Zealand/Bonds Traverse, 12/29/2008

[LRiz]

Steve and I were running late. Brought to a crawl by a particularly slow-moving truck, I was beginning to worry that we weren't going to make our 8:45 on trail time. However, my feelings of stress quickly dissipated at the sight of Drew's car pulling into the parking lot at the same time as mine. Well, I suppose they did not dissipate entirely - I did have some last-minute packing to do, and was concerned about holding everyone else up. Bounding out of my car, I hastily pulled on my gaiters and made sure that all of my gear was in order. The sky outside was overcast and gray, and the winds seemed to be far stronger than had been predicted. Nevertheless, I had faith in the forecast, and my excitement about the upcoming hike had me in an especially upbeat mood. A Zealand/Bonds traverse, in winter, after four consecutive days of amazing hiking... I couldn't wait to hit the trail.

Locking my car, I headed over to see Drew. He introduced me to Cath, with whom I'd never had the pleasure of hiking, and gave me a saw so that we could help remove any blowdowns encountered on the trail. Knowing that we had a 3.5 mile roadwalk ahead of us, we all opted to bareboot the first stretch of the hike. Zealand Road was well packed-down by ski and foot traffic... but quite icy in places. After Steve took a tumble while walking around one of the gates, Drew decided to put on his microspikes. Fortunately, we were greeted with some rather pretty river views:



The road walk seemed to fly by. Within no time at all, we reached the Zealand trailhead. Since the trail was so well packed out (though badly postholed in places), we decided to continue barebooting. Once again, the going was fast. I stopped on occasion to take pictures of Zealand Pond:



The stretch of trail right before the hut was especially tough to navigate due to rough conditions, though I did become quite adept at hopping between the postholes... and I must say it's tiresome business! By the time we arrived at the hut, I was certainly ready to take a break. All four of us sat inside and chatted with the caretaker (an engaging, interesting guy named Helon), and refueled in anticipation of the arduous climb up to the Twinway. Drew also used the time to carve a mushroom that he'd found along Zealand Road. The cloud cover had started to break as well, making for lovely views from the hut:



Soon, we were on our way once more. Knowing that the trail was going to steepen up considerably, I opted to put on my microspikes for some additional traction... and I was glad that I did, because soon we reached the first water crossing, over which someone had placed a very "special" bridge:



Drew tried to throw one of his poles across the water, but it slid off the bank and started to float downstream. Luckily, it was caught by a rock only 10 feet or so away, and Cath was able to retrieve it. Pressing onwards, the climb began almost instantaneously. At this point, the double espresso Clif shot that I'd downed right before leaving the hut started to kick in... and I was ridiculously hyper. Bounding up the trail with surprising speed, I reached the Twinway with enough time to take a quick side trip to the outlook. It turned out to be a good decision on my part. Thick beams of light pierced through the clouds, and the views were simply fantastic:



After snapping a few pictures and re-electrolyting with yet another Clif shot, I headed back to the Twinway and put on my snowshoes. Initially, the trail appeared to be in good shape, but became increasingly postholed as we moved along. The snow was quite deep, and we passed a few people who needed to turn around due to lack of snowshoes. About a half mile from the Zealand spur trail, we bumped into Ed Hawkins and crew and chatted for a while. I really felt quite humbled, being in the presence of so many accomplished hikers. The winds started to pick up at this point, making it necessary for us to press onwards towards Zealand.

Knowing that we'd be very exposed to the winds whilst traversing the Bonds, Cath made a quick call to Steve Smith to get an update on the weather conditions. 14 MPH winds on Washington - Not bad at all. We made the decision to continue on with the hike.

From Zealand onwards, the trail was unbroken. Cath and I were able to float on top of the snow with relative ease, but the boys were having a far rougher time (but still "building endurance," yes? ). Nevertheless, we persevered, and when we reached the treeline, it was surreal. Given my lack of writing prowess, perhaps it'd be best if I let the pictures tell the story:

[LRiz]

Utterly exhilarated, I couldn't wait to tag West Bond. Since I tend to get a little crazy when I hike, and found it necessary to take a silly picture by a snow-embedded trail sign:



At the West Bond Spur, we opted to drop our packs before heading towards the summit. The trail was not broken out, but surprisingly was easy to tramp across with snowshoes. However, there were a few small blowdowns on the trail that we removed with the saw that I carried up from the parking lot. Cath, Drew, and Steve were all very kind and allowed me to take the lead so that I could tag the summit first (since it was my first time on West Bond in winter), and after a short, steady climb, we were there:



I was very fired up and started hollering like a crazy girl (as is customary for me to do whenever I summit a mountain, it seems). Strangely enough, whilst taking in the views a huge airplane flew right down in the valley on the other side of Bond. Unfortunately I do not have a picture, but it was certainly a strange sight to see.

After a few minutes, we headed back towards the Bondcliff trail. West Bond had marked the halfway point for our hike, and I was fortunately still feeling strong and more than ready to tackle Bond and Bondcliff. We stopped for a snack upon reaching the junction, and then headed up towards the Bond summit. It was around 4:00pm at the time, and there was a faint tinge of orange on the horizon:



We hoped to hit Bondcliff before dark, and therefore did not linger on the summit of Bond. As we continued on our way, the trail became much rockier, so we removed our snowshoes and put on microspikes - with the exception of Steve, who barebooted instead. Unfortunately, upon reaching the summit, I realized that my camera was not focusing properly (therefore the photographic aspect of this report ends here ). I stowed it away and pulled out my poles in anticipation of the descent... only to find that they would not lock properly. Eventually, with the help of Steve, I was able to get one of them to lock into position, which was certainly better than having no poles at all. Switching into snowshoes once again, we were soon on our way down the trail.

The descent itself was harsh, though my situation honestly does not compare to the ordeal that Drew and Steve had to endure. The snow was covered in a weak yet very nasty crust, and all of us - with the exception of Cath - were constantly falling through. It was slow and painful, but we made the best of it... "building endurance" once again. Having only done two brief headlamp hikes, I was surprised to find that night hiking is wonderfully enjoyable. We continued down... down... down... encountering a few campers (including one guy who bushwhacked his way up the ridge after losing the main trail) along the way. By the time we hit the Wilderness trail junction, I was delirious with exhaustion but still in good spirits... and extremely happy that I still had one of the chocolate bars that Trish gave me two weeks ago. After pounding one more GU for good measure, I removed my snowshoes, put on my microspikes, and was on my way. Whether it was the fueled-by-ridiculous-exhaustion adrenaline, or some sort of mysterious ingredient that they put in those GU gels, I do not know... but those last 4 or so miles really seemed to fly by.

23.2 miles later, we arrived at Lincoln Woods. What a truly spectacular day.

Cath, Drew, and Steve - I cannot thank you enough for letting me accompany you on this incredible hike.

[ColdRiverRun]

Truly refreshing to read as I go out the door for a 3 hour drive up to the ADK. I'm not sure which part I enjoy the most, Cath floating on air and rescuing Drew's equipment (I'm sure the first time) the idea of Steve and Drew sinking up to their waste as you two laugh at them or the smiles that you know were on everybody's face all day. I don't know who referred you on to VFTT but we should thank them.

[rocket21]

Absolutely amazing! Congratulations all on a great accomplishment! Excellent trip report!

[TrishandAlex]

Wonderful, awesome TR and great pictures. You're such a fantastic hiker, and a really cool person to boot. I look forward to reading more of your adventures.

[NewHampshire]

He he, "old man" Drew and that fireball Cath continue to amaze me. They are hiking machines...simply amazing! That you anf UFC managed to keep up with them all day is also just as amazing!

Congrats and good luck on your continuing adventure.

Brian

[carole]

I don't know if I feel old, jealous, or just need a second cup of coffee. I think I'm going for my coffee now and ponder the yonder.

Very nice report!

[1HappyHiker]

Astonishing, amazing, refreshing, inspirational . . . still trying to find the proper words to use for commenting on your TR.
Perhaps the proper words don’t exist, so I’ll simply say:

Congratulations on a hike well done!

[una_dogger]

Nice job, Larissa!

The Bonds Traverse for me, is THE White Mountain Hike. Glad you were able to enjoy it with such wonderful people.

Good luck on a single season W48 -- looks like you are well on your way.


Ah youth....we should all be so lucky to have found VfTT at the tender young age of 21.

[Fat Tuesday]

My favorite thing about this post is that you describe it as if it was a leisurely stroll, Larisa! Um, you did a 23 mile hike in the company of UFC- that must require sufficient intestinal fortitude! (How are your folks liking your new found love of winter hiking, btw?)

Congrats on an amazing accomplishment, in style!

(I believe I met you, Cath and Drew, on the Tripyramids this summer. My friend and I were having a leisurely lunch on Middle Peak when you popped up from the Scaur Ridge trail. We chatted for a bit, and you sped on. Did you even stop for lunch??)

[Cath]

Dear Slender Girl - who goes by the name of a regional holiday ~
Indeed, we did meet you & your friend on the Tripyramids this past summer
Love your avatar, as it is cloaked in SNOW

Couple of Hi-Lights from the Zealand / Bonds hike:
* UFC break-dancing near the Sugarloaf trailhead gate
* Finally meeting Helon
* Practicing being Dudette Do-Right Here I come to save the day....or pole
* Bumping into Ed - Becca - Mr Moore
* Contacting "Alex" I'll take White Mountain Trivia for 300 please
(answer - the winds are not as strong here, as they are predicted over there)
* The calm & quiet of Guyot and the Bonds in Winter
* Witnessing Larisa rejoice each time she summited a new winter peak
* Floating on top of the snow covered Bondcliff trail
* Chatting with The Bushwhacking Guy
* The realization that we all did indeed have more food in our stuff sacks at the junction of the Wilderness & Bondcliff trails !

[Kevin Rooney]

Originally Posted by Cath

...* The calm & quiet of Guyot and the Bonds in Winter

Always the goal ...

[Dave Bear]

Excellent TR Larissa! Very nice photos. Thanks for sharing awesome pictures of the Bonds with sun beams through the clouds and not forgetting Zeacliff!! Sweet trip folks, very impressive! What, no handstands on the summits Steve? Way to work off the holiday feasts and treats all!

[Mad Townie]

Excellent TR, Larisa, and an amazing hike by all of you. Having done that route in the fall without the road walk (but, in fact, with UFC), I can't even imagine doing it through snow drifts.

Are you really sure that was Cath with you? The Cath I know would have gone totally, completely nuts at the sight of all those postholes!

[Tim Seaver]

Originally Posted by LRiz

The snow was covered in a weak yet very nasty crust, and all of us - with the exception of Cath - were constantly falling through.

Yes, isn't that annoying? Loading rocks into her pack during snack break can help reduce the dreaded "Tinkerbell Effect".