It was a long winter, but after a quick thaw and
non-existent spring, I think it is safe to finally call it summer time. Furthermore, it is a few weeks past Memorial
Day, the unofficially official start to the hiking season! Given the first opportunity (Vermont weather
never likes to cooperate), of course I
would hit the trails on another 4000’ mountain.
My target was Mount Abraham in Vermont, a mountain barely
over the 4000’ threshold. This mountain
was the perfect tune up for the hiking season.
The Battell Trail gains 2550’ over roughly 3 miles. The trail starts as a casual walk through the
woods switching back and forth while slowly gaining elevation. After two miles, the Battell Trail joins with
the Long Trail. This is when the hike
gets interesting. The final push to the
summit features a decent scramble. While
there aren’t many outlooks or viewpoints along the way, the summit is wide open
with a full panorama. On a clear day,
you can easily see the Adirondacks across Lake Champlain and even the White
Mountains over 75 miles away!
A little past the summit on the Lincoln Gap (the ridge
connecting Mount Abraham and Mount Ellen), a side trail leads to a crash site. Luckily the pilot survived the accident.
Finally, the most enjoyable part of the hike: the summit
beer! My beer of choice for this hike
was Mostly Cloud: Long Trail’s Belgian style white. I found it to be on par with (maybe even
better than) Hoogarden with its spices.
Perfect for a warm late-spring/early summer hike.
In short, Mount Abraham was an excellent warm-up hike. Because of its relatively easy trails and wide open summit, Mount Abraham is one of my favorite hikes in Vermont!
Mount Abraham:
Views – 4.5 (Wide open summit; great views of the ADKs, Greens, and even Whites!)
Time – 4.5 (Easy half-day round trip)
Difficulty – 2.5 (Mildly difficult scramble to the summit)
Beer – 5 (Long Trail Mostly Cloudy)
Overall – 4.5 (Beautiful views; great warm-up hike)
Views – 4.5 (Wide open summit; great views of the ADKs, Greens, and even Whites!)
Time – 4.5 (Easy half-day round trip)
Difficulty – 2.5 (Mildly difficult scramble to the summit)
Beer – 5 (Long Trail Mostly Cloudy)
Overall – 4.5 (Beautiful views; great warm-up hike)
Stay tuned! I have since hiked the Hancocks in NH along with Tom and Field. Hopefully I'll get to those two posts in a more timely manner than this one...
