Home States  Connecticut  Maine  Massachusetts  New Hampshire  New York  Rhode Island  Vermont  View All Lists  NE 4,000 Footers  NE 100 Highest  NH 4,000 Footers  NH 52 With A View  NH Belknap Range  NH Ossipee 10 Explanation of Ratings Links Ossipee Mountains Notice Search Trail Conditions Trip Log About	Mt. Jefferson Randolph, NH, Thompson and Meserve's Purchase, NH Trailheads, measurements, times, distances, and maps are all approximate and relative to the hike(s) as shown below. Looking down the Castle Trail Route: Castle Trail, (Mt. Jefferson), Caps Ridge Trail With a nice forecast, it seemed like a great day to head up to the Northern Presidentials. The Castle Trail started off fairly gently, working its way around a field and along a stream. After the first trail junction, things began to steepen up. After the Link junction, the trail immediately began to get technical with some exposed rock slab scrambles. Though a few were tricky, there were fortunately enough hand holds to ensure ascent. In slippery conditions, this wouldn't be much fun! The Castles section of the trail was very scenic and interesting, as the rocky crags provided a fun route with unique views. Above the Cornice junction, the trail was typical Northern Presidential traprock. The views from the crowded summit of Mt. Jefferson were tremendous - though things were clouding up to the south, the visibility was nonetheless strong. Needing to get back south later in the afternoon, I descended a busy Caps Ridge Trail back to my vehicle-spot. A nice day for Mt. Jefferson! Hike Ratings Getting To Trailhead: Easy Destination: Mt. Jefferson Length: Moderate Steepness: Very Difficult Navigation: Moderate Views: Excellent Crowds: Heavy Hike Stats Date Hiked: Friday, August 28, 2009 Hike Commenced: 7:27 AM Parking Elevation: 1,500' Destination: Mt. Jefferson Ascent Commenced: 7:27 AM Summit Reached: 12:29 PM Time Elapsed: 05:02 Trailhead Elevation: 1,500' Summit Elevation: 5,712' Distance: 5 miles Vertical Gain: 4,462' Hike Ended: 2:40 PM Hike Time Elapsed: 07:13 Hike Distance: 7.5 miles Hike Vertical Gain: 4,527' The Castle Trail trailhead off US 2 Looking down the Castle Trail Looking at Mt. Adams from Mt. Jefferson Directions to trailhead: Take US 2 West from Appalachia. Shortly after passing the Lowes Path trailhead, the Castle Trail trailhead will be on the left side of the road, as well as a small parking area located adjacent to a field. To get to the Caps Ridge Trail trailhead, take Route 302 West from Bartlett into Carroll. Just after Saco Lake, take a right onto Mt. Clinton Road. Cross over Base Road and continue on Jefferson Notch Road. At the high point of the road, the WMNF fee parking lot will be on the right. The Caps Ridge Trail trailhead is at the back of the parking lot. Back to Mt. Jefferson Profile
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