The start of the trail passes beneath power lines with a fine view west towards the Bennington Monument.
Thursday, November 2, 2017
White Rocks(Bennington, Vermont)
There are several notable White Rocks in the Taconic Region, with the most popular being a gorgeous vista from the Long Trail in Wallingford, Vermont. Today, my game plan was to hike to the less popular, but no less beautiful, White Rocks in Bennington, Vermont. This White Rocks is actually just a 2400 foot shoulder of Bald Mountain, which I had summited twice previously from the east. Access is from a parking area along North Branch Street in Bennington. From the parking area, at a low elevation of only 730 feet, the trail climbs up newly built steps and passes a kiosk.
Although the calendar has turned to November, October's remnants are still clinging to the trees at the lower elevation.
The trail soon comes to a tunnel crossing under Vermont 279.
Once on the east side of the tunnel, I realized, that I love Vermont.
After passing beneath more power lines, the trail enters the woods on a wide, easy to follow trail.
The ascent is steady but certainly not steep. The biggest issue I had today was fallen leaves and wet rocks making for slick footing.
About one mile into the hike, the trail enters the Glastenbury Wilderness.
A small drainage has turned into a pretty, fast flowing stream following this week's heavy rains.
A final steep push gets you up to the incredible area known as White Rocks. Elevation is just under 2400 feet here, meaning the climb is about 1650 feet in 2.6 miles.
The view to the west over Bennington from White Rocks is spectacular. These are easily the best views of the Bennington area that I've seen yet. Mount Anthony is the prominent peak rising above the town.
The late afternoon sun made photographing difficult, but the views are outstanding nonetheless. Route 279 can be clearly seen snaking along west towards the New York state border.
I'm not sure of the story behind White Rocks, but it clearly appears that a substantial rock slide scarred the west side of the peak, offering up the vista that I enjoyed today.
Northwest views up the Valley of Vermont.
A very fun area to explore, with great views and interesting rock formations. The white "chalky" rocks are also very interesting to check out, albeit slippery when wet.
An enormous rock pile/ rock cairn marks the White Rocks area.
With the early sunset this time of year, I really had to scramble to get down off the mountain before darkness set in. Passing through the tunnel beneath 279 at dusk was a bit eerie.
Hiked about 5.2 miles RT on a mild November afternoon.
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There was a great fire in the 1920's that burned the top of Bald mountain and exposed the white rocks which cover much of the summit. Growing up in the 50's I could still see the white rocks exposed in a large scar near the summit. It is almost completely covered again now, and soon you won't be able to see it at all. That will be sad for me because I grew up seeing the White Rocks every day wondering what was up there. I hiked it a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your insight! Although there are no great views from the summit, I really enjoyed both of my previous hikes to the top. It is a truly unique summit experience.
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