Summit: Mount Lafayette (5,260'), Mount Lincoln (5,089')
Trail route: Old Bridle Path, Greenleaf Trail, Franconia Ridge Trail, Falling Waters Trail
Trail conditions: Dry trails with minor wet areas
Weather: Warm sunshine, cool and windy on the summits
Total miles: 8.8
Total time: 6:34
After a check of the weather forecast I decided to hike Mount Lafayette and Mount Lincoln today. I took into consideration that it was a holiday weekend and there would be a lot of people doing this very popular hike. With an early start I was hoping to beat some of the crowd.
I arrived at the trailhead parking lot just before 7:00 AM and got one of the last parking spaces. Not getting a parking space meant having to be shuttled in from another parking lot. It was clear that even though I was hiking solo I would have lots of company today. My route would be up Old Bridle Path and down Falling Waters Trail.
It was an enjoyable hike up to Greenleaf Hut. There was a cool breeze blowing so I changed into a long sleeve thin layer. As I continued up to the summit of Mount Lafayette the wind increased and I put on a fleece layer. There was a very cool, refreshing wind on the summit and it felt good!
The number of hikers was starting to increase. There were many on the summit and a line of hikers could be seen off in the distance on Franconia Ridge. I continued my hike over to Mount Lincoln where I found another crowd of hikers. I didn't slow down much on this summit and continued over to Little Haystack Mountain where I saw another crowd of hikers. A quick pic and I started my descent on the Falling Waters Trail.
The trail got very crowded on the way down. Most of the hikers I saw today were coming from the direction of the Falling Waters Trail and not the way that I came up, it was that or I was hiking super fast because nobody passed me from Greenleaf Hut up to Lafayette across Franconia Ridge down Falling Waters Trail back to the parking lot. I stopped just long enough to get photos of the waterfalls on the way down.
This hike was one of two that I need this month to grid out July. I need one more hike this month to the Bonds and I will be gridded out until December. I'm hoping for some favorable weather to get the long hike to the Bonds done and then plan on hiking some Maine and Vermont summits working toward the New England Hundred Highest list!
Enjoy the photos and videos!
Sunrise from Lowe's Garage on the drive to the trailhead
The hike starts here
A favorite tree
Wildflowers
Looking up at the Agonies
A look back down the Old Bridle Path
Lonesome Lake and Lonesome Lake Hut
Eagle Lake
A look back at Greenleaf Hut
Cannon tram cable car going up
On the summit of Mount Lafayette
Franconia Ridge
A view of Cannon Mountain and the Kinsmans beyond
View from Lafayette
Mount Lincoln
On Mount Lafayette
No fall zone
Heading to Mount Lincoln
Mount Lafayette behind me
Labrador tea
A look down at the ridge where I was earlier
Diapensia
A view from Mount Lincoln
On Mount Lincoln
A look back at Mount Lincoln
Mount Washington in the distance
Bondcliff
Kinsmans and Cannon Mountain
On Little Haystack Mountain
View from Little Haystack Mountain
Mount Flume and Mount Liberty
On the Falling Waters Trail
There's a reason it's called Falling Waters Trail
The top of Cloudland Falls
Cloudland Falls
Another waterfall
Stair Falls
A rock-loving tree
Having Fun in the Great Outdoors!
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