Elevation: 3,813 feet (1,162 meters) Prominence: 173 feet (53 meters) Location: Grafton County, New Hampshire Range: Twin Range Coordinates: 44°13'22" North     71°33'42" West Rating: Difficult - The start of the hike on old forest road 304A is easy. The rest of the hike is a bushwhack with some herd path, so navigation skills are required. It is only steep near the 2 summits. Features: Bushwhack, Summit canister & sign, Summit views off herd path Distance of highlighted hike below: Could be as little as 3.35 miles roundtrip (but could also be closer to 5 miles depending on the bushwhack route you take.)

Peak Above the Nubble, also known as Nubble Peak, or PATN (Pronounced Patton) is a 3,862 foot mountain in the Twin Range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire. Topographic maps show 2 high point in this area: one being The Nubble and the other being Peak Above the Nubble, which is the higher point. They are roughly 0.3 miles apart.

The mountain is flanked to the South by North Twin Mountain.

Peak Above the Nubble is on the New England Hundred highest hiking list as well as the New Hampshire Hundred highest hiking list. This is a difficult hike because one will have to bushwhack to reach the summit, as there is no trail leading to the peak. The most popular route starts out on an old forest road (304A) off Haystack Road in Bethlehem, NH.

Lists Peak Above the Nubble are on:	= A patch is available for this list
New England Hundred highest New England Hundred highest in Winter season      New Hampshire Hundred highest

The map below shows how to get to the summit of Peak Above the Nubble.

From the start of old forest road 304A (only marked by 3 large boulders, blocking the road off from vehicles) off Haystack Road in Bethlehem, NH, start hiking down the old forest road. When you come to a sand dune hill on your left, bear right. A few more minutes up this road is the typical starting point of this bushwhack on the right side. (There was an arrow made out of sticks and a tiny cairn in October of 2014, but don't rely on this). This part of the hike is on a herd path for less than half a mile in young, but TALL, vegetation. It is very tight in this area, but the herd path is easy to follow if you keep your eyes on the ground. You will go through 2 small clearings, which is a nice break from the tall and thick vegetation you just came out of! Soon after you get out of the young vegetation, you are in open forest. It is not dense, so this part of the bushwhack is not that difficult, BUT a herd path is difficult to see.

Once you reach the summit of the Nubble (the smaller peak), there is obvious herd path that goes left and right. Go right and follow down and up hill to the summit of Peak Above the Nubble! The summit has a canister and summit sign. If you go down the herd path from the summit to the left, there is a great view (the only view on this summit) of North Twin Mountain.

To get back to the parking area, go back the same way you came up.

Click to download PDF Trail Map of Peak Above the Nubble

The start of this hike: Old forest road 304A off Haystack Road in Bethlehem, NH. Taken on 9/28/14. (It doesn't look like an obvious trail in this photo, but it is: This particular Fall day was covered in leaves!)

Old forest road 304A is an obvious trail to hike on. Taken on 9/28/14.

The sand dune you will see on you left on the old forest road. Bear right here. Taken on 9/28/14.

Taken near the summit of Peak Above the Nubble. Taken on 9/28/14.

The parking area for the highlighted hike above is located on Haystack Road in Bethlehem, NH (so if you have a GPS, you can just enter that road and town, and drive roughly 1.7 miles on Haystack Road. You will see 3 large boulders blocking off old forest road 304A on the right side. This is the start of the hike. There is no actual parking lot, but this area can fit a couple cars.)

If you don't have a GPS and are coming from the South:
Take exit 35 off I-93 North to merge onto US-3 N, towards Twin Mountain / Lancaster. Drive on Route 3 for 7.9 miles until you come to Haystack Road on the right. Turn right and drive roughly 1.7 miles until you see 3 large boulders blocking off an old forest road on the right side. This is the start of the hike. There is no actual parking lot, but this area can fit a couple cars.

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