Hiking in Groton & the Central Highlands

Groton State Forest holds the largest block of public land in central Vermont — Owls Head, Spruce Mountain, and a set of pond-side trails and fire towers with a fraction of the traffic of the spine to the west.

48Mapped trails

161 miTotal distance

599 ftAverage gain

Waterfall Hikes (13)Lake & Pond Hikes (26)Summit Hikes (331)Hikes to Shelters (35)Loop Hikes (88)Easy Hikes (186)Hardest Hikes (60)Long Day Hikes (67)Short Hikes (213)Fire Tower Hikes (13)

All 48 trails in Groton & the Central Highlands

Sorted by popularity. Every distance and elevation figure below is computed from the trail-snapped route geometry, not estimated from a map.

Trail	Distance	Gain	Difficulty
Ernie's Trail and Writghts Mountain Trail Loop	3.5 mi	956 ft	Moderate
Bald Top Loop via Cross Rivendell Trail	5.7 mi	1,561 ft	Hard
Devils Hill via Peacham Bog Loop	9.8 mi	985 ft	Hard
Irish Hill via Darling Road Trail	3.5 mi	1,003 ft	Moderate
Deer Mountain via Coldwater Brook Trail	4.3 mi	829 ft	Moderate
Wrights Mountain via Writghts Mountain Trail	3.1 mi	914 ft	Moderate
Paine Mountain Trail Loop	4.6 mi	1,188 ft	Hard
Owlshead Mountain via Owls Head Trail	3.4 mi	349 ft	Easy
Paine Mountain via Pony Express	4 mi	1,059 ft	Moderate
Little Deer Mountain via Telephone Line Trail	3.2 mi	284 ft	Easy
Deer Mountain via Hosmer Brook Trail	3.9 mi	880 ft	Moderate
Bald Top via Cross Rivendell Trail	3.1 mi	933 ft	Moderate
Paine Mountain Trail	3.3 mi	879 ft	Moderate
Bald Top via Wetlands Trail	3.4 mi	670 ft	Moderate
Deer Mountain via Osmore Pond Loop	4.5 mi	534 ft	Moderate
Little Deer Mountain via Big Deer Mountain Trail	4.5 mi	464 ft	Moderate
Little Deer Mountain via Osmore Pond Loop	2 mi	273 ft	Easy
Big Deer Mountain Trail	3.1 mi	553 ft	Moderate
Marshfield Mountain via Marshfield Ledges approach trail	1.6 mi	440 ft	Easy
Devils Hill via Devil's Hill Trail	1.7 mi	343 ft	Easy
Osmore Pond via Coldwater Brook Trail	5.5 mi	514 ft	Moderate
Osmore Pond via Hosmer Brook Trail	3.3 mi	335 ft	Easy
Sawyer Mountain Trail	2.3 mi	430 ft	Easy
Spruce Mountain Trail	4.2 mi	1,149 ft	Moderate
Spruce Mountain via Spruce - Seyon Trail	10.2 mi	1,737 ft	Strenuous
Pine Mountains via Pine Mountain Road	3 mi	231 ft	Easy
Lighthouse Hill via Town Highway 64 / Legal Trail 1	1.1 mi	162 ft	Easy
Bald Top via Ackerman Trail	1.3 mi	501 ft	Easy
Millstone Hill via Roller Coaster	1.6 mi	394 ft	Easy
Millstone Hill via Grand Lookout	1.1 mi	164 ft	Easy
Echo Mountain via Cross Rivendell Trail	1.4 mi	355 ft	Easy
Boyce Hill via Clay Slide Road	2 mi	370 ft	Easy
Hurricane Hill via Beard Road	1.8 mi	234 ft	Easy
Old Buffalo via Scrutton Hill Road	2.8 mi	463 ft	Moderate
Railroad Bed East and Railroad Bed West Loop	3.3 mi	162 ft	Easy
Bailey Pond via Pattys Crossing	3.1 mi	432 ft	Moderate
Flag Hill via Cross Rivendell Trail	1.5 mi	451 ft	Easy
Noyes Pond via Spruce - Seyon Trail	10.3 mi	858 ft	Hard
May Hill via Brushwood Road	3.3 mi	374 ft	Easy
May Hill via Cross Mountain Road North	1.9 mi	401 ft	Easy
Devil's Den via Rube's Trail	2.2 mi	592 ft	Moderate
May Hill via Mill Pond Road	2.1 mi	218 ft	Easy
Devil's Den via Nancy's Trace	2 mi	371 ft	Easy
Norwich Reservoir via Grow Place Road	2.5 mi	517 ft	Moderate
Cross Vermont Trail	4.5 mi	318 ft	Moderate
Cross Rivendell Trail	3.4 mi	980 ft	Moderate
Darling Road Trail	1.6 mi	489 ft	Easy
Notch Trail	1.1 mi	430 ft	Easy

Frequently asked questions

How many hiking trails are there in Groton & the Central Highlands?

RidgeSync maps 48 hiking routes in Groton & the Central Highlands, totalling about 161 miles with an average of 599 ft of elevation gain per hike.

What is the hardest hike in Groton & the Central Highlands?

Spruce Mountain via Spruce - Seyon Trail climbs the most, at 1,737 ft of gain over 10.2 miles.

What is the longest hike in Groton & the Central Highlands?

Noyes Pond via Spruce - Seyon Trail is the longest mapped route at 10.3 miles.

When is the best time to hike in Groton & the Central Highlands?

Late June through mid-October is the reliable window, and late September through mid-October is usually the best of it. Green Mountain Club and Vermont Forests, Parks & Recreation ask hikers to stay off trails above 2,500 ft during mud season, roughly mid-April through Memorial Day.

Nearby hiking areas

Waterbury & the Worcester Range21 trails Stowe & Mount Mansfield51 trails Camel's Hump & the Winooski Valley27 trails Breadloaf Wilderness & Mount Ellen40 trails

All Vermont hiking areas