Hikers rarely do anything the easy way.

We often meander off perfectly acceptable level ground in order to scramble, stumble and sometimes stagger up steep trails, with the sometimes-thwarted goal of gaining an elevated view of the surrounding landscape.

I remember years ago, while trudging on a miserably hot, humid day up 4,025-foot Owl’s Head in New Hampshire’s White Mountain as part of a quest to scale all 67 of New England’s mountains that rise above 4,000 feet, my son Tom and I briefly hoped an Air Force bomber would blast 26 feet from the summit, thereby scratching that unrewarding peak from the list. The last mile or so of that 18-mile, out-and-back excursion ascended a steep, slippery rockslide, and when we finally reached the top, it was TOTALLY WOODED! We couldn’t see more than 10 feet in any direction!

On another occasion, while traipsing with my buddy Phil Plouffe through the Hundred-mile Wilderness, the northern terminus of the fabled Appalachian Trail that ends at the mile-high summit of Maine’s Mount Katahdin, one section repeatedly and inexplicably veered off, rose for a short distance, only to descend again.

This undulation went on for miles. Through-hikers called these stretches MUDS and PUDS: Mindless ups and downs, and pointless ups and downs.

These lowly experiences, though, are the exceptions.

For every Owl’s Head, there are 10 magnificent summits: Washington, Jefferson, Adams, Madison and the rest of the peaks in the Presidential Range.

We here in the relative flatlands of southeastern Connecticut may not have the opportunity to gaze from such lofty perches, but a number of worthy vistas, easily accessible, do beckon.

Let’s start with familiar favorites:

— Lantern Hill, at the Ledyard-North Stonington border. Trails from Wintechog Hill Road in North Stonington and from behind Two Trees Inn on Lantern Hill Road are steep in places but can be covered in under half an hour to the 491-foot summit.

On a clear day you can see four states — Connecticut, just below; Rhode Island, including the Atlantic Ocean and Block Island to the southeast; New York’s Fishers Island and Long Island to the south-southwest; and the hills of Massachusetts to the north. Using binoculars, you might even be able to glimpse a fifth state, Vermont, farther north.

— High Ledge, North Stonington. This rocky promontory on the Narragansett Trail, accessible from a trailhead just north of the Wyassup Lake boat launch, offers sweeping views of unbroken forest. As a bonus, if you follow the trail another mile north toward Route 49, you will reach Bullet Ledge, where the main attraction is not the vista but Bear Cave at its base.

— Mount Misery, Voluntown. Despite its foreboding name, this 441-foot overlook is a wonderful perch from which the vast, green carpet of 27,000-acre Pachaug State Forest seems to spread forever. There are trails and a forest road accessible from a parking lot in the forest’s Chapman Area.

— Nickerson Hill, Lyme. From the rocky, 452-foot summit, accessible from the Nayantaquit Trail in Nehantic State Forest, you can peer south across thick woodlands and beyond Long Island Sound to Orient Point.

— Long Pond/Ell Pond overlook, Hopkinton, R.I. Only a few minutes from the Connecticut border, accessible from a section of the Narragansett trail off North Road, this ledge offers breathtaking views of a pond and forest.

— If you’re willing to drive an hour or so, consider a road trip to 720-foot Mount Lamentation in Meriden, which is part of the Metacomet Ridge that extends from the Massachusetts border to Long Island Sound, or to nearby Chauncey Peak, rising 688 feet along the same ridge. Both peaks are on the 50-mile Mattabesett Trail.

— For a longer drive but more rewarding view, head to northwestern Connecticut, where Bear Mountain rises 2,316 feet in the Berkshires near Salisbury. This is the tallest peak in the state but not the highest point. Not far away stands Mount Frissell, whose shoulder rises to 2,380 feet in Connecticut before topping out at 2,454 feet in Massachusetts.

— Finally, you don’t have to drive very far and scale thousands or even hundreds of feet to enjoy superb views.

From the southern tip of Bluff Point Coastal Reserve in Groton and a path leading to Watch Hill’s East Beach in Westerly, you can be swept away by inspiring expanses of open water.

So don’t take the low road on your next hike; set your sights on high ground.