand had somewhat recently been renovated so the bunk rooms were fairly nice.

 

Since we are novice backpackers and haven't been around the hiking world much, it was interesting to learn more about hiking and backpacking culture.  We are familiar with people attempting to climb all the 14ers in Colorado (peaks over 14,000 ft).  As we have mentioned New Hampshire has the same type of challenge with the 48 4000 ft mountains.  And if that's not ambitious enough one can complete the 4K Grid-- climbing each of the 48 4K peaks in each month of the year.  For example climbing Mt Bond in January, June, September, and December of 2013; March, April, July, and November in 2014; and again in February, May, August, and October of 2015 would complete the Mt Bond portion of the grid and this is repeated for each of the mountains.  (People in New Hampshire are tough and maybe a little crazy too. As of 2011 seventeen people had completed this feat.)  If one is still looking for things to do there are the New England 67 (all the peaks over 4000), New Hampshire's Hundred Highest, the Adirondacks High Peaks (peaks in New York), etc.  Most of our leaders had completed all of these.  One was even working on the 50 states highest points (Actually he's leaving Alaska out since Denali is in a class of its own) so he had been to Kansas' own Mount Sunflower.  For most of these hiking lists patches are available when they are completed and I think there is even an awards ceremony each year for finishing the 48 4K peaks.  Arthur and I have completed 14 of the 48 4,000 ft mountains on the list so it will only take us a few more vacations to New Hampshire to whip out the rest.  Omnia Vincit Amor.