Pitcher Mountain & Hubbard Hill, NH


• 4-star hikes
• 1 to 5 mile options
• Easy | Gain 260 to 630 feet
• Stoddard, NH | Monadnock Region
.   NH Fire Towers  
The image shows a view from a fire tower, looking down onto a wooden platform and out over a vast expanse of green forest with rolling hills in the distance. The sky is partly cloudy with ample sunlight, giving a sense of height and openness.
Great views from Pitcher Mountain, even without a fire tower climb.

Combining a short fire tower track with a rich and varied forest hike makes for a memorable romp through New Hampshire's Andorra Forest. Furthermore a blueberry plantation at the top of Hubbard Hill adds to the appeal of this route in July and August when the fruit is ripe for picking.

We've laid out three hikes of increasing length all beginning from a medium size parking lot by Route 123 just outside of the town of Stoddard. All three routes lead straight to the highest point of all three hikes, marked by the 1925 fire tower that stands on top of Pitcher Mountain (2,163 feet). While our shortest hike returns back to the trailhead via a loop trail, the others head down into the Andorra Forest. You'll want to choose to either cut back to the trailhead via the dirt road, or continue along all the way to Hubbard Hill.
4★ Pitcher Mountain 0.7 mi loop, easy, gain 260 ft. Short fire tower loop.
AllTrails · GPX File · Directions GPX?
4★ Pitcher Mt & Forest 2.9 mi loop, easy, gain 440 ft
AllTrails · GPX File · Directions
4★ Pitcher Mt & Hubbard Hill 5.2 mi loop, easy, gain 630 ft
AllTrails · GPX File · Directions

The blueberry plantation atop Hubbard Hill can be accessed either by our longest hike, or by driving two miles along a well maintained dirt road to a large grassy parking lot. Remember to bring containers to hold your blueberry picking hoard, and don't forget to pay by the quart for the berries you take. Proceeds are used to maintain and improve the blueberry fields.

Pitcher Mountain
The shortest hike to the fire tower, and a favorite with children. Though the cabin of the fire tower is closed to visitors, you can still climb the two flights of steps to get a higher view of the panoramic views. We've also marked an additional viewpoint on our map, which looks out over grassland to Mount Monadnock and beyond.

Pitcher Mt & Forest
This hike encompasses both the fire tower and forest hiking sections, returning to the trailhead via the dirt road. We were lucky enough to visit the forest after a long period of rain, and find the forest canopy covered with many fungi of differing shapes and sizes and even heard loons calling from Cold Spring Pond below. Forest trail is mostly single-track and easy going.

a person standing at the edge of a forest, looking out over a sunlit field with mountains in the distance under a partly cloudy sky.
Panoramas over grassland on the way up to Pitcher Mountain.

Pitcher Mt & Hubbard Hill
Continue on from the forest trail up the dirt road for a further mile to reach Hubbard Hill and the blueberry fields. Continue past the large grassy parking area and into the fields. The main trail is well-defined and leads to a Hubbard Hill sign supposedly marking the highest point on what doesn't look much like a hill, but does still provide some picturesque views to the West. We found a slightly higher point of the hill thanks to a topo map, and we've marked that as the summit.

🫐 Drive-In Blueberry Picking
Avoid a hike altogether and drive straight to Hubbard Hill on the dirt road, which is suitable for most vehicles. Follow the route in these Driving Directions to reach the parking lot next to the blueberry bushes. Remember to bring with you containers to carry the fruit, and cash to pay for what you pick.

The image is a split view with two distinct parts. On the left side, there is a wooden signboard surrounded by greenery under a clear sky. The sign reads “Pitcher Mt. Fire Tower” at the top and below it says “WILD BLUEBERRIES P-Y-O,” followed by “U PICK PITCHER MT. BLUEBERRIES OPEN 8:00 AM - CLOSED 8:00 PM.” On the right side of the image, there are ripe blueberries on a bush with green leaves.
Blueberries are ripe for the picking in July & August.

The image is a collage of three different photographs, each depicting mushrooms in their natural forest environments. The left photo shows a single mushroom with a bright orange cap and yellow stem, standing out against the dark forest floor covered with pine needles. The top right photo features delicate white mushrooms growing near the base of a fallen tree trunk, surrounded by green vegetation. The bottom right photo displays two mushrooms with pale brown caps and stems emerging from the leaf-littered forest ground.
Finds on our forest trail hike.

The image shows a tall, metallic tower structure with various satellite dishes and antennas mounted on it. The tower is constructed with cross-braced metal beams and has a small enclosed lookout at the top. It is situated on rocky terrain with low shrubs, under a partly cloudy sky.
The 1925 fire tower atop Pitcher Mountain.

Tangents:
• Public Map at AllTrails: Pitcher Mt, Pitcher & Hubbard
• Facebook Group: Comment on this article


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