Table Rock Trail

Table Rock is a dramatically overhanging granite slab perched on the western wall of Grafton Notch, offering a vertigo-inducing clifftop perspective overlooking Route 26 in the floor of the notch far below and sweeping views across the Mahoosuc Range toward the Sunday River ski area and the peaks of western Maine. The trail climbs steeply from the Appalachian Trail trailhead parking area on Route 26, immediately entering a classic Mahoosuc Range boreal forest of balsam fir, yellow birch, and paper birch. The ascent involves sustained steep slab climbing on open granite, requiring careful route-finding aided by blue blazes. A network of caves and crevices beneath the overhang can be explored safely in dry conditions. The overhanging slab itself projects some 20 feet beyond the cliff face, making it one of the most distinctive geological features in Maine's western mountains. The Mahoosuc Range, visible to the west, is one of the most remote and rugged stretches of the entire Appalachian Trail, notorious for its slow going and technical boulder fields. In autumn the surrounding hardwood forest turns vivid orange and red, making this a premier foliage hike for western Maine.