The Burnt Mountain & Colburn Hill Loop at Boston Lot Conservation Area in Lebanon, New Hampshire is an easy 3.2-mile loop hike that leads to the summits of Burnt Mountain and Colburn Hill and features views.
Trail names: Westline Trail, Burnt Mountain Loop, Hemlock Trail, Northside Trail, Water tower Trail and Water Tower Access Road
Location: DHMC Trailhead, The Landmark Trail Network, Road, 26 Lahaye Drive, Lebanon NH. Parking is located in a designated parking area that is across from the DHMC Staff Parking area.
Permitted uses: Hiking, Nature Study, Mountain Biking, Snow shoeing
Prohibited uses: rerouting or creating new trails is prohibited. Do not cut trees. No motorized vehicles,
Hours: Daylight hours only
Fees and Parking: There is no fee to park or use the trails. There is plenty of parking in this hiker designated parking lot.
Pets: Dogs on a leash are allowed. Please leave no trace, which means do not leave bagged dog waste along the trail.
Accessibility: The trails are not wheelchair accessible.
Hiker amenities: There is an information kiosk at the trailhead with a posted map. There are no restrooms or trash bins. Please take out whatever trash you create.
Length and Trail information: This hike, done as a
loop, is considered easy and was 3.2 miles in length. The trails are managed
and maintained by the Upper Valley Mountain Bike Association (UVMBA) with
permission from Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center. The trails also pass through the Boston Lot Conservation Area.
We began our hike just beyond the gate located at the parking area. We headed south on the Westline Trail which has no trail blaze markers. The trail is marked sporadically by engraved wooden signs. The trail substrate starts off flat and gravely and is wide enough for two hikers to walk side by side. The forest is dense and there was quite a bit of shade on either side of the trail. The trail turned off to the right with no marker at the junction. We did locate a sign about 300 feet up the trail. The substrate changed from gravely to rooted and rocky, it started to incline and become a bit wider at this point. Off the side of the trail, we were lucky to see lots of blooming wildflowers such as Fringed Polygala, Azure Bluets, Violets, Northern Starflower and Canada Mayflower. There were several muddy areas along the trail, but the UVMBA has installed several wooden boardwalks to help keep the damage to the trail down to a minimum. From the trail, hikers will be able to see some rock erratics and large areas of ledge. The trail widens and resembles an old dirt road before turning off to the left onto the Burnt Mountain Loop Trail. Again, there is no signage at this junction. The trail is very rooted and the incline increases. The Burnt Mountain Loop Trail has much better blazes. The blaze is two colors: light blue over white. We also saw every now and then, a painted arrow sign. From this point the incline is steady, but not intense. There is a sign directing hikers to the Burnt Mountain Viewpoint, and the view is well worth the short hike off the main trail to see it. There is a bench, dedicated to Mark Hensen at the viewpoint. It’s a gorgeous spot to stop and take a rest while enjoying the breathtaking view while the birds serenade you. After a short rest, we continued the hike on Burnt Mountain Loop until we intersected with the Hemlock Trail. There is good signage at this junction and the Hemlock Trail has the same blazes as the Burnt Mountain Loop Trail. The forest is dense here and provides a lovely habitat for all kinds of birds. We enjoyed being able to identify several as we hiked including Eastern Wood-Pewee, Hermit Thrush, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Scarlet Tanager and a Blackburnian Warbler. Not only is there an abundance of birds, but we were also happy to twice find Reishi mushrooms growing on a dying Hemlocks. We eventually met up with the Northside trail, which did have a sign, but we weren’t on it for very long. We got to the junction of the Water Tower Trail, off to the right of the Northside Trail. At this junction, there is signage, a map and also the same trail blazes as Hemlock and Burnt Mt. A little bit up that trail is a wooden sign with an arrow that says “To Water Tower”. This trail has the same blaze and is much steeper, probably one of the steeper parts of the entire hike. Before reaching the tower, we saw a trail kiosk up ahead along the trail. This kiosk had a posted map and other hiker information. A single path in front of the kiosk led us to the Water Tower Access Road. We hiked up the Road to see the water tower, hoping it might be one we could possibly climb and enjoy a view. No such luck, the water tower is a large cement structure surrounded by fencing and hikers are warned not to trespass. We turned around at the water tower and headed back toward the parking area via the Water Tower Access Road. The road is wide and gravel, and easy to walk on. Some hikers might consider this a boring segment of the hike, but we found lots of things to look at and enjoy. We found several different wildflowers blooming on the sides of the road that we had never seen before, including Robin’s Plantain, Ragged Robins, Golden Alexanders and Morrow’s Honeysuckle. There were lots of birds singing too, and we were able to identify several including Red-eyed Vireo, Ovenbird and a Broad-winged Hawk.
All in all a very nice hike with lots of things to enjoy, a beautiful forest, lots of wildflowers, lots of birdsong a beautiful view and the joy of being in nature.
