Mount Tripyramid Loop via North Slide

White Mountain National Forest, NH White Mountains + New England

Trip stats

Distance
11.2 mi
Net Gain
3,100 ft
Time
4-6 hrs
YDS Rating
Class 2
Route
Loop
Peaks
3

Ratings out of 10

Effort
5.2/10
Personality
6/10
Beauty
6/10
Solitude
4/10
What do these mean? →

Peaks on this hike

Summits listed in route order

Ridgeline of the 3 summits in route order 01 02 03
  1. Mount Tripyramid (North Tripyramid)
    4,180′ elevation · 1,360′ prominence
  2. Middle Tripyramid
    4,120′ elevation · 240′ prominence
  3. South Tripyramid
    4,080′ elevation · 80′ prominence

Route map + Trailhead

Trailhead Coordinates

43.965980, -71.513410

The directions link below drops a pin on the trailhead coordinates and lets Google Maps pick the route. If the drive has rough roads or access issues that GPS nav might get wrong, I cover that in my trip report.

Get directions (opens Google Maps in a new tab)

Trip report

Jul 8, 2022 — Mount Tripyramid consists of three summits, the tallest being the northern peak. This hike is best known for its fun scramble route on the northwestern slope. Evan and I set out from the Livermore Trailhead South and followed an old dirt road for a few miles. Really its good enough to drive on, but there's a gate preventing vehicular access. There were a few road junctions that could get a little confusing. The final sign-marked junction was located at a switchback in the road, and led us down into the watercourse of Avalanche Brook, the trail popping in on the opposite side. From here it was easy to follow this trail, which was poor relative to other trails in the White Mountains. I was a little concerned we weren't going the right way because of this, but we slowly gained elevation and it was clear this was correct.

We reached the base of what's known as the North Slide route up Mount Tripyramid. Starting out at Class 2, the granitic scrambling became progressively more fun and open. I felt there was one section that was a bit more difficult at Class 2+, but I didn't pull any Class 3 moves and there was minimal exposure for the whole ascent. Additionally, there seem to be easier variations by sticking to the trees on the left, but the bare rock exposed by a the slide is where the most fun can be had. After a bunch of this fun and solid rock that lasted a few hundred vertical feet, the slide opened into a dirty slope with lots of embedded talus. Plenty of social trails and large embedded flat boulders helped keep this fun rather than tedious, and after another few hundred feet we reached the top of the slide. A cairn marked the spot to leave the open slope and enter the forest. The trail led to the summit of Mount Tripyramid.

Some fun Class 2 obstacles led south along the ridgeline of the three Tripyramid peaks, an occasional view adding to the lush forest vibes. South Tripyramid's south slope has a trail leading down a dirtier and less fun slope than the Northern Slide route, but it never exceeds Class 2. The views were outstanding the whole way down. The Pyramid Loop Trail continued through the forest and met back up with the dirt road we'd left earlier, completing the loop.

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Photos

44 photos

  1. Along Livermore Road, closed to traffic.
  2. The road lasts a few miles, barely gaining elevation.
  4. Keep left at this junction.
  5. The junction that will complete our loop later. For now we kept left to reach North Tripyramid first using the North Slide route.
  6. After reaching a switchback in the road with a nice sign, we left the road and descended into Avalanche Brook. The trail continues on the opposite side.
  7. Ascending the North Slide Trail, which was a bit less trodden than I thought it would be.
  8. After some forest walking, we reached the base of the North Slide route.
  9. View back toward the Avalanche Brook drainage after starting up.
  10. Class 2.
  11. More fun scrambling up the initially narrow section of the slide.
  12. View down at a Class 2 section.
  13. More fun granitic slabs.
  14. View back at a Class 2+ section.
  15. Close-up of the Class 2+ section.
  16. More fun.
  18. The slabs open up to a bit of a dirtier slope, but there are plenty of social trails and wide slabs to avoid most of the scree.
  19. View back down.
  20. Ascending slabs/talus/scree, depending on where you are on the slope.
  21. Another shot back at our progress up the North Slide route.
  22. A view of the final bit to the top of the Slide.
  23. Close-up back at some of the dirtier terrain higher up.
  25. A cairn marks the spot to leave the slide and enter the forest.
  26. Steep trail up to North Tripyramid.
  27. Pretty forest along the ridgeline traverse.
  28. Junction with the Sabbaday Brook Trail. Keep right to stay along the ridgeline.
  30. Some steep stuff.
  31. Middle Peak summit with a decent view.
  32. Some Class 2 along the trail.
  35. Final ascent to South Tripyramid, third of the three Tripyramid peaks.
  36. Descending from South Peak.
  37. The forest opens up into the southern slide coming down from South Tripyramid.
  38. View back up at the talus.
  39. Steep and sometimes loose, despite being a trail.
  41. Nearing the end of the slope and reentering the forest.
  42. Hiking along the Tripyramid Loop Trail.
  44. Paralleling Slide Brook as we make our way back to Livermore Road.

Photo 1 of 1

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GPX track

Mount Tripyramid Loop via North Slide GPX route and driving track

The complete GPX track is available to download, so you can load the route straight into your navigation app or device. The trip report, route info, photos and planning details stay free.

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