Resources for Highpointing in the Berkshires

The resources that I used on a four day (Friday May 16^th to Monday May 19^th of 2003) weekend in the Berkshires.

On this page:

On other pages:

I make no attempt to give a comprehensive listing of resources, but simply list the ones I have used on this trip.

Books

Massachusetts and Rhode Island Trail Guide, 7^th edition, Appalachian Mountain Club Books, Boston, MA ISBN 1-878239-39-2. Has good descriptions of all the trails described here (except the one up Crum Hill). The map of the southern Berkshires is adequate, even though it looks old fashioned by today's standards. The map of Mount Greylock is excellent.
The recently published (June 2004) 8^th edition (now called the Massachussetts Trail Guide, ISBN 1-92917344-X) has few changes in the text, but comes with some excellent new maps.
North Berkshire Outdoor Guide, a publication of the Williams Outing Club, ISBN 0-9669785-0-1. An excellent book on the northern Berkshires, with good descriptions of the trails on Mount Greylock and along the Taconic Crest. No mention of the nearby Hoosac Range, which includes Crum Hill. An excellent map is included.
Highpoints of the United Sates: A Guide to the Fifty State Summits by Don W. Holmes, University of Utah Press, ISBN 0-87480-645-3. Describes two hiking routes up Mount Frissell, and two up Mount Greylock. No mention of the county highpoints, of course.
Highpoint Adventures by Charlie and Diane Winger, CMC Press, ISBN 0-9671466-3-1. Describes only one hiking route up Mount Frissell, and none (driving only) up Mount Greylock. No mention of the county highpoints, of course.

If you have the 7^thedition of the AMC Massachusetts and Rhode Island Trail Guide the maps that comes with it are adequate for the southern Berkshires (Alander and Brace Mountains and Mount Frissell) and Mount Greylock. They cover neither Berlin Mountain nor Crum Hill.
The 8^th edition has a pair of excellent new maps. The Southwestern Massachusetts map covers the whole South Taconic Trail as well as the Appalachian Trail from a little to the south of Bear Mountain to where it reaches the road after Jug End. An excellent resource for Mount Frissell, as well as Brace and Alander Mountains. The Northern Bershires map covers most of the Taconic Crest Trail, including access trails, as well as Mount Greylock.
The North Berkshire Outdoors Guide has an excellent map that covers both Mount Greylock and Berlin Mountain.
An excellent stand alone map for the southern Berkshires is the NY NJ Trail Conference's South Taconic Trails map, ISBN 1-880775-16-6. It is the only map which gives the color of the blazes on each trail.
A prettier (but not more useful!) map of the southern Berkshires is the South Taconic Range map published by the Berkshire Natural Resources Council, I cannot find an ISBN on my copy or on their web site!
The only map that shows Crum Hill is the USGS North Adams quad, 42031-F1-TM-025, ISBN 0-607-23483-0.

There are many highpointer trip reports for Mount Frissell and Mount Greylock on the America's Roof website.

County highpoint trip reports for the eastern New York and Massachusetts counties are available on the County highpointers site.