Hiking Mount Hunger - Waterbury, Vermont

Spending time with your favorite gal pals up in the Green Mountains on a sunny Saturday is the ultimate "reset" for the tired soul.  Friday at quitting time we packed up the car with 8 bags of snacks, roughly 200 spiked seltzers, and our best 90s playlist for the drive north to Stowe, Vermont.  We woke up early Saturday morning and grabbed some coffee, bagels, and bacon before heading to the neighboring town of Waterbury, Vermont for our hike.  We rolled the windows down as we drove to the trailhead, blasting our favorite 90s jams, singing all the words we thought we knew.  Every good adventure starts with the windows down and the music up.  

First Impressions 

This is not a hike for the faint of heart.  There are no flat sections and you will have to do a little bit of scrambling in places (and you will do a whole lot of sweating). With that being said, we really enjoyed the workout before an afternoon of overindulging at local restaurants and breweries.  This is a great hike for a hot sunny day as you stay under the treeline until reaching the summit.  The trail was pretty quiet for a sunny Saturday in August and the summit only had a few people enjoying the view.  I loved that the trail and summit were relatively quiet - you could find solitude on the trail, as well as at the peak.  The view is 100% worth the workout as you get a 360 view of the Green Mountains around and below.  A challenging (dog-friendly) hike with rewarding views.  A summer hike to the top of Mount Hunger should be on the top of your list when visiting beautiful Stowe.

Trail Stats 

Trailhead: Shows up on google as "Hunger Mountain Trailhead" - The trailhead is off Sweet Farms Road in the C.C. Putnam State Forest/Waterbury Trail Head.  The lot has a small sign that blends in with the brush so keep your eyes peeled for "Putnam State Forest, Burt Hollow Block, Waterbury Trailhead". There is a small parking lot that was filling up fast by 10am. 

Trail:  Relatively easy to follow (blue blazed) - out and back - there is only one trail from the parking lot.  Follow this trail all the way to the summit and return the way you came. There are trails stemming from the summit traversing in different directions so make sure you return on the same trail. 

Distance:  That sign is deceiving, I clocked this at over 2.25+ miles one way (4.5+ miles round trip, maybe closer to 5) 

Elevation: 3,538’ at the summit, 2,300 ft elevation gained 

Difficulty:  Moderate to difficult - It is a workout!  The entire hike is steep, with consistent elevation with some rocky area you will have to use your hands/arms to haul yourself up and down rocky sections - definitely some scrambling towards the summit. 

Dog-friendly:  Yes - but experienced pooches! There may be a few spots where you have to assist your dog up a rock face or two. 

Kid-friendly: Older and experienced only - steep and rocky sections.

Views:  The entire hike is below the tree line but once you get to the summit, you have amazing 360 views of Vermont down below. If you feel like continuing on, head over to White Rock (a sign and a  trail branches off about 0.25 miles before from the summit). 

The hike follows a dirt/rocky trail to the summit.  It is a relatively easy (and the only) trail to follow from the trailhead to the top.  There is one split off near the summit for "White Rock" which our tired legs avoided.  It was a humid day in Vermont and we worked up a sweat making our way to the summit.  We packed one bag with water and snacks and took turns wearing the pack.  I forgot how nice it felt to hike without a bag on your shoulders.

When you finally get above the treeline just before the summit, you are rewarded with the most amazing views of Vermont's landscape down below.  We spent a good 30 minutes at the summit, cooling off, snacking away, and snapping photos to commemorate our awesome lady weekend.  #LadyWeekend

Back at the condo, we did the math and realized we had been coming to this town together for over a decade, making our way to Vermont throughout high school to run the Vermont City Marathon Relay together.  So many trips to this town together and as we all turned 30, it is nice to know I still have these wonderful humans by my side.  After spending time together at the summit, we headed back down the trail and back to Stowe where we decided a heaping pile of french fries and cold drinks were in order.  We ended up at Idletime and Ranch Camp and spent the rest of the day laughing, drinking, and eating, a little drunk on life, the local beer, and each other.