Hike to the Sterling Ridge Fire Tower

Start out by turning right when you walk out of the visitor center onto Sterling Lake Loop (Blue Blazes). The visitor center is worth going in as they have a full diorama of the park with LED light to show trail routes. About .3 miles into the hike you will cross over a small bridge with a waterfall running under it. When the trail reaches a road, continue to the right and take in the views of Sterling Lake. At nearly a mile in bare left onto Bare Rock Trail (orange blazes). At around 1.6 miles in the teal and Fire Tower (white stripe on red) trail cross, continue following the Bare Rock Trail (orange blazes) straight. At 2.8 miles, lookout for the signs for Bare Rock Vista, the Greenwood Lake overlook. Take your time with the views and have a snack, then head back to the trail turning right when you get to the top of the hill.

When you reach the T-junction, turn right onto Fire Tower Trail (white stripe on red). Shortly after turn left onto an unmarked trail (easy to miss, about .1 after the T-junction), after which you should start seeing white blazes. This is followed by a left turn onto Sterling Ridge Trail (blue circle on white), which takes you to the Sterling Ridge Fire Tower. You can climb up the tower, when it's open, for great panoramic views of the area.

When you're ready to head down, turn left back onto Sterling Ridge Trail, just past the kiosk. In about a mile, take a right onto Bare Rock Trail (orange/you were hear earlier) and continue for a half mile before jumping back onto Park Road (blue).

At this point, you can either continue on Sterling Lake Loop (blue) back to the parking lot, or take a side trip via Lakeville Ironworks Trail (yellow pickaxe) to see what's left of an old mine and the Sterling Furnace. Past the furnace there is a right turn back to Sterling Lake Loop.

*Note, this hike can be very wet and muddy as the Bare Rock Trail (orange blaze) follows a stream up the mountain. After a rain storm it becomes flooded in areas.