Nancy and I had a delightful hike over Mount Mansfield today. We parked at Barnes Camp on VT-108 and did a loop hike up the Long Trail to the Chin, along the ridge to the Nose, and down the Haselton Trail back to Barnes Camp.
The photo above is from the Long Trail on the way up. This photo is looking north from just north of the Chin. The nearby hump on the right side of the photo is the Adams Apple (4060'). To the left of the Adams Apple is the Lake of the Clouds, a pretty mountain tarn at about 3900'.
The photo below is from the Haselton Trail on the way down. This photo is also looking north, back at where we had come from. The Chin (Vermont's highest point at 4395') is visible between the trees at the left, as is the top of the gondola at Stowe Mountain Resort (3600'). Smugglers Notch (the geological feature not the ski resort) can be seen between the trees at the right.
Today's hike was 5.8 miles, elevation gain of 2,800'.
A few comments about Barnes Camp (photo below)…
Barnes Camp was built in 1927 as a logging camp and renovated in 2013-14 as a visitor center at the "southern gateway" of Smugglers Notch (i.e., the Stowe side). More info here and here.
In 2017 a boardwalk was completed at Barnes Camp that allows visitors to stroll through wetlands that would otherwise be inaccessible. More info here and here. The one-eighth mile long boardwalk also offers views of Smugglers Notch that were previously unavailable. The photo below was taken from the boardwalk earlier this year (not today), and shows Smugglers Notch and its reflection in a beaver pond:
The Long Trail in Smugglers Notch was re-routed this year to use the boardwalk, and Barnes Camp has become a major access point for the Long Trail. There is ample parking across VT-108 from the camp.
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