GPS-based B Travel/Hiking/Northeastern US Trailhead Coordinates, BEST HIKES OF THE E Trail Maps, and S Appalachian T Elevation Profiles If you’re looking for the best day hikes H oEnn gtlhaen Adp, lpoaolka cnhoia fnu rTthraeirl. iYno Nu ehwo ld CANADAUNITETDATES IKE Trail NNeeww EEnnggllaanndd in your hands an exciting new guide S S to outdoor fun. These 45 hikes have O ME been tested as suitable for families F with young kids, veteran hikers, and VT T everyone in between. H Connecticut • Massachusetts • Vermont • New Hampshire • Maine Tmhoes ht idkreasm inactilcu dpee askosm ael oonf gt hthe e A.T. NH AN TIA CN E A L E as it winds its way through New NY AT OC P England—from the relatively small MA P but steep mountains in western A Connecticut and Massachusetts, CT RI L up through the Green Mountains A of Vermont and the majestic White C H Mountains of New Hampshire, and fi nally the long trek across the mountains of western Maine to the mighty IA Katahdin, the northern terminus of the A.T. itself. This carefully curated N collection of short segments of America’s best-loved trail system offers a new T approach to enjoying the granddaddy of America’s trails. R There are relatively mellow hikes, long steep hikes, and hikes through dense A verdant forests. You’ll fi nd the best of the A.T. along the way, such as a hidden I L garden of dozens of white rock cairns, dramatic cliffside waterfalls, remote pristine ponds, and sweeping views of the New England backcountry. N e w This Guide Includes: E GPS-based trail maps and elevation profiles n Detailed directions to trailheads g l Ratings for scenery, trail condition, accessibility a n for children, difficulty, and solitude d ISBN 978-0-89732-476-2 $17.95 51795 MENASHA RIDGE PRESS Lafe Low MENASHA RIDGE PRESS Your Guide to the Outdoors Since 1982 9 780897 324762 Your Guide to the Outdoors Since 1982 Best Hikes of the Appalachian Trail: New England 55 20 40 BBAAXXTTEERR SSTTAATTEE PPAARRKK AA SS 44, 45 DD EE 15 30 20 55 CCAANNAA EEDD SSTTAATT MMoonnttrreeaall UUNNIITT 20 10 35 15 55 43 42 41 MMAAIINNEE 91 40 95 38, 39 VVEERRMMOONNTT 36, 37 93 35 AAuugguussttaa MMoonnttppeelliieerr 93 32 87 33, 34 29, 30 31 WWHHIITTEE 295 MMOOUUNNTTAAIINN 24 28 NNFFAAOOTTRRIIOOEENNSSAATTLL 23 26 27 PPoorrttllaanndd 25 21, 22 95 20 nn 18 19 91 NNEEWW89 CCoonnccoorrdd OOcceeaa HHAAMMPPSSHHIIRREE cc YYNNOOEERRWWKK MMaanncchheesstteerr aannttii 16, 17 93 AAttll AAllbbaannyy 15 14 90 13 MMAASSSSAACCHHUUSSEETTTTSS 87 9 12 BBoossttoonn 8 90 10, 11 6, 7 95 5 4 91 TSP 3 HHaarrttffoorrdd 2 395 1 RRHHOODDEE CCOONNNNEECCTTIICCUUTT IISSLLAANNDD 84 N 0 20.0 40.0 60.0 miles 95 0 20.0 40.0 60.0 kilometers Best Hikes of the Appalachian Trail: New England 55 20 40 BBAAXXTTEERR SSTTAATTEE PPAARRKK AA SS 44, 45 DD EE 15 30 20 55 CCAANNAA EEDD SSTTAATT MMoonnttrreeaall UUNNIITT 20 10 35 15 55 43 42 41 MMAAIINNEE 91 40 95 38, 39 VVEERRMMOONNTT 36, 37 93 35 AAuugguussttaa MMoonnttppeelliieerr 93 32 87 33, 34 29, 30 31 WWHHIITTEE 295 MMOOUUNNTTAAIINN 24 28 NNFFAAOOTTRRIIOOEENNSSAATTLL 23 26 27 PPoorrttllaanndd 25 21, 22 95 20 nn 18 19 91 NNEEWW89 CCoonnccoorrdd OOcceeaa HHAAMMPPSSHHIIRREE cc YYNNOOEERRWWKK MMaanncchheesstteerr aannttii 16, 17 93 AAttll AAllbbaannyy 15 14 90 13 MMAASSSSAACCHHUUSSEETTTTSS 87 9 12 BBoossttoonn 8 90 10, 11 6, 7 95 5 4 91 TSP 3 HHaarrttffoorrdd 2 395 1 RRHHOODDEE CCOONNNNEECCTTIICCUUTT IISSLLAANNDD 84 N 0 20.0 40.0 60.0 miles 95 0 20.0 40.0 60.0 kilometers Overview Map Key Connecticut New Hampshire 1 Mount Algo p. 28 26 Holts Ledges p. 160 2 St. Johns Ledges p. 33 27 Smarts Mountain p. 165 3 Pine Knob p. 38 28 Mount Cube p. 171 4 Mount Easter p. 43 29 Ore Hill p. 176 5 Mount Prospect p. 48 30 Mount Mist p. 181 31 Townline Trail p. 186 Massachusetts 32 Mount Moosilauke p. 190 6 Mount Everett p. 56 33 Cascade Brook Trail p. 195 7 Jug End State Reservation p. 61 34 Mount Liberty p. 200 8 East Mountain p. 66 35 Rattle River Trail p. 206 9 Benedict Pond and The Ledges p. 72 Maine 10 Cobble Hill p. 77 36 Old Speck p. 214 11 Baldy Mountain p. 83 37 Baldpate Mountain p. 220 12 Becket Mountain p. 87 38 Moody Mountain p. 225 13 Warner Hill p. 92 39 Old Blue Mountain p. 230 14 Tully Mountain p. 96 40 Bates Ledge p. 236 15 Mount Williams p. 101 41 South Pond p. 242 42 West Carry Pond p. 247 Vermont 43 Pleasant Pond Mountain p. 252 16 Harmon Hill p. 108 44 Little and Big Niagara Falls p. 258 17 Maple Hill p. 113 45 Katahdin p. 264 18 Bromley Mountain p. 118 19 Styles Peak p. 123 20 Little Rock Pond p. 128 21 White Rock Ledge p. 133 22 Bear Mountain p. 138 23 Pico Peak p. 143 24 Dana Hill p. 149 25 Dupuis Hill p. 153 BEST HIKES OF THE Appalachian Trail NNeeww EEnnggllaanndd Connecticut • Massachusetts • Vermont • New Hampshire • Maine Lafe Low MENASHA RIDGE PRESS Your Guide to the Outdoors Since 1982 Best Hikes of the Appalachian Trail: New England Copyright © 2016 by Lafe Low All rights reserved Copublished by Menasha Ridge Press and Appalachian Trail Conservancy Distributed by Publishers Group West Printed in the United States of America First edition, first printing Cover design by Scott McGrew Text design by Annie Long Cartography and elevation profiles by Scott McGrew Cover photos (clockwise from top): Hike 45, Katahdin; Hike 7, Jug End State Reservation; Hike 32, Mount Moosilauke; Hike 45, Katahdin Frontispiece: Jeffers Brook at the end of Townline Trail (see page 186) All cover and interior photographs, unless otherwise noted, by Lafe Low The Appalachian Trail symbol is a registered trademark of Appalachian Trail Conservancy. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Low, Lafe, 1952- Title: Best hikes of the Appalachian Trail : New England / Lafe Low. Description: First edition. | Birmingham, AL : Menasha Ridge Press, [2016] | “Distributed by Publishers Group West”--T.p. verso. | Includes index. Identifiers: LCCN 2015045322| ISBN 9780897324762 | ISBN 9780897324779 (eBook) Subjects: LCSH: Hiking—Appalachian Trail—Guidebooks. | Hiking—Connecticut— Guidebooks. | Hiking—Vermont—Guidebooks. | Hiking—New Hampshire— Guidebooks. | Hiking—Maine—Guidebooks. | Appalachian Trail—Guidebooks.| Connecticut—Guidebooks. | Vermont—Guidebooks. | New Hampshire— Guidebooks. | Maine—Guidebooks. Classification: LCC GV199.42.A68 .L655 2016 | DDC 796.510974--dc23 LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015045322 Menasha Ridge PRess An imprint of AdventureKEEN 2204 First Ave. S., Suite 102 Birmingham, AL 35233 aPPalachian TRail conseRvancy 799 Washington St. Harpers Ferry, WV 25425 appalachiantrail.org Visit menasharidge.com for a complete listing of our books and for ordering information. Contact us at our website, at facebook.com/menasharidge, or at twitter.com/menasharidge with questions or comments. To find out more about who we are and what we’re doing, visit our blog, trekalong.com. DISCLAIMER This book is meant only as a guide to select routes along the Appalachian Trail. This book does not guarantee hiker safety in any way—you hike at your own risk. Neither Menasha Ridge Press nor Lafe Low is liable for property loss or damage, personal injury, or death that result in any way from accessing or hiking the trails described in the following pages. Please be especially cautious when walking in potentially hazardous terrains with, for example, steep inclines or drop-offs. Do not attempt to explore terrain that may be beyond your abilities. Please read carefully the introduction to this book as well as further safety information from other sources. Familiarize yourself with current weather reports and maps of the area you plan to visit (in addition to the maps provided in this guidebook). Be cognizant of park regulations and always follow them. Do not take chances. Contents ovErviEw MAp inside front cover ovErviEw MAp kEy i dEdicATioN vii AckNowlEdgMENTs viii prEfAcE ix HikiNg rEcoMMENdATioNs xi iNTroducTioN 1 connecticut 26 1 Mount Algo. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 2 St. Johns Ledges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 3 Pine Knob . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 4 Mount easter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 5 Mount Prospect . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Massachusetts 54 6 Mount everett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 7 Jug end State Reservation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 8 east Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 9 Benedict Pond and Th e Ledges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72 10 Cobble Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77 11 Baldy Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 12 Becket Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 13 Warner Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92 14 Tully Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 15 Mount Williams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 vermont 106 16 Harmon Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 17 Maple Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113 18 Bromley Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118 19 Styles Peak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123 20 Little Rock Pond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 21 White Rock Ledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133 v Best Hikes of the Appalachian Trail New England 22 Bear Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138 23 Pico Peak . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143 24 Dana Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149 25 Dupuis Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153 New Hampshire 158 26 Holts Ledges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160 27 Smarts Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165 28 Mount Cube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171 29 Ore Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176 30 Mount Mist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181 31 Townline Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186 32 Mount Moosilauke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190 33 Cascade Brook Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195 34 Mount Liberty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200 35 Rattle River Trail . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206 Maine 212 36 Old Speck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214 37 Baldpate Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220 38 Moody Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225 39 Old Blue Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230 40 Bates Ledge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236 41 South Pond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242 42 West Carry Pond . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 247 43 Pleasant Pond Mountain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252 44 Little and Big Niagara Falls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258 45 Katahdin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 264 AppENdix A: Contact Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 272 AppENdix B: Appalachian Trail Communities . . . . . . . 273 iNdEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274 ABouT THE AuTHor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279 ABouT THE AppAlAcHiAN TrAil coNsErvANcy . . . . . . . 280 vi Dedication This book is dedicated to my best hiking, camping, and skiing buddy—my son, Devin Low. vii