Some of the most beautiful hiking spots are in New England. We decided to make a road trip of it this past summer (July 2025) and hit the trails in the Green and White Mountains with all 3 kids. By the end of it the kids had determined that “mountain miles” are not the same as “hiking miles” (the tweens figure it’s about 2:1 with every mountain mile equaling 2 regular miles), but months later they’re still talking about how these are among their favorite hikes to date. It may be more strenuous, but the pay offs are huge. Read on for how we got through 2 mountain hikes in 2 different states with 3 kids!
Some quick notes before we get started:
- Always check weather and trail conditions before you head out! Nasty weather on a mountain is no joke.
- Be honest with your limits. It’s fabulous to have goals and bucket-list hikes to work towards, but injuring yourself on the trail is a serious bummer (if not an emergency).
- Stay hydrated! Pack plenty of water and electrolytes. We’re partial to these SaltStick Chews for electrolytes because you don’t have to drink a whole bottle of oddly flavored water 😂 They work fabulously and are kid safe, but talk to your doctor about appropriate doses before heading out. If you’re not in to packing jugs of water, we love this Sawyer Squeeze Filter for safely drinking water from natural sources as we go.
- Plan for bugs. Ticks and mosquitoes and deer flys, oh my! Ankle height boots and crew socks are your friends in this environment. I swear by this bug repellent lotion that lasts at least very close to 24 hours. Amazing.
Green Mountains, VT
Our Green Mountain hike was roughly a 4 hour drive from home. We did the Little Rock Pond Trail, which you access by parking at: USFS 10 big branch trailhead parking, Little Black Branch, Mt Tabor, VT 05739. Once out of your car you cross the street to catch the Appalachian Trail up to Little Rock Pond. If you’re a visual person (like me) here’s our AllTrails log of this if you want a map of where we parked and which way we went. Note: there were bathrooms available at the trail head.
Okay. So this hike ended up being 5.1 miles round trip with 528 ft elevation change, but is an out-and-back situation. In practice that looked like a bit over 2.5 miles, rest at the GORGEOUS pond area for a packed lunch, then head back out. We did carry little guy for some decent stretches, but he was actually capable of navigating a lot of this himself (other than just getting tired and wanting a carry break, which is fair).
Honestly, this hike was a hit. Only regret is not bringing dry clothes for the three-year-old because LOL yea he just ran right in. It was fine. Packing a lunch and hanging out a while was absolutely the way to go with this–it gave everyone a chance to rest and recalibrate before heading back. On the way down the 10-year-old and I made good use of trekking poles for balance, but everyone else was fine. Great example of know your limits and do what works best for your body!
Lodging
After the Green Mountains our home base was a cabin at Jellystone Park Lakes Region in Milton, NH. Just wanted to throw that in here as a quick note and recommendation, as the kids loved this place. Huge pool, super fun water play area, lake beaches, multiple playgrounds, a fishing dock, mini golf, dog park–just a fun and family-oriented experience.
White Mountains, NH
We decided to get in to the White Mountains through Franconia Notch State Park, just under 2 hours from Jellystone each way. Mind you, the latter part of this drive is pure ‘why isn’t this a national park’ scenic wonder, so no one was particularly upset about that.
Okay, so first thing is that I grossly underestimated the traffic. This was national park, get here at 7:30 am level traffic. Unfortunately we got here too late to park where we wanted to be. The plan was originally to just do the Lonesome Lake Trail as an out-and-back, but that lot was well over capacity by mid-morning. So we drove over to another area where we could park to speak with a ranger, who gave us a map and a recommended alternate trail path. And this is the story of how intending to do another 4-5 miles became 7.6 miles 😅
This was an adventure. 7.6 miles round trip with 1,283 ft elevation change. Don’t get me wrong, it was stunning, but bringing a 3-year-old on this hike was a bit more challenging than we expected. While preparing and planning this trail was consistently listed as kid/family friendly, so our expectations were a wee bit off. Note: there were plenty of other kids and families on this trail, I think we just weren’t as familiar with the region.
That being said, I can’t say we regret it. The kids certainly don’t! The youngest had no concept of what this actually involved because he got carried through the technical bits, so he thought this was all a grand adventure. The 12-year-old continues to brag to her friends about this hike on a regular basis and named it her favorite hike of 2025. The middle girly, 10-years-old, struggled the most, but her confidence outside has shot through the roof after pulling this off. Again, here’s our AllTrails map because our path was a bit weird.
The details are as follows:
- We parked at the Basin area (bathrooms available near trail head)
- Took the Basin-Cascades trail to Cascade Brook to Lonesome Lake
- Hung out at Lonesome Lake, ate lunch, played in the water, regrouped. Bathrooms and spigots for water bottle refills are available here.
- Took the trail around Lonesome Lake, which had my personal favorite views, then we went down the Lonesome Lake trail. Honestly this extended version worked out for the best because the Lonesome Lake trail was steep and would have been a pain getting up for the kids. Basin/Cascade Brook trails were still a workout but not nearly as vertical. Either way, trekking poles were heavily used again here. I hate going down hill.
- Cut through the campground to get on the Pemi trail, which took us back to where we started. This section was almost entirely flat and a very welcome break at this point–a really nice wind-down
There was obviously a lot of elevation happening, but also some rock scrambling, stream crossings, boardwalks–a bit of everything, really. It is currently ranking as the longest hike the kids have been on. When we finally made it back to the car we were all just laughing for a while and couldn’t stop talking about this hike in detail for the rest of the day. It pushed our limits but wasn’t beyond our limits, which means we hit that ever elusive sweet spot in outdoor adventures. It was one of those experiences where you’re periodically thinking “why are we doing this?!” in the moment, but that quickly shifts to “I am SO glad we did that!” as you catch the views and reflect afterwards. Overall a win and a core memory for everyone, so we’ll take it.
Little Boots Alternatives
If you find yourself thinking “absolutely not,” that is super fair and I have you covered. Here are some alternative trail choices at Franconia Notch that will still check the box for White Mountain moments. Note that I haven’t done these personally, but they are on my list of reasons to go back to New Hampshire!
-The Flume Gorge Trail is a very popular family hike that is only 2.2 miles and looks SO cool. It does require a ticketed entry, so plan ahead!
–Profile Lake is 1.3 miles with very minimal elevation gain but looks lovely
-You could also just do the Basin-Cascade section of my family’s hike as an out-and-back. I can vouch for this area being gorgeous and worth the look.
Bonus Stop! Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park
On our way back to NY we stopped at Saint-Gaudens National Historical Park, and what was intended as a quick stretch break turned in to a couple of hours exploring. Turns out little guy loves looking at statues, and the girls have an affinity for fancy, old buildings (especially the middle one!). This stop in Cornish, NH is the preserved home of sculptor Augustus Saint-Gaudens (1848-1907).
This was such a hidden gem that we all really enjoyed. We were able to bring our dog with us on to the grounds, we just couldn’t do a house tour. Even without going inside there was an abundance of things to see all over the area including multiple gardens, statues (of course), beautiful outdoor architecture, and small mini-galleries my husband I could easily take turns checking out. Absolutely worth a look if you’re passing through!
And then it was homeward bound, another trip in the books. What do you think? Any Green or White Mountain trails we have to go back for? Other trail suggestions that you think we should add to the bucket list?
Happy trails 🥾💚