Tully Mountain

Tully Mountain, 1,163 ft (354 m), is a prominent, steep-sided monadnock located in north central Massachusetts in the town of Orange. It is part of the Tully Mountain Wilderness Management Area. An exposed east facing ledge on the summit provides views of the Millers River valley, Mount Monadnock, Mount Wachusett, and the Wapack Range. The 22-mile (35 km) Tully Trail traverses the mountain. There exists a Tully Mountain (Ireland) that, at 1168 feet above sea level, is almost identical in elevation to the Tully Mountain in Massachusetts. The mountain drains into the Tully River, then into the Millers River, then to the Connecticut River and Long Island Sound. The mountaintop is forested, except for a rocky outcropping (a monadnock) that faces due east, and a second granite "ledges" facing due west; the rocky prominence of Tully Mountain is visible from surrounding small towns and is a defining characteristic of this small mountain. The form of the mountain is known as "ramp and pluck", as taught by science teacher Robert Coyle, Athol Junior High School. The rocky eastern popular vantage point is the "practical" summit of the mountain, as the geological summit is wooded, unmarked, and without views. The vista, looking afar from the steep ledge, features Mount Monadnock (Jaffrey, NH, the peak of which is 16 miles NE); the bump of Gap Mountain, which can be seen just in front of Mount Monadnock; to the left of Mount Monadnock and distant is Mount Sunapee; Mount Kearsarge (Merrimack County, New Hampshire) is visible (55 miles away); Mount Cardigan is the shadowed mountain distant to the left/north of Mount Kearsarge; the tallest mountain in the distant southeast is Mount Wachusett, which is 22 miles away; also visible is the church steeple of Royalston, MA at 3.7 miles away, and three bodies of water: Tully Lake (due east, with views of automobile traffic across the dam), Packard Pond (including its private beach), and the lily-padded Tully Pond (south east).

Neighbouring summits