Mt Olga Fire Tower, Marlboro VT

• 4-star hikes
• 1 to 2 mile options
• Moderate | Gain 280 to 530 feet
• Marlboro, VT | Southern Region
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A smiling man wearing a red polo shirt and dark baseball cap takes a selfie with an extended selfie stick from inside the metal cab of a elevated fire lookout tower, framed by open window panes against a expansive, sunny background of evergreen treetops and rolling, forest-covered hills under a clear blue sky.

Hanging out atop the Mount Olga Fire Tower.

The summit of Mount Olga is capped by a fire lookout tower with an open cabin for hikers year-round, offering expansive views of Mount Snow, the Deerfield Valley, and the Green Mountains on clear days. It's a short hike for a big reward, and we describe three different routes to reach it.

The Molly Stark State Park Loop is the classic approach and starts at a trailhead with bathrooms and picnic tables, though a state park fee applies. From the Hogback and Mt Olga Trailhead Parking on Molly Stark Trail Road, parking is free but there are no facilities on site. The presence of the Hogback Mountain Country Store and Vermont Distillers sitting just across the road might compensate however. Both Tower Trail routes begin here.

Trail Options Expand KMZ · Google Earth ·

⬤ 4★ Molly Stark State Park Route 1.8 mi loop, moderate, gain 520 ft
GPX File · AllTrails · Directions* GPX?

⬤ 4★ Tower Trail Out and Back 1.4 mi out & back, moderate, gain 280 ft
GPX File · AllTrails · Directions**

⬤ 4★ Tower Trail Loop 2.1 mi loop, moderate, gain 530 ft
GPX File · AllTrails · Directions**

$ *State Park fee P **Free parking

⬤ Molly Stark State Park Route
Beginning across from the park office, this route crosses a trail bridge over a small brook and climbs gradually through forest on a series of switchbacks. The woods shift to spruce and fir near the top. A short spur off the main loop leads to the summit and fire lookout tower before the trail continues back down to the park.

⬤ Tower Trail Out and Back
The shortest route to the summit, climbing steadily from the Hogback trailhead through mixed forest. Watch for old ski lift equipment still standing in the woods, left over from a ski area that operated on the mountain until 1987.

A dirt hiking trail strewn with fallen autumn leaves leads to a small wooden footbridge with horizontal railings, crossing a stream nestled within a dense forest of leafy deciduous trees and slender white birches.

Beginning the loop out of Molly Stark State Park.

⬤ Tower Trail Loop
Follows the same Tower Trail up from the Hogback trailhead, then completes a loop back down by a different route. Slightly longer and with a bit more elevation gain than the out-and-back, it passes the same ski lift ruins along the way.

Whichever trailhead you use, the routes converge at the base of the fire lookout tower. This is a steel structure originally built at Townshend State Forest and moved to the Mount Olga summit in 1955. An open-grille decked series of steps to the top aren't the best choice for anyone uneasy with heights, but the payoff at the top is likely worth the effort for all.

A low-angle shot looking up at a tall, steel-frame fire lookout tower featuring open internal stairs leading to an enclosed cab at the top, framed by vibrant green tree foliage on the left against a clear, deep blue sky.

Looking up at the summit's lookout tower.

A high-angle, point-of-view shot looking down a steep flight of metal grate stairs on a fire lookout tower, showing a person's feet in dark hiking shoes standing on a platform above the lattice steel framework and the forested ground below.

Open grille decking on the stairs to the cabin.

A view looking out from inside a fire lookout tower cab through multi-pane glass windows, revealing autumn foliage in shades of orange and green, a communications tower with several dish antennas nearby, and distant rolling hills beneath a lightly clouded blue sky.

The cabin provides excellent Southern Vermont views.

A hiker in a red shirt and dark pants walks along a leaf-strewn forest trail lined with birch and deciduous trees displaying autumn colors, passing under rusted metal ski lift towers standing as relics in the woods.

Old ski lift structures on the Tower Trail.

External links:
Molly Stark State Park website

Trailspotting nearby:
4★ Lye Brook Falls (4 mi)
4★ Madame Sherri Forest (3-9 mi)
4★ Shelburne Fire Tower (3 mi)
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