Mount Frissell, Connecticut

Mount Frissell is the location of the highest point in Connecticut, but leaving it there is a bit of a misnomer. The summit of this mountain is actually in Massachusetts, and the highest point in Connecticut is not the summit, but the highest point of the mountain that is still in Connecticut. A little underwhelming for CT, but them’s the breaks. Another geographical/political oddity is that just further on from the summit and the highpoint for CT is the Tri-State Point that includes New York. There is a small monument there marking the spot, and if you’re going to the summit and the highpoint, you might as well go there too.

There is no road or easy way to the top of Mount Frissell, or to Connecticut, so you’re going to have to hike. We began and ended at the Mount Frissell Trailhead on East St, also known as Mount Washington Road. The pull offs there could accommodate perhaps a dozen cars, tightly parked. The first part of the trail from there is dirt, and flat, and easy going. The second portion is much steeper, never vertical but you do more climbing than hiking at times. This will end at the top of Round Mountain. The third and last section is a short descent into a small ravine, then steeply up to the summit of Frissell.

This hike is difficult at times, and moderate overall. It is a quick hike that won’t take anyone all day. Under 2 hours would be usual, longer if you are slow or take your time. Under an hour out and back if you’re really moving. The best time to go is the most beautiful, in the fall. The dense trees and shrubs will be changing colors as the temperature drops into lows at night, and the surrounding hills will be aflame with oranges, yellows and reds, like little bonfires among the greens. Winter will obviously offer sparse beauty with all of the vegetation gone or dormant but the hiking will be easier if there’s little or sno snow and ice. Summer will be green, verdant, and hot, and of course there are the bugs.

The worst time will be whenever it is raining. The amount of rock to clamber up and over and back down is much more difficult to navigate when wet and could change this moderate hike to a difficult one, despite the relatively short distance.

This trail intersects with other, most notably the Appalachian Trail, and there will be many trailheads you can start from and end up on Mount Frissel.

Mount Frissell Summit