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Zealand, Bond, West Bond, and Bondcliff (#27 – #30)

I’m trying something new in this post. When I post images on this site I have to edit them down to the proper size. From now on I’ll try to link to the original photo by clicking on the edited photo in my post so you can see the full size image.

Susan went to Dayton on business this week and the weather in the White Mountains looked fabulous, so I decided to go on a nice, long (emphasis on long) hike. Late Tuesday I drove up Zealand Road and did the short hike past some pretty fall color over beaver pond to the Zealand Falls hut.
The woman who arrived at the hut about 30 minutes after me had seen a moose at the ponds and had some great pictures to show for it.

My planned route for the next day was 14.4 miles so I ate a hearty dinner and tried to get a good night sleep in the cold bunkroom. On Wednesday morning after breakfast, I discovered that this hut didn’t offer trail lunches for sale so I was in for a long, hungry hike. I hiked the steep, rocky 1.2 mile ascent to Zeacliff which took quite a toll on my legs and spirits and made me wonder about the wisdom of such a long hike. Fortunately the views and the promise of a more level next 4 miles reenergized me.

Along the pleasant ridge along the ridge to my first peak, I got some nice views of morning clouds in the valley far to the north.
Morning clouds in the valleys

I also surprised a bird on the trail and took some pictures of it up in the tree. It was about football sized and I’m not sure what type of bird it was. It’s pretty, though.
Bird in a tree

I continued on over Zealand Mountain, Mt. Guyot, and onto the short spur to West Bond. From there I did the ascent up and over Mt. Bond which was my high point for the trip at around 4700′. I then continued down an exposed ridgeline over to Bondcliff, my final peak for the day. The descent off of Bond which I would have to hike up on the way back was quite steep and rocky. Other than the inital ascent to Zeacliff this was easily the most difficult part of the hike.

I took a series of shots from West Bond to try to make a panorama using Autostitch when I got home. Click the small panorama below for a larger shot.

The three peaks that comprise the Bonds are located with views of the Pemigewasset wilderness. This is a vast tract (by New England standards) of wilderness and is one of the few places in the White Mountains where you have the feeling that you’ve really left civilization. There are no roads in site and you’re surrounded on all sides by 4000′ peaks, steep cliffs, and lush green river valleys.

Here are two shots. One of a cliff at Bondcliff and another with me on the ledge.

After that it was time to hike the 6.7 miles back to the hut for a well earned dinner and rest before hiking out in the morning. When I got back to the hut around 4:30 I discovered that the previous nights small and quiet group of hikers had been replaced by approximately a dozen energetic 12 year old girls and boys who were there on some sort of wilderness program. One of them asked me if the bunk I was unpacking on was mine. I replied that it was but I was thinking of hiking out early. The girl replied, “That’s probably a good idea. We’re loud, especially when the boys start picking on us.” That combined with the fact they had rifled through my bunk and the stuff I had taken out of my pack before hiking that day convinced me that 2.7 more miles of hiking and a 2.5 hour drive home was preferable to the night I’d probably have in the hut. My reward for hiking out early was seeing a moose on Zealand Road and a quiet night in my own bed.

Final tally for the day was 17+ miles in just under 10 hours and peaks #27 -#30 of the 48 4000′ peaks in New Hampshire. I think today I’ll rest my legs some.

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