April 17, 2021, we hit the trailhead to Blueberry Porter trail in Keene NY, right next to rcy Field. Due to DEC Spring time hiking regulations -we were looking for a fun hike that was within the 2500' elevation limit.
We found Blueberry Mountain and were super excited by it! The steepness of the climb & the gorgeous summit views that awaited us! The hike was a 4 mile 2,000 ft of elevation gain hike - so yes, definitely a steep one.
The trail begins on a dirt path and then you come up to this sign (see above), veer to the left to follow the Blueberry trail. The trail at this part is a little strange, mainly dirt some little rocks but lots of "posted" signs following someone's property line. The trail on this day was very wet from a night of rain and muddy.
As we continued on our hike, you begin to climb pretty early into your trek. Nothing technical, mainly just elevation gain as you follow a stream - which makes for a peaceful stroll in the woods, and boy was the stream flowing! This trail is gorgeous, waterfall, lots of vegetation and trees, it honestly felt really desolate which I loved.
After about .6 miles the trail crosses a stream, even though the water was high this time of year, it was still very straight forward and felt very safe to cross.
Once you've crossed over, you begin some more technical hiking. This section of the trail features rock scrambles alternating with slab climbs. The variety in the terrain helped balance out and distract you from the steep climb you are making. I think it's because the terrain slows you down quite a bit!
Once we reached about 1 mile into our trek, we reached the snow line. Because over the past few days prior it had snowed about 6" in the ADK, we knew to expect some residual snow on the trails. Snowshoes weren't necessary however, as quite a bit had already melted due to warmer weather. Microspikes were just enough! It's really so amazing how one weekend prior we were able to hike in just t shirts. Keep this in mine when hiking this time of year - always be over prepared, as you can see below we were in a winter wonderland again!
The snow being so mushy and the wetness of the trail made for some really slow moving and although this may not sound fun, we were loving the quietness and remote feeling of this trail!
A few steep slab climbs and some more winding through the woods and we were there! The summit of Blueberry Mountain is gorgeous, widespan views over the town of Keene and this day - we were loving the frosted mountains with the cloudy dreary day - just stunning!
** Prior to this hike we looked on alltrails and saw that this summit was home to a massive boulder, however on this day we didn't see it. I read online after that if you continue hiking past the summit - you'll come across this big rock! Next time!
We didn't spend too long at the summit as we were getting quite chilly standing up there in the snowy wet conditions, so we continued carefully and slowly back down the mountain.
Another beautiful day in the woods and a really really fun mountain! I will definitely do this peak again!