Mount Liberty - 4,459'
Hike Statistics
Total Distance: 10.1 miles (with Mount Flume)
Elevation Gain: 3,500 feet
Hiking Time: 7 hours
Difficulty: Difficult
Season: Summer
Hiking this peak in winter? Click here!
Hike date: 07/08/2018
Description: Mount Liberty is located in the middle of the Franconia Ridge and has a ledgy peak with excellent views of the surrounding area, including the Pemigewasset Wilderness. The Franconia Ridge Trail is one of the most popular trails in the White Mountains, so you can always expect lots of people if the weather is nice. Using the route below, you’ll have the opportunity to climb up a steep slide trail, spend time above treeline surrounded by amazing views, summit Mount Flume, and see the Liberty Spring Tentsite.
Trails Used: Ascend via Whitehouse Trail (located at Flume Visitor Center) to Bike Path to Liberty Spring Trail. Take Liberty Spring Trail until you come to a junction with the Flume Slide Trail, which you will then take to Franconia Ridge Trail. Descend via Liberty Spring Trail.
Trail Summary: This is a fun loop hike that gets two 4,000 footers using a steep slide trail. Note that it is possible to still do both peaks without having to climb the slide trail - more details on this to follow. This hike starts at the parking lot found right near the Flume Visitor Center. You’ll begin by taking the Whitehouse Trail for 0.7 miles with some minor elevation gain until it connects with a bike path. Following the bike path, you’ll come to a bridge that you should cross and you will end up at the Liberty Springs Trail. This trail begins by climbing moderately towards the mountain with nothing too difficult terrain wise. After 0.6 miles on the trail you will come to the from the junction with the Flume Slide Trail, which is the trail you’ll take to ascend doing this loop. NOTE: If you are not planning to do this hike as a loop, then you would ascend via Liberty Springs Trail to Mount Liberty and then take the Franconia Ridge Trail to Mount Flume. After summitting Flume, you would turn around and go back the same way you came all the way back to the car. We took the more interesting way by choosing to go up the Flume Slide Trail. In 3.3 miles, you’ll be at the summit of Mount Flume. However, the upper section of this trail is absolutely brutal. It is extremely steep and the terrain is very rough. For these reasons, you should not attempt this trail if it has rained recently and you should definitely not descend it! The lower portion of the trail (the first 2.5 miles or so) climb moderately through the woods, crossing some water at places and running along a brook for a bit. After this point, this is where the real climbing begins as the trail climbs 1,400 feet in this 0.7 miles. The slide consists of very loose rock, ledges, and lots of rock slab. The trail is often wet so use extra caution! The trail continues climbing steeply over rocks and roots until it reaches the Franconia Ridge Trail. Do note that there are several side paths that run through the woods along the slide that bypass some of the most challenging portions! These are a good option if you’re feeling nervous. After walking on the Franconia Ridge Trail for 0.1 miles, you’ll be at the beautiful open summit of Mount Flume! More specific details and photos about the Flume Slide Trail can be found here.
Starting up the Flume Slide Trail; nothing too crazy yet
Typical terrain on the Flume Slide: steep, rocky, and tough!
Enjoying the views from Mount Flume with the entire Franconia Ridge in the background
After enjoying the panoramic views off Mount Flume, it’s time to continue onto Mount Liberty which is 1.2 miles away and will require 650 feet of elevation gain. This portion of the Franconia Ridge Trail descends moderately into the col, then ascends moderately to right below the summit of Mount Liberty where it gets steep and rocky. Mount Liberty is also an open summit offering fine views in all directions. After enjoying the summit and some lunch/snacks, it’s time to head down. Follow the Franconia Ridge Trail for 0.3 miles until you come to the junction with the Liberty Springs Trail. This small section is steep and rocky. Once on the Liberty Springs Trail, you have 3.2 miles until the next junction. The whole trail is a very consistent fairly steep grade the whole way down, as you’ll lose over 3,000 feet in elevation. After 0.3 miles on the Liberty Springs Trail, you’ll pass through the Liberty Springs Tentsite where you can refill water if needed (it should be filtered first). After making your way down the Liberty Springs Trail, you’ll be back at the Whitehouse Trail again where you follow that back out to the car. This is a very scenic hike that should be saved for nice weather, especially if you plan on doing the Flume Slide Trail! It’s a fun loop if you enjoy rock scrambling and you’ll be rewarded with amazing views.
Looking at Mount Liberty (closest peak all the way on the left) - our next stop!
Enjoying the breathtaking views from the summit of Mount Liberty
Looking east into the Pemigewasset Wilderness from the summit of Mount Liberty
Alternative routes:
We have not yet done any alternative routes to the summit of Mount Liberty. This page will be updated once we have!
Hiking Mount Liberty in the winter
We have not yet climbed Mount Liberty in the winter, but once we do, we will update this page with our full report!
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.