Mount Holyoke Range State Park

Mount Holyoke Range State Park

Mount Holyoke Range State Park
4.5

Top ways to experience nearby attractions

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as waiting time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles28 reviews
Excellent
17
Very good
10
Average
0
Poor
1
Terrible
0

jy3
West Falls, NY414 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021
really wonderful park with great trails and views. Lots of hawks flying around. We did the Mount Norwottuck trail and it was awesome. It is more moderate to strenuous of a hike but we loved it, including the kids.
Written 20 August 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Diz8i8
70 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2020
Beautiful trails and fantastic views but the trails could be better marked.

There were a number of confusing points, hard to find markers, faded markers, markers seemingly between 2 trails. There were also a number of confused hikers, including one man who needed to follow us back to the visitors center.

There is a good variety of trails, some easy, some challenging with a bit of rock scrambling.

Free parking. Porta Pottys available currently.
Written 15 September 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

John M
Fitchburg, MA150 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2020
My friend and I went there yesterday and decided to start at the Center in Amherst. We had a ball. We went from there to the Summit house and back. Both of us are very good hikers but we were up there for about 5 hours including lunch. A few places with nice views on the way and at the Summit house a lot but also a lot of people. All in all a very good day!!
Written 1 June 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Wildflower01945
Amherst, MA738 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2019
We started a bit late (10:30am) on a beautiful early September Sunday morning. The parking lot was full so we parked about 1/3 mile farther west on Route 116 in a large dirt pullout. There was a trailhead from this point but navigating to the Metacomet- Monadnock (M-M)/ Robert Frost (RF) trail was tricky. It's a good thing I had my All Trails app. Unfortunately my phone was not fully charged so I took pictures of the trails and forwarded them to my companion's phone. Later we discovered that it was okay to park across the street from the ranger station on a side road. This would have made the hike shorter and simpler.

This section of the trail is heavily trafficked to Mt. Norwottuck then almost no one except in a short section where the trail intersects Harris Mountain Road. This is where people park and walk their dogs. It is about 8 miles with many ups and downs going over Mt. Norwottuck, past Horse Caves and over Long Mt. There are some views but mostly it is under the trees. There are a few steep places with stairs but mostly a lot of relatively flat walking in the woods. After Harris Mt. Rd. we did stay on the RF trail and ended at Bay Rd. under the power lines. The M-M (white blazes) and RF (red blazes) are the same trail for much of this hike.

I have hiked the portion of the M-M trail (when going east, hang a right, following the white blazes a bit after Harris Mt. Rd.) which goes to Warren Wright Rd. This is a fairly easy hike and traverses private property, almost in back yards. I thought it was too close to residences and didn't feel very comfortable in some sections. On the very last part, at Bay Rd. there is a tiny cliff with a rope to help the climb down. This is fun. It think there is a Letterbox or geocache site at this point. I have not traveled farther east on this trail although I will at some point.

We enjoyed it and were exhausted afterwards. We were in decent shape but hadn't hiked in a while and had gone to bed late the night before!

I you found this review helpful, please press thank below.
Written 25 September 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Carmelo352
Amherst, MA14 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2019 • Couples
Enjoy the many panoramic views of Northampton, MA the surrounding hill towns, the Connecticut River, the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the distance Berkshire Mountain Range. Several guides offer informative history lessons of the building that overlooks the Mt. Holyoke Range State Park.
Written 4 June 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Janet L
Amherst, MA138 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2019 • Family
they send you out on different trails as well and you can learn the history of the Indian tribes which inhabited this area as well as the history of the trolley line which used to go through the area, the Notch area as it's a state park and tours are given so very interesting.
Written 28 April 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Judy H
Belchertown, MA13 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2018 • Couples
A moderate hike resulting in some stunning views of the Valley at the Summit. The Summit House was closed for repairs - hope to get back up there soon!
Written 15 January 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

JBMartiniguy
Hartford, CT640 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sept 2017 • Family
At the top of this rnge is the old Skinner House Hotel, some of which is stil standing and opens in the summer for you to look at how great it must have been to stay on the Massachusetts hilltops.

The Metacomet Trail passes through the park, there are a number of entry/egress points and hikes of varying degrees of difficulty.

Autumn is a the peak season with a view of Northampton & Easthampton to the west acrooss the Connecticut River and Holyoke & South Hadley to the east and south

On a clear day you can see UMass and as far as Mount Monadnock in New Hampshire to the north and even the Hartford Skyline to the south. And of course the fall foliage is a huge attraction. Get outside & enjoy the Range
Written 15 May 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Paul T
Boca Raton, FL239 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2015 • Couples
Went hire while touring the region, visit was well worth it. August 30th it was pretty hot and humid, so we decided to pay $ 5.00 and drive all the way to the top, where the Summit house is located. Wonderful view of river and valley in 3 directions, all the way
to Vermont Mountains. Since Holyoke as such is a dump, with closed factories and clear poverty all around, this was a welcome change, as long as you stay close to the Holyoke Mountain range. Go for ice cream in South Hadley, nice quaint little town with Holyoke College.
Written 30 August 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Evan F
New York City, NY481 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2015 • Couples
When I found myself in Northampton with an afternoon to kill, and not particularly good weather, I took a look at the Wikipedia page for the town. Fairly far down the list, I noticed that the Oxbow in the Connecticut River is just outside of town.

I've known and admired the Thomas Cole painting for quite some time, so I thought I'd check it out. My GPS had a hard time finding Mt. Holyoke (it's in Skinner State Park, fyi), but after some meandering, I found the road to the summit.

It was raining pretty hard by that point, and though I knew the view would be somewhat obstructed, I figured it would give a Romantic allure to the whole scene, colored also by the nature of my pilgrimage.

Once at the top, and standing on the observation platform, I realized that dear Mr. Cole had played pretty fast and loose with geography. He titled the Oxbow up about 20 degrees and borrowed the mountains that actually lie to the north on the other side of the river. The only aspect that wasn't pure fiction was the approaching storm clouds. Those he depicted with uncanny accuracy (see below).

Still, for art lovers, this figures as a "Why not?" It's not a very long excursion, the view that does exist is lovely, and if you wanted to make more of a trip out of it, there looked to be some great hiking trails.
Written 1 July 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Showing results 1-10 of 28
Is this your Tripadvisor listing?
Own or manage this property? Claim your listing for free to respond to reviews, update your profile and much more.
Claim your listing

MOUNT HOLYOKE RANGE STATE PARK: All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (with Photos)

Frequently Asked Questions about Mount Holyoke Range State Park