Via Gale River Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Frost Trail
Galehead is a small mountain along the Garfield Ridge in Northern New Hampshire. Considered small at 4024 feet because Galehead's neighbors are more than 500 feet taller.
Galehead also boasts Galehead Hut, a popular pit stop and overnight for many backpackers. Typically Galehead is nabbed as part of either a multi-day trip or long day-trip. Due to our time constraints and schedule we elected to pick it up as an out and back day trip.
The intitial part of the trail to Galehead is re-routed due to recent damage from Hurricane Irene. It's very easy to follow for the most part as it sidesteps the fallen trees.
After completing so many of the longer more arduous 4000 footers this summer in intense heat and humidity Galehead was a welcome treat. The hiking was relatively easy with some steep and rocky sections.
View from the Hut
We caught up with a couple from Florida who just trekked across Franconia Ridge. They claimed to be a day behind schedule due to the unexpected difficulty of the trails. While they were regular gym goers and in fairly good shape- they claimed is was nothing compared to hiking these mountains. It has been a very common circumstance for us to come across hikers and backpackers that underestimated the difficulty of some of these hikes. I recently read on a website site that many people focus too much on the equipment end of hiking the White Mountains and underestimate the physical.
Adam's boots have been slowly falling apart all summer
Hitting Galehead Hut in the fall is a great time of year. The views are amazing and there are sustainability fewer hikers.
Galehead Mountain
View from Galehead Mountains; Looking down towards the Hut
View from Galehead
View from Galehead
Actual Summit
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