A Short Hike on Whitefield Segment of the NH Heritage Trail

For readers who are unfamiliar with the Heritage Trail, this trail system was conceived in the late 1980s, but the idea never really took off.   The corridor was to have run north from Massachusetts along the Merrimack River to Franklin where it would join the Pemigewasset River and go through Franconia Notch to Lancaster, then follow the Connecticut River to Canada.  Although the trail system was never completed, there are places throughout the State where pieces of this trail still exist.  Near to me, there are segments in Bethlehem, as well as in Lancaster and Whitefield.

A portion of the Whitefield segment of the Heritage Trail is on the grounds of the White Mountain Regional High School.  To gain access to this trail segment, you can park at an area on the west side of Rt. 3 at a point that is 0.1 mile north of the entrance to the high school.  The first time you go there, you'll probably miss it.  It can be difficult to spot.  

A photo of the parking area is shown in the next photo.

Parking area for access to a segment of NH Heritage Trail in Whitefield, NH

Although the gate to the parking area has always been open on each of my visits, I've been told that there are times when the gate is closed.  If the gate is closed, then it's my understanding that as long as your vehicle doesn't block the gated entryway, then it's okay to park near the gate and simply walk around it.

Once you're at the parking area, you will see a large map which is featured in the next photo. 

Trail map at the parking area (CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE)

On some occasions, I've hiked the entire 2.3 mile Blue Trail loop.  However, on this June 30th trek, I just did an abbreviated 1.75 mile loop.  On the map shown above, I've inserted a series of white arrows to show my route.  Basically, I simply followed the Red Trail to its junction with the Blue Trail, and then hung a left and followed the Blue Trail to the high school.  From the high school, I walked the school road to Rt. 3, and then walked 0.1 mile northward back to my car.

On the above map, I have also inserted the approximate location where the Heritage Trail leaves the Blue Trail and heads over to Martin Meadow Pond Road where it then continues onward to Weeks State Park.  I followed that route a few years ago.  At that time, the corridor between the Blue Trail and Martin Meadow Pond Road was in need of maintenance and it was difficult to follow in spots.

Shown below are some snapshots that were taken during my short 1.75 mile loop hike on 30-June.  As can be seen in the first 3 photos, there were a lot of wild flowers in bloom along the route.

If you want some mountain vistas, there is a nice view of the Presidential Range from a little knoll at the southeast corner of the high school building.

Presidential Range as viewed from a knoll at southeast corner of high school building

With the aid of binoculars, you can even see the buildings on top of Mt. Washington.

Zoomed view of Mt. Washington from knoll at southeast corner of high school building

To sum it up, as with all the hikes included in this 2 SMALL 2B BIG blog, this mini-adventure is merely something enjoyable to do when you are short on time, or just want a brief outing to stretch your legs.
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P.S.  In my main blog (1HappyHiker), I recently posted a two-part report.  Part 1 of that report provides some details about a short trek along Pea Brook in the Shelburne, NH area.  This hike might also be of interest if you're looking for a mini-adventure in that part of the State.  Click HERE to access that report.