Mount Eisenhower - 4,780'
Hike Statistics
Total Distance: 9.4 miles (with Mount Pierce)
Elevation Gain: 3,200 feet
Hiking Time: 6 hours, 30 minutes
Difficulty: Moderate
Season: Winter
Hiking this peak in winter? Click here!
Hike date: 01/02/2019
Description: This hike is one awesome “bang for your buck”... For a relatively moderate hike (at least to Mount Pierce), you get amazing views of the surrounding Presidential peaks. This hike can be done as a loop or as an in-and-out. We opted to do it as an in-and-out this time because we did not want to have to deal with the 2.3 mile road walk that comes with doing this hike as a loop. Using the below route, you will have the opportunity to spend time above treeline observing breathtaking views, see Gibbs Falls, and have the option to visit the Mizpah Spring Hut
Trails Used: Ascend via Crawford Connector to Crawford path to the summit of Mount Pierce. Continue following Crawford Path to a junction where you will go left to the summit of Mount Eisenhower. Descend by reversing your direction and going back down Crawford Path the way you came. You could also descend by Edmands Path and walk on Mount Clinton Road to make a loop.
Trail Summary: The trailhead for this hike is just off Mount Clinton Road. You will be taking Crawford Path to both Pierce and Eisenhower, and then back. This trail is known as one of the oldest maintained trails in the United States. From the trailhead, you have to take the Crawford Connector Trail for 0.4 miles to Crawford Path. It is a gradual climb to the junction. The entire duration of Crawford Path from this junction to the summit of Mount Pierce climbs at easy/moderate grades and does not have any tricky areas. Footing is always very good and the terrain is great. After hiking Crawford Path for 1.5 miles, you will come to a junction with the Mizpah Cutoff. Here you can either stay left to continue on Crawford Path to the summit or you can take the Mizpah Cutoff which goes by the Mizpah Spring Hut to the summit. Both routes ascend easily to the summit and take roughly the same amount of time and distance (about 1.2 miles). If you take the Mizpah Cutoff, you can stop by the Hut to get water and snacks. As you near the summit of Mount Pierce, it gets a bit rockier, but also there are ledges that begin to offer views. You will reach a junction where you need to go right and head 0.1 miles to the summit of Mount Pierce, which is open and offers amazing views.
Crawford Path ascends very moderately through the woods
Enjoying the incredible views on a cold but crystal clear day
The scenery above treeline, especially in the winter, is absolutely stunning!
After enjoying the summit of Mount Pierce, it’s now time to make the journey over to Mount Eisenhower, which is 1.5 miles away. At this point, Crawford Path goes in and out of patches of scrubs, meaning there are consistently open areas with incredible views all around. At some points it may be tough to judge where the trail heads, but just follow the cairns and they will guide the way. As you approach Mount Eisenhower, the trail begins to climb moderately over ledges and rocks. You will come to a junction where Crawford Path continues right, but you will want to go left here to get to the summit of Mount Eisenhower. At this point, it’s only 0.2 miles away with about 300 feet of elevation gain. There are some steep spots, but as long as you maintain good footing, getting to the summit is not bad. You will know once you’re at the summit once you’ve spotted the giant cairn. Here you can enjoy panoramic views of the surrounding Presidential peaks. To get back to the car, retrace your steps all the way back using the same way you came. You could also continue north for 0.4 miles to get back to the junction with Crawford Path where you will take a left and descend for 2.9 miles on Edmands Path to get to the road, where you then walk 2.3 miles back to the car. Doing this hike as an in-and-out amounts to about 3,200 feet of elevation gain.
Summit selfie from the top of Mount Eisenhower
Since it was just us at the summit, we had to use the iPhone timer to get a photo of the two of us.. it took a few tries!
Looking towards Mount Pierce as we head back from Mount Eisenhower
Alternative routes:
We have not yet done any alternative routes to the summit of Mount Eisenhower. This page will be updated once we have!
Hiking Mount Eisenhower in the winter
Mount Eisenhower is such a picturesque mountain in the winter, especially since the hike is not bad at all. From the open summit of Mount Eisenhower, you’ll get to enjoy pristine 360 degree views of the Presidential peaks and other surrounding mountains!
We have a complete blog post on our experience winter hiking Mount Eisenhower, which you can check out by going here!
Questions? Comments? Want to share your take on this hike? Get in touch with us using the contact page!
As experienced hikers, we always make sure that we are hiking with The Ten Essentials which include navigation, a headlamp, sun protection, first aid, a knife, shelter, extra food, water and clothes. Overtime, we have discovered some items that we always bring on our hikes and consider them to be our personal, expanded ten essentials.