Massachusetts: Mt. Greylock (3,491ft) Ranked #31/50

Highpoint details

Mount Greylock is the highest natural point in Massachusetts at 3,491 feet (1,064 m). Its peak is located in the northwest corner of the state in the western part of the town of Adams(near its border with Williamstown) in Berkshire County. Although geologically part of the Taconic Mountains, Mount Greylock is commonly associated with the abutting Berkshire Hills to the east. The mountain is known for its expansive views encompassing five states and the only taiga-boreal forest in the state. A seasonal automobile road (open annually from late May through November 1) climbs to the summit, where stands the iconic 93-foot-high (28 m) lighthouse-like Massachusetts Veterans War Memorial Tower. A network of hiking trails traverse the mountain, including the 2,179-mile (3,507 km) Appalachian Trail. Mount Greylock State Reservation was created in 1898 as Massachusetts' first public land for the purpose of forest preservation.[9]

On average, Mount Greylock rises 2,000 ft (610 m) above surrounding river valleys and 1,000 ft (300 m) above the Berkshires and Taconic Mountains. From the summit, views of up to 70–135 mi (110–217 km) are possible into five different states: Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, Vermont, and New Hampshire.[10][11]

Prior to the arrival of Europeans the Mahican people were closely associated with this region. The traditional trade route connecting the tribes of the Hudson and Connecticut River valleys (today, Route 2, known as the Mohawk Trail) passes beneath the northern flank of Mount Greylock.

The mountain was known to 18th century English settlers as Grand Hoosuc(k). In the early 19th century it was called Saddleback Mountain because of its appearance (Saddle Ball, the name of the peak to the south, still reflects this).[18]

The origin of the present name of Greylock and its association with the mountain is unclear. It first appeared in print about 1819, and came into popular use by the 1830s. It may be in reference to its appearance, as it often has a gray cloud, or lock of gray mist upon his head, or in tribute to a legendary Native American chief, Gray Lock.[18] Gray Lock (c. 1670-1750) was a Western Abenaki Missisquoi chief of Woronoco-Pocomtuc ancestry, born near Westfield, Massachusetts. Gray Lock distinguished himself by conducting guerrilla raids into Vermont and western Massachusetts.[19]

Timothy Dwight IV, President of Yale University, along with Williams College President Ebenezer Fitch, climbed Greylock in 1799, probably over a rough route cut by a local pioneer farmer Jeremiah Wilbur (in that time more land had been cleared on the slopes for farming than today). His account in Travels in New England and New York describes the experience, although he noted the summit vegetation was so thick he and Fitch had to climb a balsam fir tree to get a better view:

“(Saddle Back) is the highest land in the state […] Its southeastern front is extensively visible throughout Berkshire, and from high elevations in the states of New Hampshire, New York, Vermont, and Connecticut at very great distances […] During a great part of the year, it is either embosomed or capped by clouds, and indicates to the surrounding inhabitants the changes of weather with not a little exactness."[20]

Prominent features on the summit are the Massachusetts Veterans War Memorial Tower, Bascom Lodge, the Thunderbolt Ski Shelter, and a television and radio tower. Because of the cultural significance of the mountain and excellent examples CCC period park structures, the Mount Greylock Summit Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in on April 20, 1998, reference number 98000349.[7]

The Veterans War Memorial Tower was approved by the state legislature in October 1930, supported by Senator Theodore Plunkett of Adams and Governor Frank G. Allen. The memorial was originally intended to be erected in Boston's Charles River Basin, before plans were changed to build it on Mount Greylock. It was designed by Boston-based architects Maginnis & Walsh, and built by contractors J.G. Roy & Son of Springfield in 1931-32 at a cost of $200,000.[56] It takes the form of a perpetually lighted beacon to honor the state's dead from World War I (and subsequent conflicts). The light used to be the strongest beacon in Massachusetts, with a nighttime visible range of up to 70 miles.[57]

The Thunderbolt Ski Shelter, also designed by Joseph McArthur Vance, was built in 1940 by the CCC to principally serve as a warming hut for skiers using the Thunderbolt Trail.[63]Also rustic in design and built of stone and wood beams, the interior has four wooden benches built into a large four hearth fireplace in the center.

There has been a resurgence of interest in skiing the Thunderbolt Trail culminating in the 75th anniversary race of February 2010 that commemorated the first downhill race on Mount Greylock on February 17, 1935. The Thunderbolt Ski Runners have continued the tradition of an annual backcountry ski race each winter, conditions permitting.[64]  

trip details

This is where the admin will fill in strategic details about the high-point.  Roughly when it will occur (until a solid date is picked).

Trip Leader: 
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All trip updates and progress will be posted in the blog below

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