Hermit Lake

Length: 5.0 miles out-and-back

Difficulty (click for info): Moderate

Elevation Gain: 1850 feet (+0 feet on return)

Rating (click for info): 8/10

Elevation: 3856'

Driving Directions:
Trailhead and parking area are on Rt. 16, in Pinkhams Grant, NH, 11.8 miles north of its northern junction with Rt. 302 in Conway and 10.6 miles south of its eastern junction with Rt. 2 in Gorham. There is a very large parking area on the west side of the road at the AMC Pinkham Notch Visitor Center. Click here for a Google map.

About the Hike:
Not everyone is prepared to tackle the arduous trek to Mt. Washington. If you're in this category, there are still options which allow you to experience the grandeur of the mountain up close without committing to a full ascent. The lower half of the Tuckerman Ravine Trail, the most popular route up the mountain, is a great choice for sightseeing the incredible terrain for a much more doable hike. This part of the trail is wide, well-beaten, and gradual leading up to the Hermit Lake shelters. This quasi-road is used to bring supplies to the shelters and for backcountry skiers to make their exit from the ravine in spring. The walk into the floor of the ravine includes breathtaking scenery along the Cutler River, including Crystal Cascade, one of the White Mountains' most treasured waterfalls. Once there, you can admire the amphitheater-like ravine walls from the shore of Hermit Lake, a quiet mountain tarn nestled in a high-elevation spruce forest, and a smaller pond nearby.

To find the trailhead, walk into the common area directly across from the main entrance to the parking area. Bear right and walk around to the back of the visitors center, and look for the kiosk. The Tuckerman Ravine Trail begins here, splitting off to the left of Old Jackson Road. It begins climbing at an easy grade and soon comes alongside the Cutler River. There are many places where you can step off the trail to see small cascades. After 0.3 miles, the trail crosses the river on a bridge, steepens, and climbs for a short distance to an overlook with a stone wall just off to the right of the main trail. From here, you overlook the magnificent Crystal Cascade. It is about 100 feet tall in total, broken up into a wide 80-foot fan and a 20-foot plunge, separated by a pool.

After admiring the scenery, continue on the trail as it climbs more steeply upward for 0.1 miles on a wide pathway, passes a junction with Boott Spur Trail on the left, and makes a switchback to the right. With increasing amounts of rocks underfoot, but remaining a smooth walk from all the foot traffic, the trail makes two more curvy switchbacks and heads straight across the hillside in the valley of the Cutler River. After 0.9 miles on a moderate incline within birch and spruce forest, continue straight past a trail sign marking the start of the Huntington Ravine Trail on the right. The trail continues upward for another 0.2 miles and then crosses a brook on snowmobile bridge. Around this area, look back over the trail as views of Wildcat Mountain across the notch start to appear. Then, in 0.1 miles further, it crosses the boulder-filled south branch of the Cutler River on another bridge. Up past this point, you'll climb out of the deciduous forest into exclusively coniferous woods. In another 0.1 miles, stay left as the Huntington Ravine Fire Road diverges to the right. Now the trail takes a more winding course in proximity to the river, remaining very rocky. Then in 0.4 miles, pass the junction with Raymond Path on the right as the trail makes a final switchback to the left. 0.2 miles past this, pass signs for Lion Head Trail also on the right.

Less than 0.1 miles beyond this junction, you'll approach the main hub of the Hermit Lake shelters. Look for a trail taking off to the right which leads 200 feet up a small bank and along the shore of Hermit Lake. The waterbody itself is rather modest, including in size, but its beauty when taken with the views over the treetops of the rising ravine walls is unparalleled. Paths criss-cross this area toward various campsites, and a beaten path leads around the little lake, offering the opportunity for exploration. Continuing on the main trail, you'll quickly arrive in a clearing around the main building for the Hermit Lake shelters. Walk past it and follow the signs to continue on Tuckerman Ravine Trail (take care to bear left when returning back through this area, as another main thoroughfare leads downhill to more camps). Walk through a small patch of trees and come to a fence alongside an even tinier waterbody. From the grassy shoreline, enjoy even more open views ahead to the magnificent headwall of the ravine. Look closely to see the waterfalls careening over the many cliffs and ledges, sometimes called the Fall of a Thousand Streams.

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