Blue Hill Mountain, Blue Hill

“Blue Hill is not a hill, it’s a mountain!” insists my ten-year-old friend who has grown up in Blue Hill. So, yes, it’s a mountain, and a fairly famous one at that, deservedly so. For a relatively easy hike to the 934-foot summit, the views are glorious. The Blue Hill Heritage Trust has a good history of the site and brief descriptions of the trails.

There is a shooting range fairly close by, and sometimes the shots sound quite loud, especially from the northern side of the mountain.

I recommend hiking up the Osgood trail (0.9 miles to the summit), because it is cool and shaded in the woods, and offers a relatively gradual incline. Once you read the ledges, you can hike to the tower and the beautiful views just below the tower. There is a short loop at the summit which is worth doing for all the pretty vistas you catch along the way.

If you take the Hayes Trails down (which is short and steep), you’ll walk down a stone stairway and through a field of wildflowers (in season, of course). You can also take the Radio Service Road down from the summit, which is a more gradual and longer descent. Depending on where you parked, you can either walk back along Mountain Road, or take the South Face Trail back to the Osgood Trail for a loop.

In addition, for a longer hike, you can hike up the backside of the mountain on the two-mile (one way) Becton Trail. It is a very gradual climb, with one good view to the north. Fewer people hike this trail, and the parking lot on Turkey Farm Road is big enough just for two cars (others may park alongside the road).

The trust has also made a one-mile trail from downtown (behind the post office) to the trailhead. This trail is easy.

Directions: Parking is available at both the Osgood and Hayes trailheads on Mountain Road and at the Becton trailhead on Turkey Farm Road, .6 mile from Rt. 172 on the left. The biggest lot is from the Hayes trail.