The views and perfect weather on Sunday made Mount Belvidere one of my new favorite hikes in Vermont. I had long delayed this trek due to choosing all-ability hikes when I led programs with the Adventure Sports Center, but I certainly regretted that after falling in love with the views.
Though the Long Trail gains about 2000' over 2.8 miles from Route 118 to the Belvidere fire tower, the gain felt gradual throughout most of the hike. With a lengthy summit break and no attempt to make a speed record, we went to and from the car in about 3.5 hours.
The small parking lot at the foot of access to Belvidere at the north and Devil's Gulch south was full by our 10 am arrival, as was the upper lot upon our return. It seemed most folks were heading to Belvidere, I saw more parties on the trail than anywhere in Vermont but Mansfield. Many wore backpacking attire, which I keenly envied having had months since my last overnight trip.
The first 0.7 miles follow a gorgeous stream, nicely decorated with fresh-fallen foliage. After leaving the drainage, we gained steeply for a moment which was tricky with how many leaves were on the ground! Emily and I both fell twice on the way down on account of leave slippage, but nothing too pressing.
As we got into the spruces we climbed over a few rocks, each of them with unique glacial patterns to reach the top. I suppose you could call it a slab-scramble but of the easiest variety. I imagine it would only present a significant challenge to a kiddo with short legs. The last 0.2-mile push to the fire tower was up some loose rocks on a sand/gravel footway. It gained a quick hundred feet until we were greeted with the 50-foot fire tower and excellent partially-obstructed views.
I was shocked at how much bolder the fall colors were in the Northeast Kingdom compared to the Burlington area. The Belvidere valleys were painted perfectly red and orange, even the asbestos mine looked a little bit pretty. Looking north, there were plenty of clouds swimming over the Long Trail, obstructing our view of Jay. More closely, I saw Mount Haystack and Sugarloaf on either side of the nearby Hazen's Notch.
Emily and I stayed at the top for a while, waiting for the clouds to allow slightly different views, before making our way down some slippery leaves. On our way down, we saw a handful of folks making their way up, some just for the day others with overnight packs. The sun came back out as we got back below 2000' and it made for a perfect temperature through our hike.
I certainly wish I'd visited Mount Belvidere earlier, but I'm glad I still have an opportunity to return before my time in Vermont comes to an end!
Stats:
5.87 Miles
2,064 gain
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