The best walks and hikes in Lamoille County

Belvidere Mountain lies along the Long Trail, a famous thru-hike, but is accessible via a number of other trails including the Frank Post and Forester’s Trails. Belvidere Mountain stands at 3,352 feet and is fairly prominent along the northern Vermont skyline. At the summit, there is a fire tower maintained by the Green Mountain Club that you can climb to the top of. From the top of the tower, you get truly stunning, 360 degrees views of the entire surrounding area; you can see the Green Mountains to the south, Owls Head and other surrounding mountains in Quebec, Canada to the north, and on clear days, the White Mountains of New Hampshire are visible to the east. You can also see two inactive asbestos mines at the eastern base of the mountain and on the south slope, respectively.

Whiteface Mountain is a peak in the Green Mountains along the Long Trail in Vermont. The true summit is quite treed-in, and is marked by a wooden sign on a tree with an arrow directing you to a view. Although this lookout, unfortunately, won't provide you with breathtaking views, you can still see through the trees to the surrounding mountains. This is a good summit if you're trying to bag all of them in Vermont, or if you want a challenging, steep, hike on a relatively quiet part of the famous Long Trail.

Madonna Peak stands at 3,664 feet above sea level and is along the Long Trail, a famous thru-hike in Vermont. This beautiful mountain is part of Smuggler's Notch Ski Resort and there is a chairlift that takes skiers all the way to the summit in winter. During the summer you will encounter hikers rather than skiers, but far fewer than the amount you might have passed headed up to Sterling Lake if you took the Sterling Lake Trail to get here. At the summit of Madonna you get fantastic, panoramic views of surrounding Green Mountains and on clear days, you might be able to see Mount Washington in New Hampshire!

Hiking Vermont Trails above 2500 feet is strongly discouraged until Memorial Day weekend because of erosionall damage Contact the Green Mountain Club at 802-244-7037 or email gmc@greenmountainclub.org or their website greenmountainclub.org

This is an easily accessible summit with a fire tower at the top. The views from the tower are awesome, and since it is a pretty accessible hike, it is very family and dog friendly.

Great place fill up with water

Sterling Pond is Vermont’s highest-elevation Trout Pond and an extremely popular destination in Smuggler's Notch. You can swim and fish (with a permit) and relax by its waters. It's also a great spot for observing wildlife and photography all year round; there are sometimes volunteers at the pond who are there to talk about the local plants and animals, and to answer questions. There is a shelter on the east side of the pond for Long Trail thru-hikers.

The Sunset Ridge Trail is one of the most scenic trails in Vermont and travels up southwestern side of Mt. Mansfield. This fantastic trail is relatively short and mostly above treeline. It offers phenomenal views of the Champlain Valley and the Mansfield ridge line and, as the name indicates, is exceptionally beautiful at sunset. There are several water crossings and scenic outcroppings scattered along this enjoyable trail as you hike up toward Mt. Mansfield.