South Twin Mountain

Trail: Gale River Road, Garfield Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Frost Trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur, North Twin Trail, Haystack Road

Conditions: Snow - Trace/Minimal Depth, Wet Trail, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow/Ice - Small Patches

“Dropped a car a 7 dwarfs for this traverse. Garfield Trail is a highway and we barebooted to the GRT junction. Over to Galehead is way better than it was 6 weeks ago, with the snow levels now much lower.The trail can get a little hard to follow at times, however. Snow was firm and supportive, post holed a few times but no big deal. Continued firmness all the way until descending North Twin. Spikes came off about .5 from the crossing. Went up and downstream, no good spot to stay dry. Can confirm trash bags are useless, got wet anyway. Oh well we were almost done at that point.”

Trail: Little River Road, herd path, Haystack Road, North Twin Trail, North Twin Spur, Twinway, Frost Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Gale River Trail, Gale River Road, Beaver Brook XC ski trails

Conditions: Dry Trail, Wet Trail, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Wet/Slippery Rock, Ice - Breakable Crust, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Mud - Minor/Avoidable, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Snow - Wet/Sticky, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow - Spring Snow

“Short version: Crossed the water in bare feet, wore spikes on solid monorail most of the day, and enjoyed better footing conditions than expected. A big, big day that included a pole being washed away then magically catching on a rock, trying to bushwhack from Galehead to Garfield Ridge Trail, and of course, crossing the Little River in bare feet. The road walk from 7 Dwarves is dry and fast. The first two miles of North Twin trail until the big crossing has some ice, but I barebooted the whole way. Opted for bare feet and rolled up pants after 25 minutes of trying to be elegant about the crossing. The log wasn't for me, and no rock hopping options were presenting themselves. Climb up to North Twin had crunchy snow and mud that turned into a surprisingly firm monorail. Spikes went on at 2500 feet and stayed on most of the day. Monorail continued to be firm to South Twin, down to the hut and then up to Galehead, making for much faster travel than anticipated. I've heard rumors of a bushwhack from Galehead to Garfield Ridge Trail. I didn't find any clear path, but I did make it down through the pines in better shape than I thought. Gale River Trail continues to have a firm monorail and then quickly switches to a mile or so of navigable mud before being mostly dry and fast. The road walk and ski trails are in mostly good shape.”

Trail: Beaver Brook XC ski trail, Gale River Road, Gale River Trail, Garfield Ridge Trail, Frost Trail, Twinway, North Twin Spur

Conditions: Wet Trail, Ice - Blue, Snow - Packed Powder/Loose Granular, Ice - Breakable Crust, Standing/Running Water on Trail, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Stable), Mud - Significant, Snow/Ice - Monorail (Unstable), Snow/Ice - Postholes, Slush

“This was a day. The road walk and first 2 miles of the trail were bare ground. There is a lot of water on the trail and some serious mud. After the larger water crossing we all put on spikes but there were still areas of bare ground and rock. The ice was thick but with the warm temps we had good purchase. Up higher, the snow is packed but if you deviate from the monorail even by inches, you will posthole. By the afternoon, things were melting and softening resulting is slippery slush for our descent. All of us found and fell in spruce traps. Conditions are tedious and very typical of April. Go early and take advantage of the colder temps when you can and pack your trash bags. Huge thanks to an amazing crew to keep me company today. Gridded out all 3 of these peaks today!”