Explore the best rated trails in Cambridge, MA. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Spicket River Greenway and Bridge Street Bike Trail. With more than 94 trails covering 555 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.
The Old Eastern Marsh Trail (a.k.a the Salisbury Rail Trail) runs for over 3.5 miles between the north bank of the Merrimack River and the New Hampshire state line, north of Salisbury. The beautifully...
Although only a grassy, hard-packed dirt pathway, the route along the Salem-Beverly Canal (also known as the Grand Wenham Canal), is scenic and peaceful. The old canal, built in 1917, lies between two...
The Roland Bergeron Bike Path runs about 6 miles alongside nearly the entirety of Albuquerque Avenue in Litchfield, NH. Completed in 2010, the 8-ft wide asphalt path averages about 5 yards in from...
The Squannacook River Rail Trail is presently 1.8 miles long, from Depot St. in the center of Townsend, MA, to the Harbor Church parking lot in Townsend Harbor. The trail occupies the Greenville...
The Border to Boston Trail connects the communities of West Peabody, Peabody, Danvers, Topsfield, and Boxford in northeastern Massachusetts. The long-term goal for the trail is to continue it north to...
Lowell's Canal System Trails are part of Lowell National Historical Park in Lowell, Massachusetts. The park preserves some of America's industrial past: its 19th-century textile mills formed the first...
Many commuters choose the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway for freedom from congested traffic in the northwest Boston suburbs. For others, the 10.1-mile paved trail between Cambridge and Bedford serves as a...
The Fresh Pond Bikeway runs through Fresh Pond Reservation, a park in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The bikeway winds around the east edge of the Fresh Pond Reservoir. Part of the trail is on a road...
Methuen Rail Trail connects three communities in northeastern Massachusetts as it follows the route of the former Manchester and Lawrence Branch of the Boston and Maine Railroad. The rail-trail's...
The Middleton Rail Trail is a trail project along the former Essex Railroad. When complete, the trail will stretch 4.5 miles through the town, and perhaps join the Danvers Rail Trail. Phase I of the...
Although less than a mile, the trail running through Salisbury Beach State Reservation offers lovely views of the beaches off the northeastern coast of Massachusetts, just a few miles south of the New...
Throughout history, the Blackstone River has been an important waterway, from its use by American Indians who fished its once-abundant salmon to its role as a major artery for the transportation of...
The South Bay Harbor Trail connects several Boston neighborhoods—Lower Roxbury, the South End, Chinatown, and Fort Point Channel—to the Boston Harbor. The trail spans nearly 4 miles from Ruggles...
Currently just over two miles long, the Salisbury Point Ghost Trail provides a peaceful walk or bike ride through the woods on a well-maintained stone-dust trail. A paved extension was constructed in...
The Haggetts Rail Trail is a short, but sweet unpaved trail located on the periphery of Haggetts Pond, the local reservoir for the nearby town of Andover. Built on part of the former line of the...
The Wellington Greenway is a section of the Malden River Greenway in Medford, Massachusetts. Eventually, the Wellington Greenway will be connected to the other sections of the Malden River Greenway in...
The Assabet River Rail Trail connects five old mill towns that owe their revitalization to present-day high-tech industries. A midpoint gap splits the 8.6-mile paved trail, though long-range plans...
The Chelsea Greenway was built to accompany the extension of the Silver Line between Boston and its northern suburb, Chelsea. The asphalt multiuse trail begins at the Eastern Avenue MBTA station and...
The South Manchester Rail Trail is a proposed bike/pedestrian path that would connect the downtown Millyard area of Manchester to the Town on Londonderry. The South Manchester Rail Trail will utilize...
The Bradford Rail Trail occupies a former Pan Am rail corridor, beautifying an area that once lay strewn with garbage and weeds. The city and numerous dedicated volunteers created the mile-long path...
Many commuters choose the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway for freedom from congested traffic in the northwest Boston suburbs. For others, the 10.1-mile paved trail between Cambridge and Bedford serves as a...
The North Bank Bridge, which opened in 2012, provides a safe and convenient pedestrian and bicycle connection between Cambridge's North Point Park and Paul Revere Park in Charlestown. Spanning 690...
The pleasantly tree-lined Warren Bike Path, built along the former Warren-Fall River Railroad, runs just under a mile from Long Road west to the Kickemuit River. The trail ends in an 18-acre park...
Burrillville Bike Path runs for just over a mile through its namesake rural community in northwest Rhode Island. It connects the villages of Pascoag and Harrisville through a corridor that once...
The Border to Boston Trail connects the communities of West Peabody, Peabody, Danvers, Topsfield, and Boxford in northeastern Massachusetts. The long-term goal for the trail is to continue it north to...
The Roland Bergeron Bike Path runs about 6 miles alongside nearly the entirety of Albuquerque Avenue in Litchfield, NH. Completed in 2010, the 8-ft wide asphalt path averages about 5 yards in from...
The World War II Veterans Memorial Trail opened in Mansfield in 2004 after several decades of advocacy by local rail-trail supporters. The trail rests on an abandoned corridor once served by the Old...
The Northern Strand Community Trail is part of the visionary and almost-complete Bike to the Sea plan to link Boston and the Mystic River to the seashore in Lynn, north of Boston. It currently runs...
The South Spencer Rail Trail runs for less than 2 miles from downtown Spencer to an area south of town near Spencer State Forest. The path, which is also known as the Depot Trail, occupies a former...
The Chelsea Greenway was built to accompany the extension of the Silver Line between Boston and its northern suburb, Chelsea. The asphalt multiuse trail begins at the Eastern Avenue MBTA station and...
Throughout history, the Blackstone River has been an important waterway, from its use by American Indians who fished its once-abundant salmon to its role as a major artery for the transportation of...
The year 2017 marks 20 years since a rails-to-trails project was first mentioned in the Goffstown Master Plan, and thanks to work by the Friends of the Goffstown Rail Trail and support throughout the...
Crossing through wooded areas and featuring magnificent wetland vistas, the Rockingham Recreational Rail Trail (Fremont Branch) offers an 18.3-mile trail adventure from Epping to Windham. The northern...
The Southern New England Trunk Line Trail (aka the "SNETT") was designated as a National Recreation Trail in 1994. It is built upon a segment of the former right-of-way of the New Haven Railroad's...
Although only a grassy, hard-packed dirt pathway, the route along the Salem-Beverly Canal (also known as the Grand Wenham Canal), is scenic and peaceful. The old canal, built in 1917, lies between two...
The Charles River Bike Path, also referred to as the Charles River Greenway, offers a paved, 22-mile route from Boston to its western suburbs. The trail is also part of a larger, developing network...
The Alfred J. Lima Quequechan River Rail Trail, which was formally known simply as Quequechan River Rail Trail travels along the northern shore of scenic South Watuppa Pond. The project created a...
The Bay Colony Rail Trail will one day span 7 miles connecting the Boston suburbs of Newton, Needham, Dover, and Medfield along tracks once used by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority. In May...
The Spicket River begins in Derry, New Hampshire, through Methuen and Lawrence, Massachusetts, before draining into the Merrimack River. Like many mill towns of the late 19th and 20th centuries, the...
With spectacular maritime views and an abundance of coastal wildlife, the East Bay Bike Path offers a spectacular New England experience. Inducted into the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame in 2009, the route...
Boston's Rose Kennedy Greenway may not be very long, but it's jam-packed with attractions. Along the paved pathway, you can access five parks, be wowed by public art, stop to smell the flowers in...
The Mason Railroad Trail runs for nearly 7 miles from near the New HampshireMassachusetts border (nr. Townsend, MA) to Greenville, NH. The trail follows a heavily wooded corridor through Russell...
The Border to Boston Trail connects the communities of West Peabody, Peabody, Danvers, Topsfield, and Boxford in northeastern Massachusetts. The long-term goal for the trail is to continue it north to...
The Massachusetts Central Railroad was destroyed by a hurricane in 1938, but the 104-mile corridor is being reborn as a cross-state rail-trail. Currently, nearly 50 miles from Boston to Northampton...
Marshfield's Bridle Trail follows a former railroad bed through a tree-lined corridor. It begins at the town's Dandelion Park and heads north. Its compacted dirt surface is best suited for walking,...
The Center Trail runs for less than a mile from Hopkinton's downtown to its high school and middle school, providing a safe route to school for thousands of students. The wooded trail, which once...
The Washington Secondary Bike Path offers just over 19 miles of paved trail from Cranston (Providence’s southwestern neighbor) to Coventry. The rail-trail, Rhode Island’s longest, follows the former...
The Alfred J. Lima Quequechan River Rail Trail, which was formally known simply as Quequechan River Rail Trail travels along the northern shore of scenic South Watuppa Pond. The project created a...
Burrillville Bike Path runs for just over a mile through its namesake rural community in northwest Rhode Island. It connects the villages of Pascoag and Harrisville through a corridor that once...
The Peanut Trial is a distinct trail in the town of Newton that spans one-mile. This rail-trail was meant to connect to the Jay McLaren Memorial Trail. However, due to a controversial lawsuit by land...
Although short, the scenic Gloria Braunhardt Bike Path travels through forests and pastures full of birds and wildlife. The asphalt pathway parallels the eastern side of the present-day Interstate 95...
The Windham Rail Trail passes through the woodsy periphery of Windham in southern New Hampshire, but it sits in the heart of the future cross-state Granite State Rail Trail. Its connections to the...
The Bay Colony Rail Trail will one day span 7 miles connecting the Boston suburbs of Newton, Needham, Dover, and Medfield along tracks once used by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority. In May...
The Tri-Community Greenway follows the route of the Boston and Lowell Railroad and its Stoneham Branch, originally built to serve Stoneham’s shoe factories and provide passenger service. The trail...
The Garrison Trail is a two-lane, paved, hike-and-bike path that runs alongside I-95. The trail stretches 1.8 miles between State Route 113 in Newburyport and State Route 110 at the Amesbury-Salisbury...
The Mystic River Greenway is part of the Mystic Greenways trail system, which also includes the Wellington Greenway and the Malden River Greenway. When completed, the trail will connect the...
The Upper Falls Greenway is a short rail-trail that cuts through the charming village of Newton Upper Falls in Newton, Massachusetts. The trail occupies the same former rail corridor as the developing...
The developing Upper Charles Trail will one day total 24 miles, linking the communities of Milford, Ashland, Sherborn, Holliston, Framingham, and Hopkinton along a former railroad bed. As of 2018,...
Even though the Narrow-Gauge Rail-Trail traces the nation’s first narrow-gauge railroad for 3 miles from Bedford toward Billerica, the mostly crushed-stone path is plenty wide enough now to...
Barker Road Trail begins on the town line between North Andover and Boxford in northern Massachusetts, not far from the New Hampshire border. From there, the pathway continues through dense woodlands...
There's definitely hills on this trail. We rode our E-Bikes and had a great time. All the spurs led to interesting spots. The trail looked and felt like it had just been recently paved. Recommend parking at the National Park Visitors Center lot trailhead. BTW - The Visitors Center has an elevated platform that gives an excellent viewpoint to the area.
A wonderful ride in the shade and pretty flat. We were happy on our hybrids with beefy gravel grinder tires. We did half of the trail from Masabesic Lake east to Raymond. We look forward to doing the other half soon. Not many other people on the trail 11am-4pm. More people after 3pm.
Very nice, shaded and smooth with not many busy crossings
I was glad to find this trail; I biked the Oakham-Rutland section. Traveling from Oakham to Rutland, I am estimating the trail is 95% gradual uphill, 3% challenging uphill, 1% level, and 1% downhill. Would you prefer biking uphill or downhill on the return trip? The trail is primarily stone dust with a few small rocks and a very brief section of gravel. Perhaps a mountain bike would be preferable, but my hybrid bike was fine.
Cycled the SNETT 28May2022 from Thompson CT to Franklin MA. 22 miles.
Summary: CT state line to the end of Douglas State Forest good - 5 *, last 2.5 miles in Franklin good 5*. The rest - don't bother as of May 2022 1*
The trail in Thompson CT is in fact the CT Airline trail that directly rolls into MA as the SNETT.
This section through to the end of Douglas State park is a really nice ride west to east on hard packed gravel, slightly uphill with some picturesque settings. This end of the trail can be ridden on a gravel bike. If you intend to ride further make sure that you have a mountain bike.
As you head out of Douglas State Park, it starts getting messy. 1/2 inches of rain the previous day and we're into the mud. Now a gravel bike doesn't cut it, and that's before the sand, rocks and stones. You'll need that mountain bike, determination and patience. There are lots of better places to go mountain biking than here!
At mile 11 the soggy muddy track dumps you onto the hard shoulder of rte146 just outside Millville MA. Good luck! If you are going east to west, your chances of finding this tiny on ramp at the edge of rte 146 are close to zero as is nearby parking.
Millville to Blackstone MA is on road, no sign posts, no directions and Google maps really doesn't cut it. You pick up the SNETT in Blackstone near a CVS. Yes....riiiiiight. Nope not happening. Google maps are not accurate here. Spent 1/4 hour checking out the back streets of Blackstone. Good luck.... do not rely on Google maps too much for trail directions.
Picked up the trail again on Farm Street by the lake and landfill. A pathetic single track trail, between 2 lakes, boggy, rocks across the whole trail and you need the mountain bike to get through the mud. Avoid.
1 mile later go through an underpass of rte 126, trail is closed. No warning, no diversion, tough. Another reason to avoid. Scramble up the embankment to rte 126. Road trip past South Elementary School to Franklin - about 1.5 miles. Rejoin the SNETT (yes, signposted at last!) for the last 2.5 miles, a mixture of paved and hard packed dirt - rideable with most bikes - maybe not with a true road bike. This bit is definitely worth riding.
I began at the trail head - bit bumpy for the first mile and a side trail has been rerouted because of the wet mucky ground. Once you pass that it’s clear sailing until… the 3 mile point and the trail is closed. Logging equipment and logs block the trail. ¿
Did the rail for the second time a few days ago.
No mud or issues with the trail.
Very enjoyable. Several people out walking and biking - enjoying the day.
Did side trail to Sleepy Hollow Cemetery. Bumpy trail but short to cemetery.
Will do again.
If you want a quick ride, this is your trail. Enjoy!
Beautiful day on this section of the Blackstone River Greenway. Trail is paved entire way and in very good shape with only a handful of road crossings. There were relatively few walkers/riders (Thursday), some benches along the way, a number of signs with historical write-up and nice views of some waterfalls. Overall an excellent 20 RT ride. Gave it a 4 only because of a few long "average views" stretches. The 195 Davidson Ave, Woonsocket, RI (northern point) address for GPS worked great.
We continued on to the MA/NH line and connected to Cheshire Trail to Keene, switched to Ashuelot and connected to The Fort Hill in Hinsdale, NH. Gardner to Brattleboro via Keene! All good trails.