Visitor Guide

***Note: All trails on Reney Forest are temporarily closed and are not expected to be open again until December 2024 due to a forest management project.  To learn more about this and other forest management projects, visit Recent Forestry Projects or Cutting for Conservation***

Like much of the region, the slopes of Barton Hill were cleared for farm pastures and timber by the mid 1800s. The abandonment of hill farms allowed this land to gradually revert to a forest of poplar, white birch, and pine.

A hiking trail maintained by the Squam Lakes Association runs over this property, offering nice views of Squam Lake.

A network of trails starts from Avery Hill Road, including a 1.7 mile marked loop trail that winds through fields and forests to reach the top of Pine Mountain. The trail traverses the Avery Field near the site of the former Avery Farm and ascends the west slope of Pine Mountain. Open blueberry barrens at the summit provide spectacular views of the entire Belknap Range, including Mount Major and Lake Winnipesaukee, as well as excellent berry picking in season.

More than 100 years ago, the rugged natural beauty of Land Sunapee’s shores inspired American author and diplomat John M. Hay to build a summer retreat in Newbury. John Hay had been a private secretary to Abraham Lincoln and secretary of state under two presidents (William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt).

These lands had been in the Heald family for more than a century and are collectively known as the Heald Tract. They had historically been well managed by the Healds for multiple uses, including apple orchards, wildlife habitat, forest products, passive recreation, education, and flood control.

Three different paths lead to the summit of Green Mountain, where you’ll find the fire tower that’s part of the Green Mountain State Forest, a block of land at the summit surrounded by the High Watch Preserve.