Potter Mountain (Taconic Mountains)
Encyclopedia
Potter Mountain is a prominent ridgeline located in the Taconic Mountains
of western Massachusetts. It has several peaks; the most notable are the southern Jiminy Peak, 2392 feet (729.1 m), which bears the name of the ski area located on its slopes, and Widow White's Peak, 2430 feet (740.7 m), the ridge high point.
The mountain is located in the towns of Hancock
and Lanesborough
. It was formerly traversed by the Taconic Skyline Trail
which no longer officially crosses the ridge. Potter Mountain offers expansive viewpoints from several clearings, particularly where the ski area meets the ridge on the southwest side of the mountain. Potter Mountain is sometimes confused with the northern peak of Poppy Mountain
to the south.
The Taconic Range ridgeline continues north from Potter Mountain as Brodie Mountain
and south as Poppy Mountain. It is bordered to the west across the Wyomanock Creek valley by Rounds Mountain
. The west side of the mountain drains into Kinderhook Creek
, the Hudson River
and Long Island Sound
. The east side drains into Secum Brook, thence Pontoosuc Lake, the Housatonic River
, and Long Island Sound
.
Taconic Mountains
The Taconic Mountains or Taconic Range are a physiographic section of the larger New England province and part of the Appalachian Mountains, running along the eastern border of New York State and adjacent New England from northwest Connecticut to western Massachusetts, north to central western...
of western Massachusetts. It has several peaks; the most notable are the southern Jiminy Peak, 2392 feet (729.1 m), which bears the name of the ski area located on its slopes, and Widow White's Peak, 2430 feet (740.7 m), the ridge high point.
The mountain is located in the towns of Hancock
Hancock, Massachusetts
Hancock is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 717 at the 2010 census.- History :...
and Lanesborough
Lanesborough, Massachusetts
Lanesborough is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,990 at the 2000 census.-History:...
. It was formerly traversed by the Taconic Skyline Trail
Taconic Skyline Trail
The Taconic Skyline Trail is a multi-use trail in the Taconic Mountains of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. The trail extends from U.S. Route 20 in Hancock, Massachusetts, less than east of the New York border, north along the ridgecrest of the Taconic Range within Pittsfield State Forest and...
which no longer officially crosses the ridge. Potter Mountain offers expansive viewpoints from several clearings, particularly where the ski area meets the ridge on the southwest side of the mountain. Potter Mountain is sometimes confused with the northern peak of Poppy Mountain
Poppy Mountain
Poppy Mountain, , sometimes identified as Pease Ridge, its northwest descending crest, is a prominent peak in the Taconic Mountains of western Massachusetts. The mountain is located in Pittsfield State Forest and is traversed by the Taconic Crest hiking trail...
to the south.
The Taconic Range ridgeline continues north from Potter Mountain as Brodie Mountain
Brodie Mountain
Brodie Mountain, , is a prominent long ridgeline in the Taconic Mountains of western Massachusetts, known for the former Brodie Mountain ski area, which closed in 2002...
and south as Poppy Mountain. It is bordered to the west across the Wyomanock Creek valley by Rounds Mountain
Rounds Mountain
Rounds Mountain, , is a prominent peak in the Taconic Mountains of western Massachusetts and adjacent New York. The west side of the mountain and summit are located in New York; the east side is located within Massachusetts. The summit a bald; the slopes are wooded with northern hardwood tree species...
. The west side of the mountain drains into Kinderhook Creek
Kinderhook Creek
Kinderhook Creek is a tributary to Stockport Creek, an inlet of the Hudson River in the United States. From its source in Hancock, Massachusetts, the creek runs southwest through the Taconic Mountains into Rensselaer County, New York, and then into Columbia County...
, the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
and Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
. The east side drains into Secum Brook, thence Pontoosuc Lake, the Housatonic River
Housatonic River
The Housatonic River is a river, approximately long, in western Massachusetts and western Connecticut in the United States. It flows south to southeast, and drains about of southwestern New England into Long Island Sound...
, and Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound
Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...
.
External links
- Pittsfield State Forest map
- Pittsfield State Forest. Massachusetts DCR.
- Jiminy Peak Mountain Resort - Official site
