Snake Mountain (Vermont)

Snake Mountain
Grand View Mountain

Snake Mountain ridgeline
Highest point
Elevation 1,287 ft (392 m) NGVD 29[1]
Prominence 990 ft (300 m)
Coordinates 44°03′41″N 73°16′49″W / 44.06139°N 73.28028°W / 44.06139; -73.28028Coordinates: 44°03′41″N 73°16′49″W / 44.06139°N 73.28028°W / 44.06139; -73.28028
Geography
Location Addison, Bridport, and Weybridge; Vermont; United States
Geology
Age of rock Taconic orogeny, 440 million years
Mountain type thrust fault
West Side View of Snake Mountain text
Snake Mountain from Vermont Highway 17


Snake Mountain, 1,287 feet (392 m),[1] also called Grand View Mountain, is an isolated mountain located in Addison and Weybridge, Vermont; it belongs to a series of scattered hills extending from the greater Taconic Mountains geology. Snake Mountain contains the state of Vermont's 1,215-acre (492 ha) Snake Mountain Wildlife Management Area and The Nature Conservancy's Willmarth Woods Sanctuary.[2] Several hiking trails ascend the mountain (one climbs the western face and the second climbs the eastern face). Seen from the west, the mountain rises dramatically (with its prominent sheer cliffs) out of the nearby valley making it easy to recognize from other nearby hills and mountains.

The mountain was once the site of The Grand View Hotel, built in 1870 by Jonas N. Smith.[1] The hotel burned down but its foundations and the open vista of Lake Champlain remain.[1] Smith's stage coach road to the summit is now the primary hiking trail.[3]

Summit of Snake Mountain,VT

In memory of the hotel, the view from the summit is named "Grand View."

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Snake Mountain Wildlife Management Area Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. Retrieved January 6, 2009.
  2. "Wilmarth Woods at Snake Mountain". The Nature Conservancy. Retrieved January 6, 2009.
  3. "Snake Mountain" by Middlebury College. Retrieved 17 October 2011.


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