DETOUR AHEAD: Mt. Major Lot Closed (Roadside Parking ONLY; TRAILS OPEN) as Visitor Experience Improved

PRESS RELEASE: Trail Work Aimed at Improving Environmental and Hiking Conditions; Temporary Parking Lot Closure After Labor Day

Kelly Whalen | August 8, 2020

Tags:: Recreation

A mask-clad hiker pauses at the trailhead at Mount Major. — A visitor pauses at the beginning of the Main Trail at Mt. Major earlier this summer. A temporary trail detour from Boulder Trail to the Main (Blue) Trail will be built in August to provide hiker access to all of the trails.

Press Release: August 7, 2020 (Updated as necessary)- The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is planning to improve the visitor experience at Mt. Major by repairing drainage and erosion problems at the base of the Main (Blue) Trail. The work will involve repairing, resurfacing, and properly draining the bottom few hundred feet of trail as it leaves the parking lot. The parking lot will be temporarily closed during construction. The closure will start after Labor Day and is anticipated to last about four weeks.

The beginning of the Main Trail at Mt. Major is rocky and wet on the ground. — The project will involve repairing, resurfacing, and properly draining the bottom few hundred feet of trail (pictured) as it leaves the parking lot.

The parking lot will be closed and fenced off so that heavy equipment and material can be brought in safely. Visitors to Mt. Major will still be able to park along Route 11 (except in designated "no parking" zones) and will be directed along the southerly edge of the parking lot safely to the trailhead for the Boulder (Orange) Trail. A temporary trail detour from Boulder Trail to the Main (Blue) Trail will be built in August to provide hiker access to all of the trails.

“Mt. Major is the most popular peak in central New Hampshire and has been cited as one of the most climbed mountains in the world. That’s a lot of feet walking on the trails of Mt. Major,” states Wendy Weisiger, managing forester for the Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests. “The entrance to the Main (Blue)Trail has been perennially wet and slippery for hikers and heavy rains cause severe erosion which impacts water quality in the adjacent brook and nearby Lake Winnipesaukee. The project will repair the eroded trail and provide proper drainage, greatly improving the visitor experience.”

For updates about the project and timing, visit the Forest Society reservation guide at forestsociety.org/mountmajor. If you would like to be placed on an email update list about the project or if you have any questions please contact Managing Forester, Wendy Weisiger at (603) 224-9945.

The Forest Society is accepting donations to help fund trail rehabilitation work at Mt. Major; more information about this project and how to help at: www.forestsociety.org/majortrailwork.