How to get there: From Stowe Village, turn onto School Street and head north until the road splits. Bear right, heading toward the Stowe Hollow area of town. Follow this for about 2 miles up the hill. On your left is a small parking area for the Pinnacle trail.
Why you should go: Long considered Stowe’s easy hike, the Stowe Pinnacle offers more bang (incredible views) for a less buck (about an hour and a half up) than just about any other hike around Stowe.
The trail starts with a short stretch through a meadow before it narrows and enters a thick hardwood forest. From there, the trail starts to climb at a fairly steep rate — about 1,520 feet over 1.4 miles of trail — with some tricky switchback turns.
At the top of a steep rock stairway, about three-quarters of a mile up, a spur trail branches off the main path to the left. If you want a quick view or a short rest, follow that for 100 feet to a small ledge lookout, and take your the first gander at the sweeping valley views.
At just under a mile into the hike, you’ll reach a sign teling you that the rest of the hike will run along the face of Hogback Mountain, which is part of the Skyline Trail (come back to that one later if you seek a more challenging hike that includes the summit of Mt. Hunger). Keep right to continue to the top of the Pinnacle.
The last half-mile of the hike tones down as the trail climbs over chunks of exposed rock and around wind-scoured trees and scrub vegetation.
Upon entering the wide-open summit, you have reached the Pinnacle.
The panoramic views from the top are breathtaking. To the far right, the bulge of Mt. Elmore in Morrisville begins the Worcester Range. Straight ahead, the spine of the Green Mountains unfolds with its distinct mountain silhouettes: 4,393-foot Mt. Mansfield, and a pair of 4,083-footers: Camel’s Hump and Mt. Ellen. In between lies the lush valley floor and the tiny village of Stowe.
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