Mount Garfield - 4,500'
Hike Statistics
Total Distance: 25.5 miles (with Galehead Mountain, South Twin Mountain, North Twin Mountain, and Owl’s Head Mountain)
Elevation Gain: 7,300 feet
Hiking Time: 2 Days
Difficulty: Difficult
Season: Summer
Hiking this peak in winter? Click here!
Hike date: 06/29/2019-06/30/2019
Description: Mount Garfield’s rocky and bare summit offers hikers a 360 degree panoramic view of the surrounding Franconia Ridge and the valleys. If you approach the summit from the way we did (coming from Galehead Mountain), be prepared for a steep and rocky climb to the summit! The remains of an old building can be found at the top. Using the below route, you will have the opportunity to enjoy panoramic summit views, hike up a waterfall (literally), and visit Gafield Ridge Tentsite.
Trails Used: Ascend via North Twin Trail to North Twin, then take North Twin Spur to South Twin. Next, take the Twinway to the Galehead Hut and then the Frost Trail to Galehead Mountain. Retrace your steps back to the Hut then follow the Garfield Ridge Trail to the summit of Mount Garfield. If doing this trip as an overnight, retrace your steps on Garfield Ridge Trail until you get to the Franconia Brook Trail, which takes you to 13 Falls Tentsite. Take Lincoln Brook Trail to Owl’s Head Path to the summit of Owl’s Head. Descend Owl’s Head using the Owl’s Head Path or Brutus Bushwhack. Continue following Lincoln Brook Trail south where you can take the Black Pond Bushwhack to the Black Pond Trail to the Lincoln Woods Trail back to the car. Of course, if not doing this big traverse, other routes can be used for these mountains, which are explained below!
Trail Summary: As a part of an overnight backpacking trip, we did North Twin, South Twin, Galehead, and Garfield on Saturday and then Owl’s Head on Sunday. We spent the night in the backcountry, staying at the 13 Falls Tentsite. We really recommend this route as it’s a fun way to get a bunch of peaks and do a not-so-typical route for these peaks! Note that the route we will describe is a traverse, so you will need to have two cars (one for each trailhead) or use some sort of shuttle service. Of course, you can hike the mountains individually too, which we will also provide information on.
To learn about the Twins, read on from this point.
To jump to the part about Galehead, click here.
To jump to the part about Garfield, click here.
To jump to the part about Owl’s Head, click here.
We drove up late on Friday night and camped on Haystack Road (which has a number of campsites right along the road) so that we could wake up early the next morning and be 5 minutes away from the trailhead. Unfortunately, we ended up having to share a site with another group since everything was full. The other group was very loud and partied all night long, which kept us up until 2 AM. We woke up at 5:15 AM tired but excited for the big day we had ahead of us.
We were at the trailhead ready to go just after 6:00 AM. The North Twin Trail takes you all the way to the summit which is 4.3 miles away. It’s important to note that there are 3 big river crossings on this trail. These crossings can be very difficult/dangerous if the water levels are high. You’ll come to the first river crossing 0.8 miles after starting. The second one is about 0.5 mile after the first, and the third one is another 0.6 after the second one. The trail up until the last river crossing is very easy and relatively flat. We were able to manage all three crossings without getting wet, although we did have to go a bit upstream on each one to find the best route to cross by hopping on rocks. After the last crossing, the trail really begins to climb in elevation. It’s a long and steady climb to the summit, but the trail is very moderately graded. As you poke up out of the trees, there is an amazing outlook ledge just before the actual summit. After another 0.1 miles, you’ll reach the true summit, which is also at the junction with the North Twin Spur Trail. There is also a short spur path here that leads to an outlook. At this point, it’s been about 2,900 feet of elevation gain. It took us about 3 hours to reach the summit.
Geared up and ready for a fun weekend!
This is what the river crossings along the trail are like
Making our way across the river trying to stay dry
Limited views (due to clouds) from the outlook on North Twin
After refueling with some snacks, we set out on the North Twin Spur Trail towards South Twin. This trail connects the two summits and descends moderately before ascending moderately to the summit of South Twin. It’s about 1.3 miles between the two peaks, but it goes quick since the terrain is very moderate. There is 450 feet of elevation gain and it took us 40 minutes. The summit of South Twin is exposed, offering fantastic views of the surrounding mountains. If you’re doing just North Twin and South Twin, then you could turn around here and head back to the trailhead the same way you came. Some people opt to continue onto the Twinway Trail, get Galehead, then descend via the Gale River Trail. Note that doing this would require a car spot, as you end at a different trailhead than the one you started at. For this trip, we continued onto Twinway Trail, which took us down to the Galehead Hut and Galehead Mountain.
Junction at the summit of South Twin
Enjoying this sign since it was the only views we were able to get at the summit of South Twin! We will be back on a clear day
From the summit of South Twin to Galehead Hut is 0.8 miles, but it is a brutal descent as you drop almost 1,200 feet in that distance. Coming off of South Twin summit is a steep descent, but the terrain has good footing. However, the further down you go, the trail becomes much more rocky and will require careful footing. As the trail flattens out, you’ll come out of the woods and find Galehead Hut as well as a nice outlook. Galehead Hut is a great place to refill water, have a tasty homemade baked good from the Hut, and to relax a bit.
After some relaxation, it’s a quick jaunt up the Frost Trail to the summit of Galehead. This trail is 0.5 miles long and climbs about 250 feet. It took us 15 minutes. The trail ascends moderately all the way to the viewless summit. There is a really nice outlook 3/4 of the way up, so make sure to stop there before visiting the wooded summit! To descend back to the Hut, go back the same way you came. From here, you can take the Gale River Trail if you are done for the day (as mentioned earlier, if doing just the Twins and Galehead, you will need to have another car to get back to the first trailhead). Since we were heading to Mount Garfield, we continued along the Garfield Ridge Trail.
Galehead Hut in the distance as we descend down Twinway
Galehead Hut - a great spot to rest and have lunch!
Some views from right outside the hut
You may think that since the Garfield Ride Trail is a Ridge Trail that it would be easy, but it’s not! There is a lot of minor elevation gain and loss along the way (what we call PUD - pointless up and down). Since we were carrying heavy packs, it took a lot out of us but we pushed on. The first 0.6 miles is relatively flat to the junction with the Gale River Trail. After that junction, it’s another 1.6 miles to the junction with the Franconia Brook Trail. There’s about 450 feet of elevation in this section and it took us about an hour and 15 minutes. This is the trail we would be taking to get to our campsite for the night, but first we had to summit Mount Garfield. From this junction, it’s 0.7 miles to the summit but it is very steep, ascending nearly 1,000 feet in that distance! The first 0.2 miles of the trail are moderate, but then you reach a very steep section with one part that is very wet and basically like climbing up a waterfall. After that, the trail continues to ascend steeply all the way to the summit. Mount Garfield’s summit is exposed, offering amazing 360 degree views, but unfortunately it was cloudy when we were up there. After hanging out on the summit for a bit, we retraced our steps down back to the junction with Franconia Brook Trail. Be very cautious if you descend this way, especially on the section with the water! If you’re doing just Mount Garfield, the best way to descend would be the Garfield Trail.
Enjoying clouded views (again) from the exposed summit of Mount Garfield
At this point, we were ready for descent only and to set up camp for the night and relax. We had 2.2 miles to get to the 13 Falls Tentsite, dropping 1,250 feet in that period. It took us about an hour and a half to get down. This trail is not traveled very often, so it was a bit thick and tough to follow at times. The descent was very moderate with not too many steep sections, though the trail was extremely wet and muddy. When we arrived to the 13 Falls Tentsite, all of the sites were full so we set up camp in a flat area in the woods. We cooked dinner, filtered water from the river, and went to bed early. We were woken up around 9:00 PM by a severe thunderstorm that brought downpours - we anticipated this, so it’s a good thing we slept with our packs in the tent and our boots under the rainfly!
After waking up, packing up camp, and eating breakfast, it was time to hit the trail to grab Owl’s Head. We knew there were storms in the forecast, so we started hiking at 5:30 AM. From 13 Falls, we had 3.5 miles to get to the base of Owl’s Head. We had to cross the Franconia Brook after leaving the Tentsite, but the water was low enough that it wasn’t an issue. The first portion of the trail was easy/moderate as it gains elevation slightly before dropping back down. At times, the trail can be a bit hard to follow due to the amount of water present. It’s a very wet and muddy trail, so be prepared to get dirty! The trail ascends roughly 1,000 feet before descending roughly 600 feet to reach the junction with Owl’s Head Path. This is technically an unmaintained trail, but the start is marked by cairns (though it may not always be). There is also a warning sign about leaving your pack due to bear activity, so keep an eye out for that.
The Path starts out moderately before it reaches a steep slide. The slide itself is steep and rough, with lots of loose rock and smooth slab. Be careful as you ascend it. Looking back while on the slide provides nice views of the Franconia Range. After the slide, you are back in the forest but sill climbing steadily. After 0.8 miles, the path reaches the ridge and continues for another 0.2 on relatively flat terrain to the wooded summit cairn. This portion of the trail is not as well worn since the old summit cairn used to be at the 0.8 miles, so expect some dense forest growth. The Owl’s Head path ascends about 1,400 feet in the mile from the junction and took us about an hour and 15 minutes to climb. On the way down, hikers have two options: retrace your steps by going down the slide back to the Lincoln Brook Trail or you can take the Brutus Bushwhack which avoids the descent down the slide. We opted to take the Brutus bushwhack because we could feel a storm coming and did not want to be on the exposed slide. From the summit, backtrack about 0.5 miles on the Path until you see a large rock with a small cairn on it. This marks the start of the Brutus bushwhack. It is easy to miss, so be sure to keep an eye out for it on your way up so you remember where it is. Though it is a bushwhack, there is a herd path that has formed from the number of people who have used it. We got slightly off trail when we started due to some blowdowns, but we were able to find the path again luckily. Once we found it, it was easy to follow all the way down back to the Lincoln Brook Trail. While we were descending, the skies opened up on us and it began downpouring. This made the bushwhack route very muddy and slippery, resulting in us falling numerous times. Had it been dry, the descent would not have been bad at all as the footing is good and the elevation loss is gradual. We heard some of the loudest thunder ever while bushwhacking, which was honestly pretty scary.
We set up camp in the woods near the 13 Falls Tentsite
Bear sign and cairn that mark the start of Owl’s Head Path
Enjoying (haha) the wooded summit of Owl’s Head… Big storm rolling in at this point
Back on the Lincoln Brook Trail, this portion of the trail was basically flat all the way. There were a few river crossings, but they were easy to cross. At this point, it was raining and storming so hard, that we were hiking very fast. We were completely drenched, even with waterproof gear on, so we gunned it out of there. We planned to use the Black Pond Bushwhack to avoid the two biggest river crossings, which we knew were going to be extremely difficult and dangerous to cross, especially with all the rain. The bushwhack is very easy to find as it is basically a trail at this point due to how many people use it. I had both the Brutus and Black Pond bushwhacks marked on my GPS, so it was easy for us to know when to look out for them. But, if you don’t have a GPS, look for the big wide open area. Here you will want to turn right off the trail and away from the water and you will be following a herd path through the woods. It’s about a mile long and eventually connects with the Black Pond Trail. Again, this bushwhack was very easy to follow. On the Black Pond Trail, it’s another 0.8 miles until the junction with the Lincoln Woods Trail. It was flat and easy terrain, so we cruised through it. At the junction with the Lincoln Woods Trail, we had 2.6 miles until we were back at the car. This trail is notoriously wide and flat, and it is a grind to hike it after 20+ miles. We hiked as fast as we could and finally got back to our car where we changed into dry clothes and went straight to McDonald’s for food. All in all, this traverse was 25.5 miles with 7,300 feet of elevation and lots of rain! Nonetheless, it was a fun time in the woods and we highly recommend this route!
Alternative routes:
We have not yet done any alternative routes to the summit of Mount Garfield. This page will be updated once we have!
Hiking Mount Garfield in the winter
We have not yet climbed Mount Garfield in the winter, but once we do, we will update this page with our full report!
Questions? Comments? Want to share your take on this hike? Get in touch with us using the contact page!
As experienced hikers, we always make sure that we are hiking with The Ten Essentials which include navigation, a headlamp, sun protection, first aid, a knife, shelter, extra food, water and clothes. Overtime, we have discovered some items that we always bring on our hikes and consider them to be our personal, expanded ten essentials.