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Mountains Above The Treeline in the Northeast US

Alpine vegetation is extremely rare in the eastern US, limited to a few disjunct patches. List all the mountains which appear to contain alpine vegetation.
Mountain here is defined as a peak with over 160 feet of prominence above the surrounding ridgeline, similar to the AMC definition. Where there is a well known lower subpeak above a treeline but the main peak is still forested, the main peak is included with the subpeak in parentheses
Appalachian balds in the southern Appalachians are not included as they are mechanically different from true treelines elsewhere.
This is based on a mix of arbitrary decisions with Google Maps and the locations listed in the Eastern Alpine Guide, which is basically the only book really dedicated to this topic. Did a little spot checking with Peakbagger to confirm some of these.
Includes some locations where treelines were lowered due to fires, determining if the mountains originally had a treeline before the fire was difficult for me. The treeline height can vary greatly due to exposure.
Quiz by
Kearsarge
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Last updated: July 20, 2025
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First submittedJune 28, 2025
Times taken7
Average score74.6%
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Elevation
State
Answer
6,288 ft
1,917 m
New Hampshire
Mount Washington
5,774 ft
1,760 m
New Hampshire
Mount Adams
5,712 ft
1,741 m
New Hampshire
Mount Jefferson
5,384 ft
1,641 m
New Hampshire
Mount Monroe
5,367 ft
1,636 m
New Hampshire
Mount Madison
5,343 ft
1,629 m
New York
Mount Marcy
5,268 ft
1,606 m
Maine
Katahdin/Baxter Peak
5,249 ft
1,600 m
New Hampshire
Mount Lafayette
5,114 ft
1,559 m
New York
Algonquin Peak
5,089 ft
1,551 m
New Hampshire
Mount Lincoln
4,960 ft
1,510 m
New York
Mount Haystack
4,924 ft
1,501 m
New York
Mount Skylight
4,902 ft
1,464 m
New Hampshire
South Twin Mountain
4,867 ft
1,483 m
New York
Whiteface Mountain
4,857 ft
1,480 m
New York
Dix Mountain
4,840 ft
1,475 m
New York
Iroquois Peak
4,832 ft
1,473 m
New Hampshire
Carter Dome (Mount Hight)
4,827 ft
1,471 m
New York
Basin Mountain
4,802 ft
1,464 m
New Hampshire
Mount Moosilauke
4,780 ft
1,460 m
New Hampshire
Mount Eisenhower
4,756 ft
1,450 m
Maine
Katahdin/Hamlin Peak
4,736 ft
1,444 m
New York
Gothics
4,714 ft
1,437 m
New York
Mount Colden
4,698 ft
1,432 m
New Hampshire
Mount Bond (Mount Guyot)
4,580 ft
1,400 m
New York
Wright Peak
4,459 ft
1,359 m
New Hampshire
Mount Liberty
4,393 ft
1,339 m
Vermont
Mount Mansfield
4,358 ft
1,328 m
New Hampshire
South Kinsman Mountain
4,310 ft
1,314 m
New Hampshire
Mount Pierce
4,310 ft
1,314 m
New Hampshire
Mount Carrigain
4,265 ft
1,300 m
New Hampshire
Bondcliff
4,250 ft
1,295 m
Maine
Sugarloaf Mountain
4,151 ft
1,265 m
Maine
North Brother
4,145 ft
1,263 m
Maine
Mount Bigelow/West Bigelow
4,120 ft
1,256 m
Maine
Saddleback Mountain
4,100 ft
1,250 m
New Hampshire
Cannon Mountain
Elevation
State
Answer
4,090 ft
1,245 m
Maine
East Bigelow/Avery Peak
4,083 ft
1,244 m
Vermont
Camels Hump
4,064 ft
1,239 m
Vermont
Mount Mansfield Nose
4,052 ft
1,235 m
New Hampshire
Mount Jackson
4,050 ft
1,235 m
Maine
Mount Abraham
4,023 ft
1,226 m
Maine
Saddleback Horn
4,006 ft
1,221 m
Vermont
Mount Abraham
3,970 ft
1,210 m
Maine
South Brother
3,867 ft
1,179 m
Maine
Fort Mountain
3,860 ft
1,177 m
Maine
Goose Eye Mountain
3,813 ft
1,162 m
Maine
Baldpate Mountain-East Peak
3,758 ft
1,146 m
Maine
Middle Abraham
3,734 ft
1,138 m
New Hampshire
Shelburne Moriah
3,683 ft
1,123 m
Maine
Goose Eye Mountain-North Peak
3,662 ft
1,116 m
Maine
Baldpate Mountain-West Peak
3,655 ft
1,114 m
Maine
Saddleback Junior
3,654 ft
1,114 m
Maine
White Cap Mountain
3,609 ft
1,100 m
Maine
Burnt Hill
3,606 ft
1,099 m
New Hampshire
North Baldface
3,565 ft
1,087 m
New Hampshire
Mount Success
3,547 ft
1,081 m
New Hampshire
South Baldface
3,540 ft
1,080 m
Maine
Traveler Mountain
3,490 ft
1,060 m
New Hampshire
Mount Chocorua
3,473 ft
1,049 m
Maine
Mahoosuc Mountain
3,459 ft
1,054 m
Maine
Mullen Mountain
3,434 ft
1,053 m
Maine
Little Jackson Mountain
3,315 ft
1,017 m
Maine
Sunday River Whitecap
3,225 ft
983 m
Maine
Peak of the Ridges
3,216 ft
1,014 m
Maine
North Turner Mountain
3,170 ft
966 m
New Hampshire
Mount Monadnock
3,144 ft
958 m
Maine
North Traveler Mountain
3,126 ft
953 m
Maine
South Turner Mountain
3,125 ft
985 m
New Hampshire
Mount Cardigan
3,085 ft
940 m
Maine
Tumbledown Mountain
2,677 ft
816 m
Maine
South Traveler Mountain
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3 Comments
+1
Level 68
Jun 28, 2025
Very arbitrary in some of these. South Twin, Flume, West Bond in NH might arguably be barely above treeline at their summits, same with Jay Peak in Vermont. There are several points in the Mahoosucs of Maine and NH where there seem to be bogs around the summits of the lower mountains, I ended up deciding that the patch on Success and North Goose Eye were alpine in addition to definite alpine on Sunday River Whitecap and Goose Eye itself, but there are 2-3 other mountains where there is a little bog on the summit I could not determine was tundra or just a wetland that happened to be on the top of a mountain.

Really more of a proof of concept than anything, given how arbitrary it gets when it comes to things like exposed cliff faces or alpine bogs near summits.I could easily drop 20 or so mountains off this list, and I could probably add 20 more marginal examples. Bit arbitrary to leave off balds in the South when I am including mountains which only have a treeline due to fires.

+1
Level 68
Jun 28, 2025
First update. Added Mahoosuc Mountain in the Mahoosucs, North and South Turner in Baxter State Park, Tumbledown and Little Jackson Mountains in the Blue Mountain area. All of these are pretty marginal and may be due to fires or are misidentified bogs, but I decided that they might be worth including. Also on second thought added South Twin, which is definitely tall enough to have a true treeline and appears to have a tiny summit cone with shrub vegetation.

Still of two minds on the following mountains:

Jay Peak in VT.

Whitewall Mountain, Chocorua, Middle Moat, possibly South Moat, Percy Peaks and Kearsarge in NH. All low elevation peaks with exposed summit or flanks, likely due to fire damage.

Rumford Whitecap, Fulling Mill Mountain and Cadillac Mountain* (among other Acadia peaks) in Maine. Possibly a couple other Baxter SP peaks that are rocky near the summit. Probably not true treelines.

Rocky Branch Ridge and Saddleback in New York.

+1
Level 68
Jul 20, 2025
Ended up adding Chocorua as the Eastern Alpine guide mentions that it has a fairly intact alpine ecosystem, even given that it is fire-caused.