Bacon Ledge | 7/15/25

After many years of not realizing it was bike week and getting stuck on Rt. 16, 302, and I-93, I stayed south of Concord for today's afternoon jaunt. I had been interested in Bacon Ledge for a while because of the name, but with a soon-to-be-announced project on the horizon, I attached some urgency to the hike.

Forest recovery area

Before heading out, I read that AllTrails doesn't have great directions so I just plugged in the TH coordinates. The ride out to Stoddard was familiar up until the turn onto 123, which soon brought me to the turn on Old Antrim Road- right beside Stoddard Fire & Rescue. The road is a little rough, but in dry conditions should be doable even in a slightly resilient sedan.

Start of trail

Though the trailhead isn't abundantly well marked, there is a good pull-off for 3-5 cars in front of a forest clearing. Before leaving the car, I applied Sawyer Bug Lotion- a Picardin-based product to detour mosquitoes and ticks.

Trout-n-Bacon trail took on three different types of trail on my 1.3-mile hike to the ledge. First, the trail was wide and mostly dry. Then, the trail showed evidence of the parallel forest thinning, which made for some drainage issues along the trail corridor. I believe I had an encounter with a large animal here and although I couldn't see it in the web of downed trees, it sounded bear-like.

Cut

As I finally made it past the cut, I got up to a great section of woods full of ferns, stone walls, and curiously shaped trees. I could tell I was nearing the top as the blue sky revealed itself to me, and soon enough reached the ledge that delivered incredible views for my low effort!

Highland views

Looking south, Highland Lake was center stage with lush hills all behind. With low bugs and no company up top, I enjoyed this summit! I opted not to continue to Trout Pond as I didn't have my Inreach or a headlamp- but I do feel as though my short trip was worth the drive. I look forward to exploring this area as the low-growth forest recovers, there's certainly a lot of potential for this unassuming but comically named trail.

Final Stats:

2.45 miles

683 gain