Explore the best rated trails in Gloucester, 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 78 trails covering 368 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 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...
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...
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 Salisbury Rail Trail Connector, also known as the Gillis Rail Trail Connector, is a 0.3-mile link between two rail-trails: Salisbury's Old Eastern Marsh Trail and Newburyport's Clipper City Rail...
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...
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...
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...
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 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...
Norwell is a suburb about 30 minutes' drive south of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Norwell Pathway, a 2-mile non-motorized trail that was constructed to give residents an alternative way to...
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 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 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 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...
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 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...
The Dover Community Trail snakes its way through the heart of the Garrison City—so nicknamed for the fortified log houses, or garrisons, built by 17th-century settlers—-offering a variety of trail...
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 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 Malden River Greenway is part of the Mystic Greenways trail system, which also includes the Wellington Greenway and the Mystic River Greenway. When completed, it will run along the Malden River...
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 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 Southwest Corridor Park (Pierre Lallement Bike Path) knits together neighborhoods in southern Boston from the Back Bay to Jamaica Plain. Popular as a route for commuters as well as casual walkers,...
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...
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 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...
Norwell is a suburb about 30 minutes' drive south of Boston, Massachusetts. It is home to the Norwell Pathway, a 2-mile non-motorized trail that was constructed to give residents an alternative way to...
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...
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 Old Colony Nature Pathway is a short trail open on a former Old Colony Railroad corridor in Provincetown, a picturesque vacation destination at the tip of Cape Cod. While a longer portion of the...
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 Piscataquog Trail, though only about 2 miles long, provides a vital off-road link between the communities on the western side of the Merrimack River (the West Side of Manchester) to several parks...
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 health and fortunes of Lowell have been intimately tied to the Concord River for hundreds of years. This tributary of the more well-known Merrimack River continues to be at the heart of the local...
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 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...
In the southeastern outskirts of Boston, the Hanover Branch Rail Trail connects the communities of Abington and Rockland. (Locally, the trail’s east and west halves are sometimes referred to as the...
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 Swampscott Rail Trail is a developing rail-trail in the North Shore community of Swampscott. The trail, when complete will extend two miles through the heart of the town ending with a seamless...
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...
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 Middleton Rail Trail is a trail along the former Essex Railroad. When complete, the trail will stretch 4.5 miles from the North Andover border, through the town, and will eventually join the...
The Swampscott Rail Trail is a developing rail-trail in the North Shore community of Swampscott. The trail, when complete will extend two miles through the heart of the town ending with a seamless...
The Reformatory Branch Trail connects the historical towns of Bedford and Concord along a nearly 4-mile dirt path through wildlife refuges that ends a short distance from the North Bridge, 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...
Constructed in 1967, the Province Lands Bike Trail is the first bike trail ever built by the National Park Service. The trail, located at the northern tip of Cape Cod, features steep hills, sharp...
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 Whitney Spur Rail Trail runs from just north of the MBTA’s Cohasset Station through dense woodlands to the edge of Wompatuck State Park. The corridor was originally a spur off the Old Colony...
The Nashua River Rail Trail stretches from southern Nashua, New Hampshire, to downtown Ayer, Massachusetts, connecting to the towns of Pepperell and Groton. The trail is built on the former rail...
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 Salisbury Rail Trail Connector, also known as the Gillis Rail Trail Connector, is a 0.3-mile link between two rail-trails: Salisbury's Old Eastern Marsh Trail and Newburyport's Clipper City Rail...
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 Rockingham Recreational Rail Trail brings at least two superlatives to mind: it’s one of New Hampshire’s longest rail-trails at just more than 28 miles, and it begins in Manchester, the state’s...
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,...
The Marblehead Rail-Trail appears on maps as a Y resting on its side, connecting Marblehead and Salem in the north and the city limits of Swampscott in the west. The 4-mile trail knits together a...
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 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 Malden River Greenway is part of the Mystic Greenways trail system, which also includes the Wellington Greenway and the Mystic River Greenway. When completed, it will run along the Malden River...
The Pine Tree Brook Trail travels alongside the brook in Milton, Massachusetts. The path travels through woods and residential neighborhoods for a distance of about 1.8 miles, and it connects to the...
Fantastic trail!!, especially in middle in Acton,Westford, Carlisle and east Chelmsford. Lots of great parking, electric road crossings with buttons, portapotty, many ice cream shops and restaurants close by. Who could want more? We tried West View Creamery in Acton, delicious. Recommended!
Beautiful trail through woods and small towns…paved path, some work needed but what a fun day!!!
Trail is very sunny and a few bugs. No designated parking in Middleton. Best part of hike was Richardson's Ice Cream was .5 mile drive.
Enjoyed discovering this little Riverwalk. Easy and informative. The river, the bridges, the water wildlife and the spectacular brown eyed Susans in July made this a wonderful little adventure.
August 2021
Of course, due to its historical relevance serious bike trail gatherers such as myself should visit this trail. When I went the weather was astoundingly nice for August; mid 70's and clear. First I tried to park near a bike shop in Lexington, but well, let's say it was not fruitful. So I went to the community parking lot which was right on the trail. I went all the way south into Boston where it gets much busier. Also the MMCB intersects with other trails and I wasn't sure when it end, but that was okay. I just turned around and went back, but did take a few side detours. All the way to the north end I rode.
The best part of the trip for me was seeing - on foot - the historic sights of the Revolutionary Era. It's a great place to ride.
I fell in love with running on this trail. Paved with a few wooden bridges. Rarely too crowded, and nice shade underneath the trees. Some elevation change toward the end, but nothing extreme. The pathway itself isn’t super long, but there are lots of roads nearby that it branches off into. Highly recommend going for a run/walk here in autumn!
Short and sweet, and a nice interconnect starting on Lawrence St by the Lowell Cemetery and ending by the Concord River on Rogers St. While a fairly short ride, the trail has great views of the Concord and the wildlife that inhabits it.
I’m from out of state working here. Found this trail. Parking in the middle somewhere. Nice trail. Felt safe. Only walked about 2 miles but will def go back. You have to cross streets here and there. So if you are on a bike, that might not be what you’re looking for. But I’m will be returning to see other areas of the trail. But the part that I was on was great.
Biked there June 2022. Trail in need of repaving, no question. Lots of roots and divets makes it nearly impossible to look anywhere but at the path. Otherwise, it’s an OK trail thru the woods. Very few vistas along the way.
Nice easy walk … mostly flat, well marked and wide enough. For two
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.
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