Blueberry Ledge Trail - Mount Whiteface

Hike date: 02/01/2020

Description: The Blueberry Ledge Trail offers a very scenic route to the summit of Mount Whiteface, though the upper portion of the trail is steep and rough, requiring some rock scrambling. Be ready for some steep ledges and nice outlooks! This trail can be one of the five elective trails needed for the patch.

Trails Used: The trailhead for this hike is at the end of Ferncroft Road. Ascend via Blueberry Ledge Trail to Rollins Trail to the true summit of Mount Whiteface. From here, you can turn around and descend the same way you came up. Or, you can make a big loop by continuing along Rollins Trail and then take Dicey’s Mill Trail to the summit of Mount Passaconaway. Descend via Dicey’s Mill Trail back to the trailhead.

Trail Summary: As you’re driving up Ferncroft Road, you’ll see a big open field. After that field, the parking lot will be on the right. You have to park here because the rest of the road is private access for the residents that live there. The road can definitely be a bit icy depending on the time of year you come and the recent conditions, so drive slowly as you pull in! We’ve actually done Blueberry Ledge Trail two ways - by an in and out to Mount Whiteface (ascending and descending Blueberry Ledge Trail) and as a big loop with Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway (only ascending Blueberry Ledge Trail). We did the loop clockwise by ascending Whiteface first then going to Passaconaway so that we would be going up the steep ledges rather than down them - more info on this loop can be found here. To get to the Blueberry Ledge Trail from the parking lot, you will have to walk along the road for about 0.3 miles, passing some of the houses, until you reach a split where Blueberry Ledge Trail goes left across a bridge (while Dicey’s Mill Trail continues straight). After the bridge, you will still be on a private gravel road for another 0.2 miles until you pass the last house and head into the woods. Soon after entering the woods, you will come to a split where the Blueberry Ledge Cutoff goes right along the Wonalancet River. The cutoff is equal in distance as the main trail, and is a bit more rougher than the parallel section of the Blueberry Ledge Trail. Though it is a nice alternative, we chose to stick to the main Blueberry Ledge Trail for this hike. The trail follows an old road for a while before passing through a flat area, where it then begins to start gaining elevation at a moderate grade. You will then come to the bottom of the ledges and climb to the top, where you will have limited views looking towards the Ossipees. The trail continues to climb moderately, and eventually the Blueberry Ledge Cutoff will rejoin the trail on the right (marked by a cairn). The trail enters the woods again, still climbing moderately, though there are some steeper sections that you’ll start to encounter. Once you reach the junction with Tom Wiggin Trail, after 3.2 miles of hiking, the trail will really start to climb as you ascend the ridge. You will approach a steep cliff and then you will climb up a steep ledge. This was the one spot we were most worried about, as it can be extremely treacherous if it is wet or icy. You’ll continue scrambling up steep, rough, and rocky terrain, passing lots of nice viewpoints that look west and east along the way. The ledges take you to a false summit, at the junction of the McCrillis Trail and Rollins Trail. To get to the true summit of Mount Whiteface, you will continue on the Rollins Trail for 0.3 miles. The Rollins Trail will do some minor ups and downs and pass the Kate Sleeper Trail before reaching the wooded summit of Mount Whiteface, which is indicated by a sign. After tagging the true summit in the woods, it’s time to head on towards Mount Passaconaway if you plan to do the loop (you can find more information on the loop here) or turn around and descend Blueberry Ledge Trail if you are only doing Mount Whiteface. When we descended the steep ledges of Blueberry Ledge Trail, we felt very safe as there are lots of trees and roots to hold on to as you make your way down. Of course, be sure to use caution as one bad move could lead to an injury!

A NOTE ABOUT THIS TRAIL IN WINTER: The most direct route to summit Mount Whiteface in the winter is via the Blueberry Ledge Trail. The steep nature of the upper portion and the numerous ledges create the potential for very icy and dangerous conditions. For this reason, we opted to carry full crampons and ice axes with us just in case we didn’t feel like we had enough traction. The section with the steep cliff where you will climb up a steep ledge is the one spot we were most worried about, as it can be extremely treacherous if it is wet or icy. Luckily for us, there was hardly any ice and we were able to scramble up this section with minimal difficulty and only using microspikes. There was only one section on the upper portion where we felt like we could have utilized our ice axes, though we did not actually use them. Be sure to be prepared for these conditions if you’re planning a winter trip up here - Blueberry Ledge Trail is not to be taken lightly!

Questions? Comments? Want to share your take on this hike? Get in touch with us using the contact page!

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