Mount Elmore
Mount Elmore is barely a mountain. Standing at a not so impressive height of 2,608 feet above sea level. When you look at Mt. Elmore from nearby Mt. Mansfield it looks nothing more than a hill. This does not make the trail that takes you to the top an easy one, just a short one.
To find the beginning of the trail, you will need to find Elmore State Park. That is easy enough. If you look close enough from Elmore State Park you can see the fire tower. You pay for yourself to go in, and begin following the signs that say trail will take you to where the gate is. The beginning of the trail is an old CCC road and current Catamount cross country skiing trail that will take you to where the real trail begins.
The woods that surround the road and trail are open and the trail begins with a steady upwards slope. This is not the most strenuous part of the hike, but make sure that you keep you energy up for when it gets harder near the top. As you ascend the trail takes a bunch of switchbacks and the wide path can narrow in places. All of this is still pretty easy, as long as the day you are hiking is not on one of those hot, humid, and hazy days that I took for this blog. On this day (it was July 20, 2011 and at the start of the heat wave for us), the kids and I were sweating pretty bad before we reached the first switchback. Lucky for us, I packed plenty of water. As the trail ascends, if you look carefully enough you can see conduit running along the path. This was for the electricity and telephone wires that powered the Fire Ranger's Cabin.
When the switchbacks are done, you come to the Fire Ranger's Cabin. It offers beautiful views to the east, that is if you can see anything besides haze, and if you look up at the mountain you can see the fire tower. The cabin was burnt by an arsonist, so all that is left is the foundations and cellar hole. Now, comes the fun part. As you leave the cabin and take your left to go up to the fire tower, you will notice that the trail leads directly to a pile of rocks. The trail is not only through the rocks, but you get to climb over them. There is a ladder and foot holds cut out of the rocks to make things easier, but you still get the fun of scrambling over them.
When you reach the top of the mountain you are greeted with two signs. One tells you to go left to the fire tower. The other asks that you go right to Balance Rock. Now, unless you are a geologist you will find nothing special about Balance Rock, but along the way there are great views to the north and the west. Again this is if it is not hazy that day. When you do finally reach the fire tower you will have to go an additional 61 steps to reach the observation deck high above the treetops. From the observation deck you can see most of Vermont, into New York and Canada, and all the way to Mt. Washington in New Hampshire, if it was a less hazy day. Now, that I have tantalized you with what the view could look like, you will need to do it for yourself. Just remember that when you are done with your hike, you can go for a swim in Lake Elmore that is also in Elmore State Park.
Happy trails and remember,
The Mountain Grows Taller Around Every Bend In The Trail.
To find the beginning of the trail, you will need to find Elmore State Park. That is easy enough. If you look close enough from Elmore State Park you can see the fire tower. You pay for yourself to go in, and begin following the signs that say trail will take you to where the gate is. The beginning of the trail is an old CCC road and current Catamount cross country skiing trail that will take you to where the real trail begins.
The woods that surround the road and trail are open and the trail begins with a steady upwards slope. This is not the most strenuous part of the hike, but make sure that you keep you energy up for when it gets harder near the top. As you ascend the trail takes a bunch of switchbacks and the wide path can narrow in places. All of this is still pretty easy, as long as the day you are hiking is not on one of those hot, humid, and hazy days that I took for this blog. On this day (it was July 20, 2011 and at the start of the heat wave for us), the kids and I were sweating pretty bad before we reached the first switchback. Lucky for us, I packed plenty of water. As the trail ascends, if you look carefully enough you can see conduit running along the path. This was for the electricity and telephone wires that powered the Fire Ranger's Cabin.
When the switchbacks are done, you come to the Fire Ranger's Cabin. It offers beautiful views to the east, that is if you can see anything besides haze, and if you look up at the mountain you can see the fire tower. The cabin was burnt by an arsonist, so all that is left is the foundations and cellar hole. Now, comes the fun part. As you leave the cabin and take your left to go up to the fire tower, you will notice that the trail leads directly to a pile of rocks. The trail is not only through the rocks, but you get to climb over them. There is a ladder and foot holds cut out of the rocks to make things easier, but you still get the fun of scrambling over them.
When you reach the top of the mountain you are greeted with two signs. One tells you to go left to the fire tower. The other asks that you go right to Balance Rock. Now, unless you are a geologist you will find nothing special about Balance Rock, but along the way there are great views to the north and the west. Again this is if it is not hazy that day. When you do finally reach the fire tower you will have to go an additional 61 steps to reach the observation deck high above the treetops. From the observation deck you can see most of Vermont, into New York and Canada, and all the way to Mt. Washington in New Hampshire, if it was a less hazy day. Now, that I have tantalized you with what the view could look like, you will need to do it for yourself. Just remember that when you are done with your hike, you can go for a swim in Lake Elmore that is also in Elmore State Park.
Happy trails and remember,
The Mountain Grows Taller Around Every Bend In The Trail.
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