New Hampshire trails · Garfield Ridge Trail
Garfield Ridge Trail
A 5.8-mile out-and-back in New Hampshire, with 1,872 ft of climbing. Reaches Mount Lafayette and other lake/summit destinations. Managed by Appalachian Trail.
Elevation profile
The climbing leans toward the final third: 47% of the ascent falls between mile 3.9 and mile 5.8. It gives back about 1,770 ft along the way, so it rolls rather than climbing steadily.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Mount Lafayette (summit)
- Mount Garfield (summit)
- Garfield Pond (lake)
Heads up
Daylight at the trailhead
On October 14, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:30 a.m., the sun rises at 6:59 a.m. and sets at 6:04 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 6:33 p.m. (EDT) — 11 h 05 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 11.6-mile round trip takes roughly 6 h 11 min, so leaving the trailhead at sunrise puts you back around 1:10 p.m. — 4 h 54 min before sunset.
Loop options
- GARFIELD TRAIL + Garfield Trail + Garfield Ridge Trail — 10.3 mi loop, 3,713 ft gain
- GALE RIVER LOOP SNOMO + Garfield Trail + Garfield Ridge Trail — 11.4 mi loop, 3,862 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Garfield Ridge — 0.0 mi
- Franconia Ridge — 3.7 mi
- Twinway — 4.2 mi
- Bondcliff — 5.5 mi