Explore the best rated trails in Hollis, NH, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Northern Rail Trail and Warner Rail Trail and Bagley Rail Trail . With more than 117 trails covering 733 miles you're bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
I took my bike over the Canalside Rail Trail while my wife shopped at BJ's, and it was a perfect opportunity to check out this lovely short trail. For the 22nd April 2024, the weather was really good yet there were only few other walkers on the trail at the same time. I was able to park at the southern, McClelland Farm Road, end of the trail where there are only half a dozen spots, but there are many more parking spaces at the northern end.
The trail was in more than satisfactory condition and the signage was also nicely in place, not that it was really needed. I didn't have time to stop in at the Discovery Centre Museum but I did return to BJ's in plenty of time to pay for my wife's shopping that day. I had a lovely time so much so that I plan to take my wife on the same trail whenever I get my old tandem up and running.
As others mention, this is a wonderful path for commuters and it’s great to be able to bike through the series of small neighborhood parks. The history of grassroots action that preserved this path and adjoining parks is also inspiring. But during the past 5 years the safety issues along this route have escalated. Many more people on small motorized vehicles are using the path illegally and those on scooters travel at very high speeds. None of these users use or understand path etiquette, so I am concerned that it is only a matter of time before there is a very serious accident. Ride cautiously during peak commuting times and stay far to the right as other users on electrically powered vehicles will pass at high speed and with no verbal warnings. Stay safe, everyone!
Trail connects to the Methuen Rail Trail via a confusing ramp (at the north end of the park). It’s narrow and turns a lot so you won’t go fast, but it’s paved and was easy to follow. MBTA commuter rail near the east end. I liked it because you see a bit of the city as get through safely.
The part between Sudbury Rd and the wildlife refuge entrance at White Pond Rd is dirt and can be impassable mud. The rest of the gap is pretty sketchy, two-lane road with no shoulder. The wildlife refuge is great too.
Useful as a connector and seems to be popular for recreation but you’re next to a highway the whole time
It extended the path a little bit to the west. This is a two-way separated lane next to Arsenal St, that is fine until it ends just when it’s needed most, leaving you to fend for yourself in a super dangerous intersection.
A mostly pointless path that doesn’t connect to anything because the rest of the rail route is gone. The city could make a connection through the parking lots at the east end so you can get to the Watertown Cambridge Greenway, which starts about 1/4 mile east of the harrowing intersection at Watertown Square, and the river paths.
Now extends from Fresh Pond in Cambridge/Alewife to near Watertown Sq, and connects to the Charles river paths (at a few points) and many shopping needs. Pavement is good except a spot near School St.
Trail is well used for walking so you have to ride slowly but it’s a good urban experience. Plenty of places to stop, good pavement, easy transit access. The section east of Lowell St has fewer road crossings and is less crowded. Trail is plowed in winter.
The trail itself is excellent. A great place for a leisurely walk, bike or skate between Newburyport and Amesbury with options to continue/connect to the rail trail for a longer trek. But while the trail is awesome, I don’t understand why people feel entitled to let their dogs roam off leash along the trail? This makes it not only uncomfortable for those walking, but dangerous for those biking or skating that don’t want to be chased by a dog, friendly or not, that can be the cause of an accident. It’s really not the dogs fault… it’s the owners ignorance and disrespect for anyone that shouldn’t have to alter what they are doing in order to be deal with your dog. If you want to walk your dog off leash, there are numerous other places nearby that can accommodate you.
There’s tons of long stretches of trail that doesn’t require you to wait for pedestrians signals. And not many major intersections stops. Trail is mostly flat with a few rolling inclines and declines.
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