Stratham Hill Park & Town Forest, NH
• 4-star hike
• 1 to 4.8 mile options
• Easy difficulty | Gain 50 to 450 feet
• Stratham, NH | Seacoast Region
• Driving Directions: Trailhead
Panoramic New Hampshire from Stratham Hill Fire Tower.
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Stratham Hill Park combines with the Gordon Barker Town Forest, centered around one of the highest points in this relatively flat seacoast region. The fire tower atop the hill is a focal point for the park, providing distant scenic panoramas in all directions.
The park offers many miles of interconnecting trails most popular with hikers, dog walkers and mountain bikers. Well signposted, the quantity of trails and junctions can get confusing at times, though it makes it easier to find some solitude among the trees. Though not technical, mountain bikers can find some challenging terrain here and we're happy to report that cyclists we encountered were very respectful of hikers' safety. We've plotted a couple of perimeter hikes on our map, though there are many more routes to choose from.
The busiest part of the park is Stratham Hill and fire tower, which is located close to the large main parking lot. Built in 1931, the top level of the 53 foot steel tower is accessible at all times and is a great place from which to get a lay of the land. We have the New Hampshire Fire Tower Map & List for those interested in exploring similar structures in the area, of if you're interested in completing the state's Fire Tower Quest.
Perimeter,
Park & Forest Park Perimeter 4★2.0 mi, Loop, Easy, Gain 200 ft | Walk the perimeter of Stratham Hill Park which combines forest, park and pond views. Add a short excursion to visit the fire tower if you'd like. Also you could skip the Lovell Road out-and-back section at the Eastern end of this route if you want to reduce your mileage.
Trailspotting Map at AllTrails
Park & Town Forest Perimeter 4★4.8 mi, Loop, Easy, Gain 450 ft | Combined perimeter hike around Stratham Hill Park and Gordon Barker Town Forest. The town forest part of the route is exclusively under tree cover, tackles some undulating and mildly hill terrain, and offers some of the quieter trails in the park.
Trailspotting Map at AllTrails
The 1931 Stratham Hill Fire Tower.
Hiking the Eagle Trail on Stratham Hill Park's perimeter.
Tangents:
• Trail Links: Official, Public Map at AllTrails
• Facebook Group: Comment on this article
Nearby Trails:
• Show on map: All nearby trails
Trailspotting's NH Fire Towers
Discover our map of NH fire towers and the trails on which to find them.
Discover our map of NH fire towers and the trails on which to find them.
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Learn about our trail essentials, hiking equipment, tips, bicycles and photography gear.
Learn about our trail essentials, hiking equipment, tips, bicycles and photography gear.
