"I woke up early so I could be ready to go as soon as breakfast concluded. Breakfast consisted of oatmeal, eggs, bacon, and coffee cake. Once the food had wrapped up, I refilled all my water bottles and hit the trail around 7:30am. Although the skies were clear, the sun had not yet crested the Twinway ridge, so it was cold starting out along the shadowed western face. However, my sweatshirt soon came off once I began the ascent of South Twin. Rising over 1100 feet in about 0.8 rocky miles, the beginning of the Twinway features a few Class 2 scrambles and an unrelenting stair-stepping climb until about a quarter-mile from the summit where it begins to level out. At this point, the trees shrank to about human height and the sun was directly in my face, but I welcomed the warmth since I was also subject to some cold winds. I reached the summit of South Twin by 8:45am for my 33rd NH 4000 Footer. The summit is small but offers clear 360-degree views, including (nearly) the entire Pemigewasset Wilderness and clear across to the Presidentials. The morning sun was unobstructed by any clouds and the winds began to subside. I had the summit all to myself, and although I would’ve loved to stay..." — JCalautti • Aug 22, 2025

"Day 2 of pemi loop, about 8 miles from Guyot campsite to Garfield campsite, including a small backtrack to west bond at the start of the day. Very cloudy with some rain at the start of the day but cleared as we descended to the galehead hut (so many blowdowns and snowy spots made for some slow miles)." — noahthackeray • May 15, 2025

"Decent weather for an 11 hour hike, fair skies, no rain and some sun. Enough sun to make it hot on wide open Bondcliff. A good day to go from Zealand in the north to Lincoln Woods. With this hike we finished our NH48 Seasonal Grid! Bird of the day: Alder Flycatcher." — Alohabuffy • Jun 13, 2024

"Very cloudy day, in the 20s. All summits socked in except Bondcliff. Did the Bonds traverse, in at Galehead, out at Lincoln Woods. Encountered all possible trail conditions, used micro spikes mostly. 20.9 mi., 4550 elevation gain. Finally got our Winter 48!" — Alohabuffy • Jan 3, 2024

"Spectacular weather with well above average temps made this hike incredible. The entire ridge was at peak foliage. Just fantastic views everywhere, makes the 19 miles well worth it." — Alohabuffy • Oct 3, 2023

"A Zealand Bond Traverse today. Snow was firm on the way in. We managed to cross the river at Zealand Hut and reach Zealand, thus closing out my April Grid. Our group of 5 continued onwards over Guyot and the Bonds. It was windy on Guyot and on Bondcliff. The snow was getting softer on the long walk out from Bondcliff. " — newenglandwarrior • Apr 8, 2023

"Dropped a car at the Zealand Tr parking lot and headed for Lincoln Woods where we began our ascent at 7:15am. We were in for a long and very hot day, but were ready to tackle five peaks and see if we could beat our own time estimate of 13 hours. And we would have, too! If not for an unintentional detour. Word to the wise: when blood sugar and hydration are getting low, and you've already been on the trail for 9 hours, don't trust your memory... and there's no such thing as checking the map too many times. Lincoln Woods to Bondcliff, West Bond Spur, Twinway, then an unfortunate detour down Zeacliff (longest 1.4 miles of my life) and Ethan Pond before finally making it to the Zealand Falls Hut and taking Zealand Trail down to the car. 5 peaks, 22 miles, 14.5 hours, 1 detour, many liters of water, and a cup of lemonade... Views were spectacular, trail company was good, and in spite of the mayhem, I'd love to do this climb again with a few tweaks." — gooner • Aug 6, 2022

"Was going to stay at Zealand , but web site was down. So I dropped my overnight pach and took my day pack. Hit the trail head at 6:45 am. Got back to the hut, grabbed my pack and head lamp and headed out to the car, reaching it at 8:33. Almost 14 hours. Views were AMAZING! " — Bucky • Jul 15, 2022

"A Hale, Zealand, Twins loop today for my Grid. Parked at Haystack Rd and went up the Fire Wardens Tr to Hale. Continued on to Zealand from there. Socked in, so I didn't bother with Zeacliff. Crossed over Guyot in the clouds. Met up with Molly, Denise, and Sarah off of South Twin on their backpack trip. We had lunch together before continuing on. At that point, I had views on both of the Twins. On North Twin, I saw a pine marten. That probably made the hike. Came off of North Twin, crossed the river, then bypassed 2nd and 1st crossing because of the high river." — newenglandwarrior • May 29, 2021

"Finally, a Zealand Bond traverse. Doug helped me out with the car spot the night before. Based on a recent trip report, I took a chance and left the snowshoes behind. Doug dropped me off at Zealand Rd and I started up in the dark. The trail was well tracked out by snowmobiles on the road. Along the trail, I followed an old set of tracks. I made my way past Zealand Hut and went up to check out Zeacliff. Socked in at Zeacliff today. I continued on and reached Zealand. Between Zealand and Guyot, I had to contend with some drifts but nothing to crazy. I reached Guyot and dealt with some wind. At this point, it was hit or miss with the clouds. There was an undercast beyond Garfield. I was mostly in the clear. I went over to West Bond and enjoyed the views there. Then I headed over to Bond but I opted not to stay long. I made my way down to Bondcliff. There were pockets of exposed rock along Bondcliff. I finished my January Grid on Bondcliff. I then made my way out making fast time to reach Lincoln Woods. " — newenglandwarrior • Jan 8, 2021