Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway via Blueberry Ledge Trail and Dicey's Mill Trail
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Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway Hike Details
Trail: Blueberry Ledge Trail > Rollins Trail > Dicey’s Mill Trail > View Spur > Dicey’s Mill Trail
Miles: 10.5
Hours: 6:30 hiking, 7:30 total
Level: Moderate/Difficult
Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway Hike Overview
Mount Whiteface (4,020’) and Mount Passaconaway (4,043’) are two mountains in the Sandwich Range of the White Mountains that are commonly hiked together. Mount Whiteface was named after the large granite cliff that lies on its mountainside. Although both summits are wooded, there are overlooks near each summit that offer incredible views.
Note: There are a few things to note about the hike to Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway. 1) Blueberry Ledge Trail is on the Terrifying 25 List, but don’t let that scare you away from it! One section of the Blueberry Ledge Trail looks impossible to climb, but there is an easier route on the left side. I would not recommend hiking Blueberry Ledge Trail if it is icy or wet. 2)The trailheads pass through people’s backyards, so please be very respectful and stay on the trails. 3) Do not skip out on the View Spur past Mount Passaconaway! The views are incredible.
Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway Hike via Blueberry Ledge Trail
September 19, 2020
**Always remember to leave no trace. It is crucial to pack out what you pack in and throw away your trash properly.
Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway were number 46 and 47 for me on the New Hampshire 48 4,000 Footer list, so I was excited to hike them! I reached out to a group of wonderful women, looking for a hiking partner, and was happy to have found someone to tackle Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway with me! I was okay with hiking these alone but was hoping to find someone.
Megan and I began hiking to Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway at 8:00 AM on an unseasonably cold Saturday morning in September. The predicted summit temps were 0-10 degrees with the wind chill, so we both packed a lot of layers for our hike. The Blueberry Ledge Trail began in a residential neighborhood that had a small parking lot. Parking was only allowed in the parking lot, and those who parked on the street received parking tickets.
The beginning of Blueberry Ledge Trail to Mount Whiteface was an easy walk in the woods and pretty uneventful. After about a mile, the real ascent began up many rock stairs. Blueberry Ledge Trail switched back and forth between steep and flat sections for the next mile until we finally reached the infamous Blueberry Ledge. During the beginning of our hike, we were talking about the ledges and waiting for the moment we saw them. And if I am honest, I was expecting more. The first few scrambles were relatively easy because we had grippy boots, so we didn’t have any issues climbing them. As we climbed further up the ledges, we came to the section everyone talked about. We looked up at it, and both said, “how the heck are we going to climb that?”. I read a lot about Blueberry Ledge Trail so I could be ready for the ledges, and I remembered that a few people noted to climb left on the section that looks impossible. There was a tree under a massive boulder that we used as leverage to pull ourselves up and then continued left around the boulder and to the top of the ledge. Even though that was the “easier” way to climb, it was still difficult. That was the only section on the Blueberry Ledge trail that got my heart pumping.
After the heart-pumping ledge, we continued to climb up a few more rock scrambles to the summit of Mount Whiteface. We stopped so many times to take in the beautiful views from the ledges, looking towards the Lakes Region. We had a bluebird day so we could see for miles. The confusing thing about Mount Whiteface is there is a summit marker on a ledge with views, but many people from the reviews I read said the actual summit is wooded. Everyone we talked to at the summit said the summit marker was the actual summit, so I’m honestly not sure where the actual summit of Mount Whiteface is. We were hiking the full loop to Mount Passaconaway, so we knew we would touch the summit at some point during our hike. We decided to relax and eat our lunch on a boulder near the summit overlooking the Lakes Region. It was chilly on Mount Whiteface but not as bad as I anticipated.
After a wonderful half-hour break, we decided to continue our hike on Rollins Trail to Mount Passaconaway. The 2.5 miles on Rollins Trail were pretty uneventful and passed by quickly. There were a few sections of Rollins Trail that had the start of erosion, but they were easy to hike around. Before we knew it, we were at the junction of Walden Trail. I read reviews that Walden trail was miserable, so we continued left for a half-mile on Rollins Trail to the summit of Mount Passaconaway. There was a small, almost unnoticeable spur that led to the summit of Mount Passaconaway, which was wooded. We took a quick picture with the rock cairn marking the summit of Mount Passaconaway and hiked back to Rollins Trail.
Every hiker we passed heading to the summit told us not to skip the View Spur, so we followed their advice and hiked 0.3 miles to the lookout. And it was SO worth it! The views overlooked the entire White Mountains from Franconia Ridge to the Presidentials. Honestly, it was one of the best lookouts I have seen in New Hampshire. We sat at the overlook for a half-hour and talked with a few other hikers while taking in the views.
We finally convinced ourselves it was time to say goodbye to the views and begin our descent. We hiked back up towards the Mount Passaconaway spur and continued left on Rollins Trail. Once we were at the Dicey’s Mill Trail junction, we turned right to continue on Dicey's Mill Trail for 3 miles to the parking lot. The descent on Dicey’s Mill Trail was uneventful but very easy. We flew down the trail, and before we knew it, we were walking along an unpaved driveway. We arrived at the parking lot at 3:30 PM, and I felt so excited that I only had one more hike to complete the New Hampshire 48 4,000 Footers!
Honestly, I really enjoyed the hike to Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway. The views were so beautiful and made the steep ascents worth it!
Have you hiked Mount Whiteface and Mount Passaconaway? Did you hike them together?
Hey, I’m Nichole!
I am the creator behind Nichole the Nomad, the home of my explorations around the world, mountain hikes, and beautiful pictures taken along the way. I have a deep passion for capturing the world in a beautiful light and sharing my experiences.
I created this blog to share my travels, show how beautiful the world is, provide tips and tricks for traveling, and encourage you to explore. Whether you want to travel across the world or explore what’s in your backyard, I hope this blog inspires you to get outside and find your adventure!