This day hike involved going up the North Twin Trail to the summit of North Twin Mountain and from there along the North Twin Spur to the summit of South Twin Mountain, returning along the same route. It was a beautiful sunny day but the weather forecast was way off, much cooler than predicted with some icy crust on trees, mud, etc. Luckily, it warmed up a bit as the day went on and we avoided the worst of the wind. But it definitely felt more like a mid-November hike, not mid-October.  

The starting point for this hike was the parking lot at the end of Forest Service dirt road #304, i.e., Haystack.  The four of us stated out at 8:30. The first few miles of the North Twin Trail are relatively a breeze and perfect for a nice morning stroll through the forest. The trail goes right along the Little River, following an old, overgrown logging road and rail bed at points. There was one tricky river crossing otherwise they were easy to get across.  

The trail only climbs about 500 feet in the first section along the river but then climbs over 2000 feet in the next two and it does not waste any time in gaining elevation. It’s a nice trail compared to many, not overwhelming with rocks or roots, but still a continual tough slog all the way up, we all felt it! We still made pretty good time and we crested the summit of North Twin Mountain in only two hours. And so worth it, sunny with gorgeous 200–360-degree views including the snowcapped whites in the distance. 

The views were stellar from that point onward when not transversing through the woods on the ridge. We did split  up and leaving two there with two heading for the other summit, then rejoining at the north summit for lunch. Compared to many NH 4000 footers the hike down was pretty easy, but we took it somewhat slower because of all the wet leaves covering everything, especially in the last few miles. We were back to the parking lot at 4pm.

For sure it’s a workout getting up there, but in many ways the Twins is one of the best hikes NH offers, demonstrated by the plenty of folks and dogs hiking along with us for the day. Unfortunately, my calm and detoxed brain only lasted to the notch heading south on 93 which was bumper to bumper from Rt 3 all the way - took about 35 extra minutes to get through it. Drat those leaf peepers! Should have anticipated it and gone back to Boston via Rt. 16. Ah well, was still great day!

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