Brook Trail is an elective on the Terrifying 25 and one of the more demanding routes up Mount Chocorua (3,490 ft), gaining 2,600 feet over 3.6 miles from its trailhead off Paugus Mill Road near Chocorua Lake. More difficult than the neighboring Liberty Trail, it was originally cut by local residents seeking blueberries on the upper ledges without paying the toll along the established route; today its reputation rests on a sequence of granite slabs that test both fitness and route judgment.
The lower portion of the trail follows south of Claybank Brook through wooded terrain before the character of the route changes sharply near the 3-mile mark. Here, the open ledges of Farlow Ridge begin in earnest, marked by cairns and yellow blazes, with the Bee Line Trail entering from the left. The defining challenge is a single long, steep slab where a fall carries serious consequences; in wet conditions hikers should hug the edges and grab vegetation rather than commit to the polished center. Slabs continue intermittently to the Liberty Trail junction at 3.4 miles, with the summit another 0.2 miles of rocky scrambling beyond.
Chocorua's bare, exposed summit cone offers 360-degree views across the Sandwich Range and the Lakes Region below. Brook Trail can be hiked in most seasons but presents real hazard in winter and on shoulder-season ice; the slab section is effectively impassable without traction devices from late fall through early spring. Allow three to three and a half hours for the ascent.
