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Jul 05, 2020 — Breakneck Ridge is a really popular hike, so much so that I almost don't even want to recommend it anymore. Over the last 10 years since I first heard of the hike, graffiti, garbage, and erosion has taken over. It's still a fun Class 2 scramble, and would serve well as the start to our longer hike up to South Beacon Mountain. You can see the Breakneck Ridge and Notch Trail Loop here, if you're looking for a shorter hike.
This trail ascends Breakneck Ridge, then follows the trail along the ridgeline using a white-blazed trail, passing over Sunset Point and leading to the base of South Beacon Mountain. Along the way, there are plenty of fun little Class 2 sections, occasional views, and forests and small meadows typical for the area. At the base of South Beacon Mountain is a junction (yellow blaze) we would later take to make this into a loop, but first Austin and I headed up to South Beacon Mountain and climbed the lookout tower to get some nice views. Aside from Breakneck Ridge, the short ascent to the base of the lookout tower was the most fun part of the hike, where the trail scrambles up fun boulders with a nice view behind us as we went.
Back at the base of South Beacon Mountain, we took the yellow blaze along an old forest road until the blazes pointed us to the left onto a single-track. We took this trail all the way to a junction with "scenic overlook", which is actually Sugarloaf Mountain. I suppose that recently the trail leading down the south side of Sugarloaf Mountain was removed, resulting in us having to backtrack, despite the appearance of a trail being there on maps. The trail down from Sugarloaf Mountain was popular, but pretty.
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