The Hi-Cannon Trail earns its Terrifying 25 place through a combination of relentless grade and a signature obstacle: a wooden ladder bolted to a near-vertical rock face roughly halfway up the east slope of Cannon Mountain. The segment covers about 1.4 miles and climbs close to 2,000 feet, making it one of the steepest sustained ascents in Franconia Notch. The lower half follows a narrow, winding path through dense forest before the grade sharpens considerably. The ladder itself leads to a precarious ledge traverse where a thin strip of trees stands between the trail and the cliff edge; above that, rocky scrambling continues through sporadic open sections with views east toward the Presidential Range.
Conditions demand respect in all seasons. Wet rock or morning dew makes the ladder and surrounding slabs slippery well into summer. In winter and early spring, the ladder rungs and adjacent ledges ice over quickly and require traction devices; bare-boot attempts are strongly discouraged. The trail connects at its upper end to the Kinsman Ridge Trail, from which the summit is 0.4 miles north.
Dogs face particular difficulty at the ladder: unless small enough to be carried, most cannot navigate the rungs and the scramble above. The descent often surprises hikers who underestimate the exposure; coming down the ladder with a full pack demands the same care as the ascent.
