Half Way House Trail History
Hotels occupied the Half Way House Site from 1866 to 1954 where guests would stay in the summer. Hotel guests laid out an abundant network of trails that emanated from the hotel to the many vistas and scenic places on the mountain. Since the Halfway House hotel burned in 1954 the state park stopped maintaining a number of paths. There are some interesting and scenic paths no longer on current maps such as the Smith Marlboro Link or the Muncy Trail. Many trails have faded and are now quite blind for example the Link or the Tenderfoot Trail. Others that are no longer on state park maps are still fairly clear paths such as Paradise Valley Trail. There is still a fine network of maintained paths for peaceful and scenic hiking away from the crowds of the main trails on today’s state park maps without doing any wild exploring. Printed in 1910 Scott Smith made an early map of the Half Way House trails laid out from 1894-1909. Most of these trails are still on the state park map and most of the network is still clear today. In 1930 Allen Chamberlain laid out a more modern map of the Half Way House network. In 1952 an updated Halfway House Trail map came out but two years later the Hotel burned and a number of paths were not kept on state park maps.
Hiking Trails:
Old Toll Rd. is an easy to moderate uphill roadwalk starting at a lot on route 124. From the gate the road is closed to public vehicles only but is open for hikers. The Old Toll Road is a direct route leading to the White Arrow Trail and to the summit. The road is lined by a mixed forest of mostly hardwoods primarily Red Oak. The forest is mixed with Eastern White Pine at first then mixing with Red Spruce evergreens near the Parker Trail on up the road. At a steeper grade at .5 miles the Old Toll Rd. reaches the Parker Trail which heads east to the Cliff Walk and headquarters. At 1 mile the Cart Path heads west from the road and at 1.1 the Old Toll Road reaches the White Arrow Trail which leads to the summit. The White Arrow Trail resembles a severly washed out road like a rocky riverbed. The road turns to a private residence.
Halfway House Trail starts on the left just past the gate climbs a ridge and then the grade eases and parallels closely to the Old Toll Rd. The Halfway House Trail can be a shadier alternative to the road. The Halfway House Trail can be muddy in spots. The forest goes from a mix of pine and northern hardwoods then spruce mix in. The grade eases and the Cart Path is reached in about a mile. Then there is a short brushy section before the Halfway House Trail heads up to the White Arrow trail at the Old Toll Rd. in about 1.1 miles.