East Kennebago Mountain, near Rangeley

I hesitated to add this mountain to my site because for walkers other than the true believers who need to check mountains off their lists, I don’t recommend this hike! The mountain is part of a group of six peaks (“the six-pack”) around Rangeley that some hikers tackle in their quest to summit New England’s 100 highest mountains. Along with East Kennebago, the six pack includes Kennebago Divide, White Cap, Boundary Divide, and two mountains both called Snow (Cupsuptic Snow and Chain of Ponds Snow). I don’t think any have official trails and I think none has a view at the top.

The hike up East Kennebago involves a long trudge up ATV/Jeep roads, followed by a relatively nice, flat portion through woods, and then a steep ascent up an easy-to-follow but blaze-less footpath to a viewless summit. That being said, East Kennebago is not completely charmless! While the summit is wooded, there are occasional views through trees along the final ascent, and there are a few great views from the long ATV/jeep road.

The trail is not marked, but AllTrails’s blue dot is really helpful in leading you along the four-wheeler tracks and to the final footpath, which is marked with a cairn. The summit is marked with a canister and sign. From where we parked, it was a touch under four miles to the summit.

Directions: From the junction of Route 4 and Route 16 in Rangeley, drive north on Route 16 (Stratton Road) for about 9.5 miles. You’ll come to an unmarked dirt road on your left. Turn onto the road, cross a rickety wooden bridge, and make an immediate right. In 0.9 miles, bear right at the next intersection. We drove another mile in our low-clearance car and then parked in a grassy area on the right. But higher-clearance cars can continue beyond this point. In about 0.5 miles, you’ll pass another road on your left. You can also park here. Continue another 0.5 mile, and you’ll reach a big intersection (with views!). Turn left here, an ATV sign will say, “Lookout,” another 1.4 miles farther on. (Distances are approximate!) From the lookout, the trail closes to four-wheelers and can be a bit overgrown. For the next mile or so, you’ll continue on a wide, easy-to-follow track through meadow and forest. At about 0.9-1 mile from the lookout (GPS devices might vary), after you’ve been in the woods for a bit, look for a cairn and a yellow stake on your left. A narrow footpath (herd path) heads steeply up here for about 0.7 miles to the viewless summit, which is marked with a canister and sign.