How to Hike Mount Abraham, Lincoln Peak, and Mount Ellen : Vermont 4000 Footers

Mount Abraham, Lincoln Peak, and Mount Ellen are located in Vermont and two of them are apart of Vermont’s five 4,000 footers (Abraham and Ellen). All three of these peaks have great views and I highly recommend hiking them, if you get the chance. I hiked these peaks via the Lincoln Gap, however, there are multiple ways to hike them. If you hike them via the Lincoln Gap, it is an out and back. However, there are ways to hike the peaks as a loop, which I will discuss further in this article.

As previously stated, Mount Abraham and Ellen are apart of Vermont’s 4,000 footers and the Northeast 111 Highest Challenge. I loved hiking all three of these peaks, all of them offer great views of the Green Mountains. You will end on Mount Ellen which is one of the summits of Sugarbush Ski Resort. I have always wanted to ski there and now that I’ve hiked it, I want to ski there even more.

In this article, you will read about Mount Abraham trailhead, Mount Abraham, Mount Abraham via Long Trail, Mount Abraham via Lincoln Gap, Mount Abraham hike, Mount Ellen Elevation, Mount Ellen Trailhead, Mount Ellen and Abraham, Mount Ellen hike, Mount Ellen conditions, and more.

This article is all about Mount Abraham.

Mount Abraham, Lincoln Peak, and Mount Ellen via Lincoln Gap

I hiked this on a Wednesday in July and got to the trailhead a little before 9am, and I got one of the last three parking spots. Thus, I would keep this in mind when planning this hike. The Mount Abraham trailhead is a very popular trail. The trailhead via the Lincoln Gap starts at the Long Trail heading north towards Mount Abraham. Abraham will be the first peak you summit, then Lincoln, then, Ellen. You can find directions for the trailhead via this link. You can park on either side of the road. The trailhead/the start of your hike will be on the left side of the road (coming towards the trailhead), thus if you park on the opposite side of the road, just know you’ll have to cross.

You will know you’re on the right trailhead when you see the sign for Mount Abraham and the Long Trail. The sign will say Abraham is 2.4 miles away. There are trailheads on both sides of the road, thus, watch for this sign or look at the AllTrails offline map (have to buy the pro version to do this) to see where you are. You will follow this trail until the top of Abraham. There aren’t really any trail markers but this trail is so wore in, it’s very easy to make out the trail.

Once you get closer to the top of Abraham, there will be a lot of rocks and a couple rock scrambles. The rock scrambles are very doable. The top of Abraham has a gorgeous view of the Green Mountains. Thus, I recommend staying there and taking pictures for a little bit.

{Related Article : Everything You Need to Know About Killington Ski Resort}

Getting to Lincoln Peak

After you spend some time at Abraham, you will continue past the summit to Lincoln. Again, the trail is not marked but if you follow the wore in footpath, you will get to Lincoln. You can also follow the AllTrails downloadable offline version of the map of this route. Lincoln Peak is about .7 miles away from Abraham. The official summit of Lincoln, is right next to the ski lifts. Just before the opening and ski trails/lifts, there is a little footpath to a nice wooden platform that you can sit at, eat lunch and enjoy the views. I will say, I liked the views better on the ski trails than at this platform. 

Getting to Mount Ellen

Finally, to continue to Mount Ellen, things get a little tricky here to start. You do not want to continue straight. You want to go left, once you see the SMALL rock cairn. This is how you will know you’re on the right path. Then, you will stay on the ski trail for about .3 of mile, then head back into the woods. I had to use my AllTrails map to find where the trail was, so if you get lost, just follow the AllTrails map and it will tell you where the true trail is. Okay, Mount Ellen is kind of far away from Lincoln. It’s about 2.5 miles away. The trail does go up and down but there’s no strenuous elevation gains or losses here. It’s work but manageable work. 

Mount Ellen Summit

The summit on Mount Ellen is gorgeous! I think I liked it better than Mount Abraham but that’s probably because I hadn’t seen it before. So, if you’ve skied at Sugarbush you already know, the summit of Mount Ellen is stunning. Fortunately, I hiked these peaks on an absolutely beautiful day and had the summit almost to myself (there was one other group there). The summit was sunny, beautiful, and incredibly peaceful. To get here my phone said I had gone a total of 6.2 miles. Which is a little off from the AllTrails recorded mileage. I suggest taking some time to spend at the top of this peak to eat, relax, and take in the views. I ate lunch at the top of this mountain and had such a peaceful time.

{Related Article : Everything You Need to Know About Jay Peak Ski Resort}

Getting Back to Your Car

Okay, once you are all done soaking up the views, to get back to your car, you will go back the same way you came by retracing your steps. Once I got back to my car, my phone said I went a total of 12.4 miles. AllTrails has this hike listed as a total of 11.3 miles. I usually add on 1-3 extra miles compared to what it says on AllTrails.

In total, this took me about 7 hours to complete, including summit and break time. I took my time on this trail as it was the first longer hike of the summer season for me. Thus, if you’re really booking it and don’t spend too much time on the summits, you can hike this trail in 6 hours. But, know your limits, know your hike time, and please don’t attempt all three of these peaks if this is your first ever hike. There’ s a reason why this is rated hard on AllTrails.

Last Thoughts on this Trail and Other ways to Hike these Peaks

Overall, I enjoyed this hike. It is a little over 3,000 feet of elevation gain and a total of 12.4 miles. I will say, the last 4 miles dragged on. However, this could be from the fact that this was my first “long” hike of the season. Again, I hiked these three peaks via the Lincoln Gap and the Long Trail. However, you can hike these three peaks as a loop hike if you start at Sugarbush Ski Resort. You will first go to Lincoln, then Abraham then, finally, Ellen. I think the Lincoln Gap and Long Trail are easier and a more direct way to hike these peaks. But it’s up to you how you wish to hike these if you are interested. Thank you so much for reading. I hope this article was helpful, get hiking, thank you, and take care.

In this article, you read about Mount Abraham trailhead, Mount Abraham, Mount Abraham via Long Trail, Mount Abraham via Lincoln Gap, Mount Abraham hike, Mount Ellen Elevation, Mount Ellen Trailhead, Mount Ellen and Abraham, Mount Ellen hike, Mount Ellen conditions, and more.