Hiking in Haystack Mountain, Vermont: trails, map and practical info

Haystack Mountain is a 3,445 foot mountain in Wilmington, Vermont, USA. Haystack Mountain, from surrounding areas, is the tallest peak seen by eye. It provides hikers a trail to its peak that depending on the time of year and weather conditions, can be challenging yet fun to technical and dangerous. A true trip into the green mountains of southern Vermont, the trail is marked with blue blazes and follows an old gated road on a steady moderate incline to Binney Brook ravine. It turns southwest at about half a mile and begins a steep climb to the west ridge of Haystack. The trail winds through a few different forest types until reaching the summit trail junction. Turn right at the summit junction and follow until you reach the summit. It is 2.4 miles to the summit, 4.8 miles round trip. Leaving the summit, you can head back to the trailhead or continue north another 2.5 miles to the top of Haystack Mountain Resort where and the entrance to the Ridgeline hike that connects the summits of the Haystack and Mount Snow Resorts. Located just below Haystack's peak (reached by the Haystack Trail) is Haystack Pond. Local folklore states that when the pond's depth was tested with high tech equipment which bounced sound waves from a body of waters bottom back to the testing device, an abnormality was discovered. Despite all attempts and having tested ponds and surrounding lakes with the same equipment earlier and later that day, Scientists could not register a response from the Haystack Pond. Disproving equipment failure, it was speculated that the lake that resides on top of Haystack Mountain very well could and most likely is a long dormant volcano with unknown and un-detectable depths. The Hermitage Club assumed ownership of Haystack ski area, not to be confused with Haystack Mountain. The Hermitage club/Haystack ski area is located on a mountain of lower elevation adjacent and dwarfed by Haystack mountain. Haystack mountain, the Haystack Trail and the lake on atop the mountain are all located on land belonging to the Vermont State Forest.