The Mount Garfield Out and Back is a 9.7-mile out-and-back with 2,880 ft of elevation gain.
9.7 mi • 2,880 ft gain • 5-8 hours • Mount Garfield Trailhead
Pemigewasset Wilderness Food Storage Requirement
Effective May 1st, 2026, all overnight campers in the Pemigewasset Wilderness must store all food, food containers, scented items (such as soap, lip balm, and toothpaste) and refuse in a cylindrical, hard-sided, non-pliable Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee (IGBC) certified bear resistant canister. Alternative methods, including bear hangs, for storing food and bear attractants in the Pemigewasset Wilderness will no longer be permitted as they have proven to be less effective than canisters. The only exceptions are the bear resistant food boxes located at the Thirteen Falls Tent Site.
Source: Forest Service
Feels like 48°F
Recent Precipitation
Rain: 0.30" (24h) · 0.31" (48h)
Best Hiking Window
Tuesday morning offers the best window, once Monday's rain and stronger winds taper off; early morning start recommended to take advantage of calmer conditions before afternoon drizzle returns
Conditions synthesized from: NWS Higher Summits Forecast, NOAA Open-Meteo, Mount Washington Observatory, NETC Trip Reports, NOHRSC Snow Depth, Mt. Washington Avalanche Center, USGS Stream Levels, OpenWeather Air Quality.
AI-generated from public data. Always verify conditions before heading out — backcountry weather can change quickly.
Summit-level conditions by time of day at 4,500' elevation
Tap a day header to expand to 3hr or hourly detail
Today Aug 17 | Tomorrow Aug 18 | Wednesday Aug 19 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | AM | PM | night | |
| Temperature & Wind | |||||||||
| Weather | fog | rain | drizzle | fog | fog | cloudy | cloudy | drizzle | cloudy |
| Temp °F hi / lo | 58° 56° | 62° 58° | 60° 56° | 56° 54° | 55° 53° | 57° 55° | 58° 55° | 62° 56° | 57° 55° |
| Chill °F | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Wind mph | 28 | 13 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 11 | 9 | 18 | 14 |
| Gust mph est. | 45 | 21 | 13 | 16 | 22 | 17 | — | 29 | 18 |
| Storm risk | — | mod | mod | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Precipitation | |||||||||
| Precip in (rain/snow) | - | 0.2 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Freezing ft | 14,603 ft | 14,389 ft | 12,764 ft | ||||||
| Conditions | |||||||||
| Cloud cover | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 100% | 88% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Vis mi | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | <0.1 | clear | clear | clear | clear |
| UV | 0 | 3 | — | 5 | 6 | — | 5 | 6 | — |
Tap a day header to expand AM/PM/Night detail
| Elevation | Today Aug 17 | Tomorrow Aug 18 | Wednesday Aug 19 |
|---|---|---|---|
| lo/hi °F · wind mph & dir · chill °F | |||
| Summit 4,500 ft | 56/58° 28 | 54/56° 10 | 55/58° 9 |
| 4,100 ft | 56/59° 27 | 55/57° 11 | 57/60° 8 |
| 3,300 ft | 58/61° 21 | 57/59° 11 | 60/65° 5 |
| 2,500 ft | 61/64° 14 | 60/61° 10 | 58/69° 3 |
| Trailhead 2,000 ft | 62/66° 11 | 62/63° 8 | 58/71° 3 |
4 more days of forecast — plan around the weather window, not just tomorrow.
Full hourly summit forecasts: Mount Garfield weather
The Mount Garfield Out and Back is a 9.7-mile out-and-back in New Hampshire's White Mountains, starting at Mount Garfield Trailhead. It climbs about 2,880 ft — an average of 296 ft per mile — which works out to roughly 5-8 hours at AMC book time. It summits 1 named peak, topping out on Mount Garfield at 4,500 ft: Mount Garfield (4,500 ft). HikerNerd rates it Difficult on effort alone — check the current conditions above before committing, since weather above treeline changes the day far more than the numbers do.
Distance
9.7 mi
Elevation Gain
2,880 ft
Duration
5-8 hours
Trailhead
Mount Garfield Trailhead
The Mount Garfield Out and Back is 9.7 miles round trip, starting at Mount Garfield Trailhead. At AMC book time — half the distance in hours plus 30 minutes per 1,000 ft of climbing — that works out to roughly 5-8 hours. Most parties take longer than book time on rough or above-treeline terrain, in winter, or with a heavy pack.
The Mount Garfield Out and Back climbs about 2,880 ft over 9.7 miles — an average of roughly 296 ft of gain per mile. That figure is cumulative ascent across the whole out-and-back, not the difference between the trailhead and the high point.
HikerNerd rates the Mount Garfield Out and Back Difficult, scored with the Shenandoah difficulty formula — √(elevation gain × 2 × distance) — applied to its 9.7 miles and 2,880 ft of gain. The score measures physical effort only. Above-treeline exposure, water crossings, and winter conditions can make a moderate-rated route the hardest day of your year, so check current conditions before committing.
The Mount Garfield Out and Back summits 1 named peak: Mount Garfield.
The Mount Garfield Out and Back starts at Mount Garfield Trailhead. Check the trail alerts on this page before you drive — trailhead access and parking in the White Mountains change with closures and construction.
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