Outdoor Diversion: A Hike to the Twins and Galehead to Complete Round 8 of the 48

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

Trail route: North Twin Trail, Twinway, Garfield Ridge Trail, Gale River Trail

Trail conditions: Wet trails, mud, and slick rocks, low water crossings

Weather: Warm humid start, turning cool and dry on the summits and comfortable all the way out

Total miles: 12

Total time: 7:55

Good weather was in the forecast for today so I decided to get out there and hike the Twins and Galehead. I would be hiking from one trailhead to another trailhead which presented a problem with needing a car spot. My son Brandon agreed to pick me up at the Gale River trailhead parking lot and transport me back to the North Twin trailhead where I would be starting my hike.

There was one other vehicle at the North Twin trailhead when I arrived just after 5:00 AM. I got started up the trail and used the herd path avoiding two water crossings. I arrived at the third crossing and had no problem although I did have to step on a few wet rocks but had dry feet on the other side. Wet rocks would continue along the trail and careful footing was required to keep from slipping although there were a few slips but no falls.

The trail started its upward climb on the other side of the river. The air was rather humid and warm without even a wisp of a breeze. It was a real sweat fest getting up to the first outlook on North Twin. There was a slight breeze blowing there and it felt nice! From here it was a short distance to the summit and over to the outlook, had the place to myself. Views were spectacular with clouds billowing up from the valley and ravines.

On the hike over to South Twin I had to wade through a few muddy areas. The most significant issue between the summits was the soaking wet branches and shrubbery that I had to brush by. I was completely drenched when I reached South Twin and there was a cool wind blowing by now drying out the humid air and creating a chill so I changed to a dry long sleeve layer. I had the summit to myself for a moment.

It was here that I saw my first hiker of the day, a NOBO hiker (a north bound AT hiker for those that don't know). He had started his hike from Georgia in May. As I descended to Galehead Hut there was a steady stream of hikers coming up. I arrived at the hut but kept going and headed up to the summit of Galehead Mountain.

There were several hikers coming down from the summit. When I arrived at the top this would be the third summit of the day that I had to myself. With no views I did not stay long and was soon on my way down. I took a nice break at the Galehead Hut and had something to eat. I went inside the hut and bought a piece of cinnamon cake, it was delicious!

I began my descent to the Gale River parking lot, there were more hikers coming up. The change in the weather was a welcome relief and it was an enjoyable hike down to the trailhead. I only had an eight minute wait before my son arrived to take me back over to my vehicle at North Twin Trail parking lot, great timing!

Galehead Mountain was my last summit to complete eight rounds of the 4,000 footers. It also brought me to 480 out of 576 summits on my way to completing the grid. This was a tough hiking month for me with the heat, humidity and rain. I had planned on gridding out this month but will easily do it next July. I have seven summits in five hikes next month to grid out August and that starts next week!

Enjoy the photos and videos!