West Mountain(Berkshires)

Headed east after work today to bushwhack 1958 foot West Mountain, a small peak located in the Pittsfield State Forest just over the Massachusetts state line.  I parked at a state forest gate at the very end of West Street, a short distance past Berkshire Community College.  Beyond the gate, a very rough old road continues west into the state forest, ascending from the starting point of 1200 feet.  There was about 4 or 5 inches of crunchy snow that broke through on every step, slowing me down just a bit.

About 4/10 of a mile along the road, just past a large field, I entered the woods, climbing NW towards the ridge.  I was shocked to spot some kind of old utility pole deep in the woods at about 1600 feet.  It may very well have run over the ridge to connect homes on the old nearby Lebanon Springs Road.

The woods are very open and I made good time heading up, hitting the main ridge at about 1700 feet and continuing right up to the summit. 

 From the summit there is a good view northeast, with the neighboring peaks of the state forest to the left and Onota Lake to the right.

 From the summit clearing, a zoom view towards Pittsfield, just beyond snow covered Onota Lake.

After enjoying the cold summit view, I headed over to the steep west slopes in hopes of finding some kind of view.  I did manage to find screened views through the trees towards Doll Mountain over the steep ravine below cut out by Lilly Brook.

 Through the trees and slightly more northwest, I found these views west into rural Columbia County in New York state as well.

I hugged the steep west facing slopes hoping for the best, but all in vain.  Doll Mountain and the deep ravine of Lilly Brook were very nice though.

I stayed more on the ridge for the descent, dropping down a slightly different route than the way up.  Was a bit surprised to stumble into a large area of conifers before arriving back at the old road.  Followed my footsteps back from there to complete a short but sweet little hike.

Total mileage for this excursion was 2.6 miles RT with 900 feet of ascent.

Red=Ascent     Blue=Descent