EXPLORING MONADNOCK TRAILS: Temple’s White Ledges are an easy hike

As fall gets into full swing, the summer flowers fall to the wayside and a new landscape appears – the brilliance of fall foliage – and my hikes tend to take an upward trend to take in the new views from their best vantage.

This year, I started my fall hikes with a mild upward slope and a short trail that still has some great views – Temple’s White Ledges.

Hiking in the fall is one of my favorite times of the year, not only for the beautiful views, but because the cooler weather and bug-free environment pretty much make it perfect for a walk in the woods. Which, for much of the hike to the peak, is what the White Ledges hike consists of.

Also sometimes called the Kendall Ledges, this town-owned property isn’t the most-strenuous hike. It’s a little over a half-mile one way, with a trail easily traversed there and back again within an hour, and at a grade that’s accessible to most hikers, including children. The tradeoff is that there is essentially one view from the top, though it is a great view.

The trailhead is off Howard Hill Road in Temple, a dirt road off the main highway, with a kiosk and small amount of off-road parking. The trail starts on a fairly wide, well-maintained trail, traveling alongside some private fields. Almost all of the trail follows along some stunning examples of New England stone walls, including a long stretch that is multiple feet thick, with several layers of stones. Perhaps the stone crop from the surrounding fields was particularly plentiful.

After passing a gate at the end of the first portion of the trail, the hike becomes more wooded, though the trail remains wide and clear. On the way up, I encountered a garter snake sunning on the trail, who scooted into a hole in the stone wall the moment it heard me coming – though I was able to snap a good photo before it disappeared.

An excerpt from “A History of Temple, New Hampshire, 1768-1976,” posted at the kiosk at the trail head, lays out the – at the time – recent gift of the ledges to the town’s Conservation Commission, to be used in perpetuity as public land.

The land was donated by Abbie Kendall Fish, wife of Charles Fish, and was deeded to the town in 1975 “to be maintained as a natural area for the benefit of all Temple residents.” The property had been in the Kendall family for nearly 200 years before being gifted to the town. The conservation area grew in 1978 with a donation from the Richardson family, making the entire parcel about nine acres, with a short trail leading to 500 feet of ledge with a sprawling view.

“This ledge, which is an outcropping of white quartz about two hundred feet long and a hundred feet wide, is now covered by a growth of trees and plants. After the building of the District 4 schoolhouse in 1855, schoolchildren used to climb up to this ledge, which is behind the site of that old school, to explore and carry home any pieces of the beautiful quartz that they could pick up or break off. Sometimes the more rare rose-quartz can be found as part of this formation,” the excerpt reads.

It seems quartz-hunting is still a popular pastime for hikers on the ledge. After exiting the woods, there is only a short trail, lined with high-bush blueberries – and somewhat incongruously, a large grape vine I spotted midfield – and goldenrod gone to seed. You can see what the ledges are named for – a large mound of white stone gleaming in the sun, perfect for a quick scramble to the top.

Exploring the ledge, as well as a small offshoot to the right, you’ll spot piles of quartz, either collected or broken off from previous hikers, perhaps looking for an example of the rarer rose quartz.

If you go

Temple’s White Ledges

The parking area is located on Howard Hill Road, located off Route 45. Trailhead is about one-tenth of a mile down the road, on the left. Some off-street parking is available.