Highpoint: Mt. Frissell (south slope)
State: Connecticut
Height: 2380 ft.
Highpoint #: 2
Date: 4/27/2002
Trails: Hiked trail to Round Mountain summit, then down the saddle and up the east face of Mt. Frissell.
Distance: About 3.6 miles roundtrip.
Vertical Gain: 850 ft
Time Taken: 2.5 hrs
Weather: Clear skies, high 50s
Group: JO & BC

Comments: After a really dry winter, hiking season finally got started as the local state parks started opening. We decided to hike Mt. Frissell in Connecticut as our first hike of the season. This highpoint is rather peculiar. The highpoint resides on the border of Massachusetts and Connecticut on the SLOPE of Mt. Frissell, since the peak of the mountain resides in Massachusetts, less than half a mile away. This is the only state highpoint that is on the slope of a summit in another state.  (Nevada’s highest point is the top of a lower peak on a double-summit mountain)  Since the round trip distance was fairly short, we decided to hike to the highest summit in Connecticut too, not too far away at Bear Mountain (about 6 miles roundtrip). Once again, we lucked out, as the day was perfect all day long. To get to the trailhead of Mt. Frissell, you have to drive down a long dirt road of variable quality that winds up and down through the hills. The trip was fairly uneventful, and since there were no leaves yet on the trees, the scenery was somewhat barren. However, it was a fun hike and the trail did get a little steep in places. The trail goes over the bare top of Round Mountain (and from this spot, you actually get a better view than at the summit, which is covered with more trees), down to a saddle and then up towards the summit of Mt. Frissell.  From the summit it is a brief walk southeast to the Connecticut highpoint, which is indeed on the slope of the mountain at a seemingly random spot. Bear Mountain was an enjoyable hike of mostly even pitched terrain, except for a couple short steep sections, and was relatively straightforward. Nonetheless, we were both hurting after hiking about 9 miles. It was a good kickoff for the hiking season. Mental note: bring sunscreen from now on.

 

 

 

 

This slope is on the way up Round Mountain, and is one of the few areas of scrambling needed on this hike.

 

 

JO on the highpoint of CT.  You can see that the slope continues uphill behind him into Massachusetts.

 

 

BC on the highpoint.