The White Arrow Trail starts where the Old Halfway House Trail ends. The Old Toll Road's modern version turns away from the trail just before the junction with the Old Halfway House Trail, but the original road continues along with the trail up to the Halfway House Site. At the Halfway House Site, you can continue up the White Arrow Trail, or you could choose to take either of two other routes from the site, that lead to at least five other routes going up or across the mountain.

The White Arrow Trail is the most used, most obvious trail, straight ahead. It quickly turns quite steep, and is filled with uneven rocks and protruding roots. Much of the trail is obviously a watercourse in wet weather. While you may encounter some dampness in drier times, there is no running water and no springs along the trail then.
A little less than a quarter mile past the Halfway House Site, the trail to Monte Rosa goes off to the left. Just past that, the Fairy Spring Trail also branches to the left.

The trees and undergrowth are mostly broadleaf through this whole area. As you gain altitude, there is some increase in evergreens, mostly hemlocks. The trail generally doesn't ease up. It maintains both its steepness and ruggedness, with a fair amount of loose rock. Unlike most of the other trails, the vegetation doesn't open up to give you a good view of the countryside until you are quite high.

Eventually, you start to encounter a few long stretches of relatively smooth rock face. These are quite steep, and may require a moment or two to determine the best routes across them. As these faces increase, the trees slowly turn more evergreen, thinning out, and eventually almost disappear. At this point, you may be able to see the top, still quite high above you, but surprisingly close looking.

This trail crosses the Amphitheater Trail, connecting to several other trails, and occasionally passes some beautiful, level rock areas where you get great views of the countryside while taking advantage of the opportunity for a break.

You get another good look at the summit when about fifteen minutes below it. It looks enticingly close, but you've still got some steep and rough climbing ahead of you. Just before the end of the trail, you find yourself facing a very steep and tricky section of trail, much of it across almost smooth rock. It makes for some interesting climbing, but soon you are past it, and the trail joins the Dublin Trail about one hundred feet northwest of the summit.

While going down any of the trails is different than going up them, in part because you and your legs are tired, and in part because gravity is working with you instead of against you, going down the upper reaches of the White Arrow Trail is particularly difficult. It is steep, there are few long stretches where you can take even steps, and the roughness of the trail makes it hard to find good places to place your feet. Others may differ, but I think that this trail is the most dangerous of the routes from the summit. It's not that you would necessarily fall to your death, but I imagine that it's very easy to trip or loose your footing and break a leg or smash your head into a rock.

But that doesn't mean that it isn't fun to hike!

Last update and copyright © 25 July 1998 by Wayne Brink, email: wbrink@qcc.mass.edu