Butternut Hill Natural Area is located in beautiful North Hero, VT. Only a 45-minute drive from downtown Burlington, this natural area offers visitors a great Vermont hiking experience in the scenic Lake Champlain Islands region. The one mile long kid-friendly trail begins at the Town of North Hero’s Camp Ingalls and winds through a unique floodplain forest, along an impressive cedar forest ridge, and down to the shores of Lake Champlain. When you visit, keep an eye out for the natural area’s namesake butternut trees (also known as white walnut).
Please note: During times of high water (e.g. spring snowmelt or flooding events) when the lake level exceeds 97 feet, the trail to the Lake may be flooded and require knee-high waterproof boots (click for current lake level).
Directions
Guides
Download a printable guide to Butternut Hill, including driving directions.
Nature Snapshots
Download a series of Nature Snapshots for the Butternut Hill landscape.
History
Butternut Hill Natural Area was conserved in 2012. Two North Hero, VT families, the Williams and the Keyes, worked alongside each other, the Lake Champlain Land Trust, and The Nature Conservancy of Vermont to conserve wildlife habitat and lakeshore along Lake Champlain.
Butternut Hill Natural Area combines conserved land from the Williams family, the Keyes family, and the Town of North Hero, protecting a spectacular, old floodplain forest, while providing public access to the forest and the lake via the trails starting at the Town of North Hero’s former Camp Ingalls land.
Partners
Butternut Hill was conserved in partnership with the Nature Conservancy, the Town of North Hero, and the Lake Champlain Land Trust.
