Massachusetts · Hiking

Mountain House Trail

Mountain House TrailPhoto: xxv, CC BY-SA 2.0 (via Flickr)
0.6 mi
one way
542 ft
climb
1,793 ft
high point
Point to point
route
May–Oct
best months

Mountain House Trail is a short, easy hike in central Massachusetts, about 2.6 miles from the town of Princeton. The route is a point-to-point climb of roughly 0.6 miles, rising from about 1,225 feet to about 1,793 feet, with a total elevation gain of 542 feet. The steepest stretch comes early on, around 0.14 miles in, where the grade reaches about 22 percent. Summer and early fall are the most comfortable times to go. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Ashburnham show July highs around 80°F and September highs near 71°F, with snow days common from December through March. That station sits about 685 feet lower than the trail's high point, so temperatures on the summit run cooler. The trail sits close to several climbing areas, including the Wachusett Mountain Area about 0.3 miles away and Playground Boulder about 0.6 miles away. For more hiking, the Brown Hill Loop is about 2.1 miles off, and the Quinapoxet River offers paddling about 7.6 miles away.

  • Best time to go · May–Oct

    Best time to visit Mountain House Trail

    Best months: May–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

    1. Jan

      31° / 14°

      13 wet · 9 snow

    2. Feb

      33° / 15°

      11 wet · 8 snow

    3. Mar

      41° / 23°

      13 wet · 6 snow

    4. Apr

      55° / 34°

      12 wet · 2 snow

    5. May

      66° / 44°

      12 wet

    6. Jun

      75° / 54°

      12 wet

    7. Jul

      80° / 60°

      11 wet

    8. Aug

      78° / 57°

      10 wet

    9. Sep

      71° / 51°

      9 wet

    10. Oct

      57° / 39°

      11 wet

    11. Nov

      46° / 31°

      11 wet · 2 snow

    12. Dec

      35° / 20°

      13 wet · 7 snow

    Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Ashburnham, MA, 9.2 mi away at 1,108 ft. The station sits about 700 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

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Map and trail data © OpenStreetMap contributors