Queen of the Hill

US Forest Service – Valley Way Tentsite

      Free and convenient site in the Northern Presidential range. If you are ascending the Valley Way trail, the spur trail to the tent site is very clearly marked, and you really can’t miss it. Take a hard right and follow the trail uphill through the scrubby trees until you find a sign directing you to utilize a not-there-anymore bear hang. Bear right (no pun intended) and you’ll shortly pass the bear box on your right, and arrive at the composting privy. To the left, there is a small fire pit and the first of the five tent pads. Walk straight ahead to the remaining four.

Camped on Saturday May 23, 2026

     I stayed at the Valley Way tentsite after my first summit of Madison and Adams, with the hopes that I could get in another hike in the presidential range the following morning. Since the weather deteriorated, I decided to pack up and head out early. The evening was dry and cool, in the high 50s, but the temperature dropped into the high 30s before sunrise. The winds picked up steadily throughout the night. I estimated the sustained winds were about 15 MPH with gusts close to 40: I was really rocking in my hammock!

      If you are ascending the Valley Way trail, the spur trail to the tentsite is very clearly marked, you really can’t miss it. Take a hard right and follow the trail uphill through the scrubby trees until you find a sign directing you to utilize a not-there-anymore bear hang. Bear right (no pun intended) and you’ll shortly pass the bear box on your right, and arrive at the composting privy. To the left, there is a small fire pit and the first of the five tent pads. Walk straight ahead to the remaining four. 

       At the time of my visit, there were a number of unmanageable blowdowns covering the spur trail up to the tentsite, but a small bushwhacked path around these was “easy” to follow (steep and loose, but I didn’t get lost). Similarly, there were more blowdowns and felled limbs obstructing the last two tent pads. These could be circumvented as well, I’m sure, but I had no need to try. 

Sleeping Gear: Warm hammock set up. No bug net needed, given that it was cold and windy throughout the night. 

• ENO DoubleNest Hammock, ENO Ember Hammock Underquilt, ENO ProFly Hammock Rain Tarp. 
• Sea to Summit Venture 23F Women’s Sleeping Bag.

Capacity and Crowd: Small, spread-out, and quiet.

• Five marked dirt pads for tents, two of which were located beyond some recent blowdowns that made them less accessible. 
• Hammock campers can find study trees at this site, but some pads have better options than others. 
• One couple was packing out when I arrived on Saturday, so I was alone through the evening. When I awoke, I saw that a tent had been set up next to my spot. Never saw the occupant.

Water: Close, clean, and cold. 

• Small stream crossing the spur trail leading up to the tentsite which I was able to use with my Sawyer filter set up. It was a mere trickle, so the filling took some patience. Might not be available in dry months.
• Options include filling up from the Snyder Brook at various points alongside the Valley Way Trail or at the Madison Spring Hut, roughly 0.6 miles beyond the tentsite.