If you’re a reader of this site, you probably find places like the Catskills, White Mountains, and Baxter State Park beautiful and inspiring. And you’d probably have a hard time imagining how anyone could come away from those places thinking “Nah…”
But, the truth is, you can’t please everyone.
Which explains some of the 1- and 2-star TripAdvisor reviews for some of the Northeast’s most awe-inspiring places. While these reviews might leave you scratching your head, they at least make for a fun read.
Here are some of the more entertaining reviews of a few of the Northeast’s iconic outdoor places.
Monadnock State Park
“This hike seems almost delusional. The ‘hiking’ is more of an ‘avoiding injuries’ adventure — as there are ROCKS, ROCKS AND MORE AND MORE AND MORE ROCKS along the path and summit turns. If you enjoy crawling on all fours over massive rocks, trying your best not to trip, fall, turn and [sic] ankle or slide down granite, you’ll love it. Oh, and it’s usually not a deal-breaker, but there are thousands of gnats that seem to mock you all the way up and all the way down. Yes, the summit is breath-taking, but I don’t know that it was worth the danger.”
“My friends and I are in good shape and what we were told would be a moderate hike made us fear for our lives at several points. We hiked up the white dot trail. … What was to be a hike turned in [sic] mountain climbing. If not for the help of some more experienced hikers we might not have made it to the fork to go back down the white cross trail which wasn’t much better. I saw people slipping and falling everywhere. I am black and blue and sore all over my body. With the rain and darkness it was a nightmare. The trail up took hours leaving very little time for the decent. Other hikers had to stay together for safely [sic]. The park rangers were however amazing and couldn’t thank them enough. If I never went back it would be too soon. Completely over rated [sic]!!!”
Tuckerman Ravine
“I would rather give childbirth than climb this same trail again.”
Baxter State Park
“Unless you camp or hike in the backcountry do not bother visiting. The gravel roads are a mess to drive on and lead to basically nowhere other than trails. There are literally no views to be seen from the roads. Not a place for the casual visitor.”
“Never ever go to Baxter State Park Main if you don’t want to loose [sic] your car. If you go from Togue Pond Gate by Park Tote road is so bad that driving first two miles like riding roller-coaster. Car is so shaking like it is going to fall apart into pieces. When we came home fixing car damage already costed us $1100. And I am afraid that it is not over.”
(Titled “All about Jurek”) “Nice rugged Maine park. It’s such a bummer that it’s been tainted by champagne spray — especially by a top elite runner revered everywhere. I hope the park recovers. Go to the park but normal park rules obviously do not apply. Oh and bring your bug spray.”
“Visited the park on a Saturday which was probably a mistake — the car parks of any trails of interest were full by the time we got there soon after 8.30. We had called at the information centre in Millinocket the day before but were not told of the need to get there really early. The park seems to want to attract only serious hikers not people interested in learning about the wildlife — we found it very forbidding with keep out notices and parking closed notices everywhere. The tote road is really treacherous as we know to our cost — 136 dollars for a new tire for the hire car. The owner of the garage at Millinocket said we were the third tire he had to replace that day because of the tote road and it was only 12.30pm. Yes, the scenery is beautiful and we were able to do some trail walking but the map we were given at the gate was woefully inadequate. It would not hurt the park organisation to put on a few low key guided tours in vehicles suited to the terrain…”
Franconia Ridge
“My boyfriend and I, both novices, did the ridge loop trail. We figured, how hard could it be? The 3 mile uphill climb was definitely some good cardio, and once you were at the top it was pretty majestic with the still silence and great for pics. But here’s the thing — 3 miles uphill, 3 miles across peak to peak, about 4-6 miles downhill. That right there is physical abuse. But it doesn’t stop there, the decline was so dangerous and steep that I developed shin splints (plural). As any athlete knows, shin splints are the worst, therefore hopping from slimey rock to slimey [sic] rock on basically one foot was only the beginning of my mental abuse from this hike. We started around 10:30/11 am and by 6:30 pm the sun disappeared and my boyfriend and I found ourselves alone in the dark, moose-infested forest with **no clear direction**. (National department of forestry I hope you’re reading). Luckily we made it but all in all, probably would not do this hike again. I say go if you are the fittest person alive and know that you won’t develop shin splints, but otherwise maybe just go for a walk in the park.”
“We had read that the trail was difficult, but being that we are relatively fit 27 year olds with an adequate experience of hiking under our belts, we felt prepared. Boy where [sic] we in for a surprise! The hike started off pretty normal, but then eventually turned into an icy rock climbing expedition. The trail was a path no longer, instead it was path of rocks and boulders, many of which were quite slippery and very icy. But we braved on. Eventually when on the top, yes the view was gorgeous, stunning even, but we soon had to battle more icy rocks and boulders together with a ferocious wind that threatened to blow us off the mountain because of course with a trail with limited trail signs how could one expect to have a railing? It was hard, steep and places seemed enough for a rock climbing expert. When we finally started our descent, the trail was so icy that we had to take a detour which included climbing down loose rocks, that were very unsteady and made me fear for my life. It was so hard at times and it seemed the trail would never end. After the hut refreshments which were appreciated, there were still 3 miles to go and that was brutal; some parts of the trail seemed like we were climbing down the side of the mountain instead of following a legitimate trail. There is no park ranger, God forbid anyone takes a tumble, no one is there to help. My advice is find beautiful views elsewhere, risking your life to do this is not worth it.”
Letchworth State Park
“Our first stop was the Visitor Center, where we asked the woman at the window for directions to see the waterfalls while doing a minimum amount of hiking. I explained we would like to park the car as close as possible and only walk a short distance. She directed us to the parking lot at the south end of the park near the railroad bridge, where we descended about 250 steps to the Upper Falls. The BIG problem was climbing those 250 steps to return to our car, comparable to climbing to the top of a 25 story building. I am a 65 year-old overweight man who has had 2 heart attacks, 5 knee surgeries and many back, hip and foot problems. My fiancé has had surgeries on both feet. The climb nearly killed us.”
Connecticut Lakes Region
“NO MOOSE TO BE FOUND ANY MORE! The place we stayed, when making reservations said that there were moose to be seen. No there were NO moose at all. Went in the 90ies [sic] and moose all over the road. … But what gets me the most is that all the cabins and all the tourist attractions still say the moose are in numbers up Rt 3. Ya maybe 2 or 3 if that? They try to tell you if you’re looking for moose come up here and spend your money! Money! Money! Thats [sic] all they want, is your money! Don’t go expecting to find many moose along to road sides any more. Because it is not happening!”
Cascade Mountain (New York)
(Title: Too Many New Yorkers) “This could be a nice peaceful place. But too many New Yorkers spoilt [sic] the place for subdued people like me and others.”