Distance:1.3 Miles Oneway
Difficulty: Moderate
Pack Monadnock located in Miller State Park in Peterborough, New Hampshire is a popular hiking spot and scenic drive in the Monadnock Region. A fun fact is that Miller State Park is New Hampshire’s First State Park.
There are a few different ways to reach the summit. From the parking lot off of Route 101 are two trailheads. To the left is the Wapack Trail and to the right the Marion Davis Trail. From Old Mountain Road is the Raymond Trail that also connects to the Cranberry Meadow Pond Trail. Lastly is the Auto Road.
We have hiked the different trails up Pack Monadnock and driven the Auto Road, but have never walked the Auto Road. This 1.3 mile road is a great alternative to hiking the trails up Pack Monadnock. From November to May, the exact dates change each year, cars are not allowed up the road. There is an iron ranger to pay the park use fee. We have hiked the auto road a few times during the winter it is absolutely beautiful.
The road is a steady incline up the mountain with some switchbacks.
About halfway up the mountain is an outlook looking towards Temple Mountain.
The road flattens out before one last steep section to the summit. At the top is a picnic area, fire tower and park store which is open seasonally. This is also an amazing summit to watch the sunrise.
From the summit and auto road there are opportunities to get a view of Mt Monadnock.
In the winter months we have seen people snowshoeing, cross country skiing and hiking the auto road. If you are hiking it in the winter make sure you wear appropriate footwear either snowshoes or microspikes depending on the trail condition. With the steady incline of the road I would say this is a moderate hike.
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