Mount Clay is a peak located in Thompson and Meserve's Purchase in Coos County in the Presidential Range of the White Mountains of New Hampshire.
Washington's summit; hikers ascending it, eastbound, from the vicinity of the cog rail base station join the Gulfside Trail about 0.4-mile (0.64 km) from Clay's summit and about 200 feet (61 m) below, and give up about 100 feet (30 m) in descending the southern tail of Clay, before resuming the ascent of Washington.
The mountain is named for Henry Clay, 19th-century senator and U.S. Secretary of State from Kentucky, known as "The Great Compromiser".
[2] Maps used in connection with foot travel in the Presidentials are typically published by the U.S. Geological Survey (which adheres by law to BGN's naming), and by the Appalachian Mountain Club and two New England companies, all three of whom as of 2010[update] use "Clay" and make no mention of "Reagan".
Although well over 4,000 feet (1,200 m) in height above sea level, the Appalachian Mountain Club does not consider Mount Clay a "four-thousand footer" because it stands less than 200 feet (61 m) above the col on the ridge from Washington, making it a secondary summit of that peak.