Explore the best rated trails in Eliot, ME. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Eastern Promenade Trail and Stevens Rail Trail. With more than 62 trails covering 361 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 Bridge Street Bike Trail begins near Curtis Park and travels south through downtown Salem, closely following the Bridge Street Bypass. The short trail runs through residential, retail and...
The scenic Riverton Rail Trail—also known as “Sandy Road” by residents of Portland’s Riverton neighborhood—follows the former corridor of the Portland-Lewiston Interurban Railroad, which stopped...
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...
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...
Lake Winnisquam is New Hampshire’s fourth largest lake, and taking the Lake Winnisquam Scenic Trail is one of the best ways to experience it. Meaning “pleasant waters,” Lake Winnisquam provides...
The Winnipesaukee River Trail runs along a rail line that previously connected the paper industry between Franklin and Tilton. Nicknamed the Paper City, Franklin saw the industry boom from the 1900s...
The smooth paved surface of the Londonderry Rail Trail offers a pleasant, tranquil 4.5-mile adventure for trail users in south-central New Hampshire. Its route follows a corridor once used by the...
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...
Mile 0.0 - DPW Garage Cross the bridge in the parking area, the trail starts behind the fence, crossing over Great Brook on a old dam. Mile 0.53 - After crossing Union St. you will come to a...
The 5.3-mile Independence Greenway makes for a pleasant ride, providing access to lakes, parks, and nature preserves. The paved pathway is located in the town of Peabody (pronounced by locals as...
The 28.9-mile Eastern Trail connects the historic towns along Maine’s southern coast from the woods near Kennebunk to South Portland’s harbor lighthouse. Nearly 22 miles of the route follows off-road...
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...
Portland’s Fore River Parkway Trail provides an important transportation link in the community while at the same time offering sweeping views of the Fore River. At the north end of the trail, you’ll...
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...
The Amesbury Riverwalk (also known as the Powwow Riverwalk) carries visitors between a resurgent waterfront district on the Powwow River to a modern shopping center on the outskirts of this historical...
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 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...
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...
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...
The Mountain Division Trail exists as two separate segments of what will eventually be a more than 50-mile-long trail from Fryeburg to Portland. The southern section rolls for about 6 miles between...
The rail-trail through the Martin H. Burns Wildlife Management Area begins at the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) commuter rail station near downtown Newburyport, a coastal...
Old salts should love the Eastern Promenade Trail, as it skirts the shoreline of Portland’s Casco Bay and Portland Harbor. The 2.1-mile paved trail is always within sight of the water and is one of...
The 5.3-mile Independence Greenway makes for a pleasant ride, providing access to lakes, parks, and nature preserves. The paved pathway is located in the town of Peabody (pronounced by locals as...
The Mountain Division Trail exists as two separate segments of what will eventually be a more than 50-mile-long trail from Fryeburg to Portland. The southern section rolls for about 6 miles between...
_175266_sc.jpg)
The Heritage Trail is managed by the state of New Hampshire to provide access to recreational and historical attractions across the state. Eventually, the north-south route along the former Boston and...
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...
The 83 acre West Foss Farm is one of the properties owned by the University of New Hampshire, Durham. The property was purchased from the Boston & Maine Railroad company, and features a 1.6 stretch of...
The Boxford Rail Trail is a short, rustic pathway open on a former rail corridor in rural Essex County. Now home to overhead electric wires owned by National Grid, the trail is open via a license...
Spanning 57.6 miles from Lebanon to Boscawen, the Northern Rail Trail is New Hampshire’s longest rail-trail conversion. Trail development began in 1996 after the state purchased the Boston and Maine...
he WOW Trail is named after the three bodies of water that can be seen from this rail-trail: Lake Winnipesaukee, Opechee Bay, and Lake Winnisquam. This picturesque 2.7-mile trail shares a corridor...
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...
The Conway Branch trail runs for 21 miles along an old rail corridor between State Route 113 in Conway and Polly's Crossing in Ossipee. The trail is popular with snowmobiles and rail car clubs; the...
The Nashua Heritage Rail Trail begins adjacent to City Hall on Main Street in downtown Nashua. It is a short trail that takes you through one of the first neighborhoods that was planned and built in...
Mine Falls Park in Nashua is a 300-acre-plus urban park with a network of approximately 9.7 miles of a variety of trail types. This forested park offers an extraordinary nature experience in the heart...
Portland’s Bayside Trail packs a lot into its 1-mile length. The paved pathway provides a pleasant route between commercial and residential areas in the Bayside and East Bayside neighborhoods. Once an...
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...
_155871_sc.jpg)
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 Cotton Valley Rail Trail connects the small town of Wakefield, near the Maine border, and the quintessentially quaint New England vacation town of Wolfeboro. In 2017 the towns held a...
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...
This exquisitely maintained trail slices through forested areas and wetlands for a wonderful experience in southern New Hampshire. The trail will eventually be part of the Granite State Rail Trail,...
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...
The Winnipesaukee River Trail runs along a rail line that previously connected the paper industry between Franklin and Tilton. Nicknamed the Paper City, Franklin saw the industry boom from the 1900s...
The 83 acre West Foss Farm is one of the properties owned by the University of New Hampshire, Durham. The property was purchased from the Boston & Maine Railroad company, and features a 1.6 stretch of...
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...
Portland’s Bayside Trail packs a lot into its 1-mile length. The paved pathway provides a pleasant route between commercial and residential areas in the Bayside and East Bayside neighborhoods. Once an...
Nestled in the woodlands on the northern end of Merrimac in the far northeastern corner of Massachusetts, lies the beautiful Jay McLaren Memorial Trail. The town, once known as West Amesbury, had a...
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...
The paved Back Cove Trail rings its namesake tidal basin and offers lovely views of the Portland skyline. You also might spot great blue herons or other birds along the tree-lined waterfront. A...
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...
_173190_sc.jpg)
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...
Old salts should love the Eastern Promenade Trail, as it skirts the shoreline of Portland’s Casco Bay and Portland Harbor. The 2.1-mile paved trail is always within sight of the water and is one of...
The New Boston Rail Trail follows the former railroad corridor of the same name for 3.9 miles through densely wooded areas in the town of New Boston. The railroad was in operation from 1893 to 1931,...
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...
The Cotton Valley Rail Trail connects the small town of Wakefield, near the Maine border, and the quintessentially quaint New England vacation town of Wolfeboro. In 2017 the towns held a...
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...
Mile 0.0 - DPW Garage Cross the bridge in the parking area, the trail starts behind the fence, crossing over Great Brook on a old dam. Mile 0.53 - After crossing Union St. you will come to a...
When complete, the Salem Bike-Ped Corridor will run for more than 5 miles on a former Boston and Maine Railroad corridor from connections with the Windham Rail Trail (north) and Methuen Rail Trail...
Currently 1.8 miles, the Salisbury Point Ghost Trail provides a peaceful walk or bike ride through the woods on a well-maintained stone-dust trail. The route is one part of the larger Coastal Trails...
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 Heritage Trail is managed by the state of New Hampshire to provide access to recreational and historical attractions across the state. Eventually, the north-south route along the former Boston and...
My son and I love riding this on our dirt bikes. Wide and easy to ride, perfect place for a new rider to get comfortable. Plenty of other people on bicycles, hikers, ATVs and dirt bikes on the trail, everyone was friendly and courteous to give each other room. It’s nice having a place like this to spend time with my son.
If you are parking on the Farmington side, get ready to get creative with your parking although, if you intend on riding it, it's probably the safer bet since you do need to cross a MAJOR roadway about 1 mi from the trail head.
As the only person riding the route with a full suspension fat bike, I found it tolerable but the rest of my group were not as fortunate. The sand was soft, or rocky, or a combination of the two. There were parts of our bodies forever damaged (kidding... kind of) as we literally pounded our way down this viewless trail. Of the six miles we rode, probably 1.5 was "doable" on a regular bike otherwise it was just extremely difficult to navigate.
There is no river..... but there is a bit of a cess pool looking pond. We went in the middle of a drought which probably worked to our advantage as any water on this trail would make it nearly impassible.
After six miles, we decided enough was enough so we chose to take the road back. Mind you... riding along Route 11 was our only choice (think massive commercial district with significant traffic)... and yet.. it was still better than trying our hand at that return on that trail. Thank goodness we were all relatively adult... at least numerically... taking a kid on this would be a HARD no.
Unfortunately, we see a real opportunity to for rail trails but if the funding isn't there to maintain it then it's not going to get much use. That was the case with this strip.... and, hopefully with some resources, it can meet its potential of being a fun day of recreating.
Leisurely, very well maintained trail. We rode out of Acton which I think is the best part of the trail and also the newest. It started down-pouring so we didn’t make it the whole way (would have loved to see Heart Pond). Parking in Acton is at a TeamWorks location and there is parking at various parks up the trail as well.
Starting in the Nashua parking lot (northern terminus) head South. In a few miles, you travel through the town of Pepperell. Another 5 miles, you reach Groton center. The 12 mile trail ends in Ayer. Along the way, you ride parallel to the Nashua River and Pepperell Pond through woods and farms. You may see beaver lots of birds. It’s a pleasant and easy ride you are sure to enjoy.
This trail is great on a hot day, with most portions being shaded; a few open areas get pretty warm, but they are quickly ridden through. 12 miles to Ayer, where a small shady park next to the Town Hall provides a nice spot for a picnic lunch. You can take a slow, steady pace or cruise through at a good clip as you please; just be aware of the other cyclists (some on training wheels), skaters, and walkers. A bit more crowded than usual today (Thursday before the 4th of July), but not awful. One of our favorites!
This is the first trail that I have ridden that is split into two sections. The second section runs along multiple commercial buildings and is adjacent to the Merrimack river. There are many places on the second part to stop and view the river as there are many places to sit. The most interesting thing is that there was a Mulberry tree growing out of the middle of a stone wall (which is 30 feet down to the river) and which had a lot of ripe berries on it within reach. If I can figure out how to post a picture, then I will do so of the tree. Although not adjacent to rails, I would recommend this trail.
We were not very impressed with this trail. The ground is very soft and not great for biking.
We started at the far north end in Nashua where there is a decent sized lot. About a mile in you cross the state line where there is a second parking lot. Pepperell is about 3 miles from there, and there is an ice cream stop there you should hit. Trail is well kept, and marked. We completed the whole thing round trip in 2.5 hours. For small ride do Nashua to Pepperell.
My new favorite week day extended ride from manchvegas thru goffstown for 14 miles.... love this ride now ending in new boston. Little rough at times near 114. Been riding this about the last 1.5+.
This trail is paved going through the center of Laconia and then following Rt 3. It is great for walking, biking and running. It is very well maintained and passes multiple beach areas where one can stop. It is a 5 star trail.
The original trail was 2.7 miles long. The current trail is 4.3 miles long. Unlike some trails that just cover up old tracks, this one follows an active trail system. The trail and the tracks are well separated by fences. The first 3/4 of the trail are flat with the last 1/4 of the trail having some small rises and falls. I have been mapping trails for a few decades and will attempt to send a new .gpx file of the current trail with it's extension to the developers of this web site.
I primarily use this trail as a connector to the new Garrison Trail from Hale St. Really great for that. I’ve used it as a scenic rest stop for a snack, and i’ve seen Herons in the swamp.
Traillink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails conservancy
(a non-profit) and we need your support!
TrailLink is a free service provided by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (a non-profit) and we need your support!
Map Search
_175266_st.jpg)
_155871_st.jpg)
_158934_st.jpg)
_173190_st.jpg)
