Sight · Franconia Notch State Park
A long climb earns a rocky summit and wide Franconia Ridge views.
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Franconia Notch Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Franconia Notch State Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Franconia Notch audio tourRecorded for this place
Mount Liberty via Liberty Spring Trail“Whitehouse Trailhead is coming up, the starting point for Mount Liberty via Liberty Spring Trail. This is a six-to-seven-hour day, about seven and a half miles round trip, with a very steep, rocky upper climb.”
Plays as you drive up to Mount Liberty in the Parkwolf Franconia Notch Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Mount Liberty is one of New Hampshire's peaks over 4,000 feet, on Franconia Ridge. The straightforward way up is the Liberty Spring Trail out-and-back: about 7.5 miles with roughly 3,200 feet of climbing. Make it a day hike, not a spare-hour detour; published route estimates vary slightly.
Expect a wooded, mostly uphill approach, with little big-mountain scenery until the summit. The view is the payoff at the end, so this is for hikers who want the climb as much as the panorama. Carry food and water for the full outing. Wet footing or winter snow can make the route harder, so check current trail conditions before setting off.
The Liberty Spring route works well as an out-and-back. Some hikers link Mount Liberty with Mount Flume using the Flume Slide Trail, but that's a bigger ridge outing; plan for the linkup before you start instead of treating it as a casual extension.
The open, rocky top gives you broad views across Franconia Notch and the surrounding peaks. Cannon Mountain and its cliffs stand across the Notch, while Little Haystack, Lincoln and Lafayette continue the ridge. Keep the foreground summit rocks in your photo so the shot shows where you are, not just another distant skyline.
Wildlife
66 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
38 sightingsMooseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
19 sightingsWild TurkeyMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
19 sightingsGreat Blue HeronMost seen around 5 PMSighting map
13 sightingsTurkey VultureMost seen around noonSighting map
23 sightingsRavenMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Franconia Notch. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateBasin Cascade Trail2 mi · 2 hr · 2.1 mi awayCascade Brook's granite ledges and small falls earn the extra walk.ChallengingMount Liberty via Liberty Spring Trail7.5 mi · 6.5 hr · 2.2 mi awaySteep climb, big summit views, and Mount Flume’s slides.
ChallengingMount Liberty and Mount Flume via Liberty Spring Trail10.2 mi · 8 hr · 2.2 mi awayTwo rugged summits, a rocky ridge traverse, and broad mountain views.
ModerateCascade Brook Trail6.7 mi · 4.5 hr · 2.2 mi awayA brookside climb ends at Lonesome Lake beside an AMC hut.
ModerateMount Pemigewasset Trail3.3 mi · 2.8 hr · 2.3 mi awayA steady forest climb to an open granite summit above the Notch.
ModerateFlume Gorge Trail2 mi · 1.8 hr · 2.3 mi awayA two-mile loop through a granite gorge, waterfalls, and a glacial pool.
ChallengingFranconia Ridge Traverse16.7 mi · 12 hr · 2.3 mi awayFour 4,000-footers, a long day, and miles of exposed ridge.
EasyRoaring River Memorial Nature Trail0.3 mi · 30 min · 2.4 mi awayA short woodland loop with a 1988 memorial gazebo.
Campground · 0.3 mi awayLiberty Springs TentsiteA useful backpacking stop just below the Franconia Ridge junction.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayMount FlumeA hard climb opens onto Franconia Ridge and the Kinsmans.
Sight · 1.7 mi awayLittle Haystack MountainThe waterfall climb ends at an open summit on the Franconia Ridge.
Sight · 1.7 mi awayFlume GorgeFollow a brook through an 800-foot granite gorge and two bridges.
Sight · 1.9 mi awayCloudland FallsAn 80-foot fan of water is the payoff on an uphill hike.
Sight · 2.1 mi awayThe BasinA river-carved granite bowl and waterfall, reached by a short paved walk.
Visitor center · 2.3 mi awayGilman Visitor CenterTickets, park info, food and exhibits at the Flume entrance.
Sight · 2.3 mi awayMount LincolnA high Franconia Ridge summit reached only by a strenuous alpine hike.Parkwolf’s Franconia Notch ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
