* The trails leading to the Pinnacle are temporarily closed because of mud season. Thank you for your consideration. *

WHPA MISSION

In order to foster habitat conservation, watershed integrity, education and the enduring connection of people to the natural world, we acquire and provide access to lands along the Windmill Hill Ridgeline and nearby areas.

WHPA Annual Meeting - April 20, 2024 @ 4 p.m.

Join us at the Congregational Church of Westminster West on April 20 at 4 p.m. for our annual meeting. All are welcome. Our featured speaker will be Roger Haydock, a former WHPA board member who has designed and built many Pinnacle trails. Roger will share a photo slideshow from one of his latest trail projects.

Read Our Latest Newsletter

Check out our fall 2023 newsletter to read about our upcoming events, widening the ridgeline reserve, photo contest winners, and more. Sign up here to get our twice-yearly newsletter by email, plus occasional updates about hikes and other events. You can also read our past newsletters online.

Updating Our Conservation Management Plan

The Pinnacle has a new conservation management plan near completion. You can read the near-final plan here, including the requirement that dogs must be leashed.

WHPA History Book

Buy your copy of the book The Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association’s Story: How did they get all that land?, written by Rosalyn Shaoul and Libby Mills, for $25.

Trees at Lily Pond Highlands

Lily Pond Highlands. Photo: Jerry Monkman/EcoPhotography. Courtesy of Open Space Institute

The Pinnacle is the highest and most scenic peak (about 1,683 feet) in Westminster, Vermont. It is located on the Windmill Ridge, straddling the Brookline/Westminster line. The view from the Pinnacle overlooks Hedgehog Gulf in Brookline and westward to Mount Snow and Stratton Mountain, over 20 miles away.

615 acres protected: Lily Pond Highlands

With the help of our dedicated supporters and partners, The Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association has purchased and signed a conservation easement on an important parcel of wild forest and ponds in southern Vermont. The Lily Pond Highlands covers 615 acres in Brookline, Athens, and Townshend, Vermont, just west of the Pinnacle ridgeline and directly within view from the Pinnacle summit.

This land is important to conserve because its forest offers habitat for bear and moose, and its two pristine ponds are home to beaver colonies, a heron rookery, and several species of ducks. Its wetlands and vernal pools support the endangered Northern bulrush and other uncommon plants. Development was already encroaching into the adjoining valley and ridge, and acquiring the property has permanently protected it from being developed.

The entire property is part of a priority habitat block for the state, and it connects to another large conserved area to the south. Allowing the trees to continue to grow on this tract will capture carbon from the atmosphere to help mitigate the effects of climate change. Next steps include securing a conservation easement and establishing a trail for low-impact public access.



The dream of conserving the Pinnacle developed as a use of the Jamie Latham Memorial Fund, established in November 1991 to honor a young man who had loved this beautiful spot. From this beginning, the Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association was formed. It is a nonprofit, tax-exempt corporation that has expanded its land-conservation efforts, linked and extended trail systems, inspired dedicated volunteers, and fostered effective partnerships.

Pinnacle lands—with the inclusion of the Bald Hill and Athens Dome areas—now consist of more than 2,700 acres in Rockingham, Athens, Grafton, Brookline, Townshend, and Westminster. These publicly accessible lands include a 27-mile hiking trail system and wildlife sanctuary.

We invite you to experience these beautiful places, help us protect these special habitats, and introduce these lands to others through our recreational and educational programs. As you learn more, we hope you will become an ardent supporter of the Pinnacle Association and our important conservation work.