Outdoor Diversion: Twins and Galehead on a Warm Spring Day

Summits: North Twin Mountain (4,761'), South Twin Mountain (4,902'), Galehead Mountain (4,024')

Trail route: Little River Road, Haystack Road, North Twin Trail, Twinway, Garfield Ridge Trail, Gale River Trail, Gale River Loop Road

Trail conditions: Variety of dry, wet, hard pack snow, soft snow, monorail

Weather: Cool start, temps warmed up, sunny sky with passing clouds

Total miles: 15

Total time: 11:00

A warm Spring day was in the forecast and the weather appeared to be favorable for a long hike in the mountains. I would be joining Larry, Jill, Jim, Amy, Danielle, Guy, Michelle, Dolores, Scott and Lisa for a hiking adventure to North Twin, South Twin and Galehead mountains.

We started our hike on Little River Road at the Seven Dwarfs Motel. It was a short road walk to a private bridge that crosses the Little River then a trail to Haystack Road leading to the North Twin trailhead. The road is clear and dry without the usual Spring mud which normally seems to linger this time of year.

The North Twin Trail started clear of snow with a few wet areas and mud but less than expected. The brooks and Little River were running slightly high. We had a few easy brook crossings and then it was time to cross the Little River. We passed by the first two crossings keeping on the herd path going up the left side of the river. We stood at the third crossing and pondered our plan for getting to the other side.

We continued up the river looking for a safe and dry crossing. There were two fallen trees across the river that appeared to be a safe bet. One tree could be walked on and the other just above it used as a "handrail". There would be seven of us crossing here the other four turned back, took off their footwear and crossed barefoot at the trail crossing. We all had a successful crossing!

Before continuing up the trail we put on microspikes, I actually put on trail crampons to avoid the snowballing affect that I have with my microspikes. The snow base was solid but a step to either side would result in postholing. It was the usual long relentless climb up to the open ledges below the summit of North Twin.

At the ledges we took a nice break in the sunshine and warm temperature. It was here that I went down to a short sleeve shirt and had something to eat. We continued on to the summit after our break. We found the summit pencil marker and stopped at the outlook long enough for some photos before moving on.

The snow was getting softer on our way to South Twin. A few of us stopped and put on snowshoes which were much better. Up on South Twin the summit was completely bare and the snowshoes came off while we all took another break. It was a day for lingering and basking and we did that. After the break we started our descent to Galehead Hut.

It is a very steep descent from the summit of South Twin down Twinway to Galehead. There was some glissading in the snowshoes on soft, loose snow. We arrived at Galehead Hut and dropped our packs for the short hike up to the summit of Galehead Mountain. There is no view so it was a quick up and down. We did manage to find the summit pencil marker.

It was Amy's birthday and we had a brief celebration at the hut. We had several more miles to go and soon started our descent. We continued with the snowshoes. It wasn't until far down the Gale River Trail when I swapped the snowshoes for microspikes. That was short-lived as the snow soon disappeared. There was one tricky water crossing that required walking on submerged rocks to keep the feet dry while some in our group just waded through the water.

We were all very happy to arrive at the trailhead but there was still a 1.6 mile road walk out to Route 3 to waiting vehicles for the ride home. The Gale River Loop Road was also in good shape and I would expect that it may open early this year. We arrived at the closed gate and it was the end of a long day of hiking.

While the Spring temperatures and sunshine are nice the shoulder season trail conditions can be really tough with soft snow, mud, and challenging water crossings. We had all of that today but we were prepared.

The shoulder season continues. There will be more challenging hikes before the snow and ice disappear and the water levels drop. I will enjoy these Spring challenges before the black flies and mosquitoes arrive with the summer heat and humidity.

Enjoy the photos and video!