Find the top rated trails in Norwell, whether you're looking an easy walking path or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The Phenix-Harris Riverwalk, a short trail built on a former rail bed purchased from Penn Central Railroad, connects West Warwick and Coventry, two towns on the outskirts of Providence. The dirt...
Independence Greenway offers 8 miles of trail in three disconnected segments through western Peabody. The rail-trail follows the abandoned Salem and Lowell Railroad and offers nice views. It passes by...
The Washington Secondary Bike Path actually comprises four trails along an old Hartford, Providence, & Fishkill Railroad corridor. Together, the Cranston Bike Path, Warwick Bike Path, West Warwick...
You won't get lonely on the Minuteman Bikeway. The nearly 10-mile rail-trail through suburban Boston is one of New England's most popular trails. Warm summer weekends in particular bring folks of all...
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...
Cape Cod’s briny seaports, sandy beaches, delectable seafood and diverse landscape of salt marshes, pine forests, and cranberry bogs can all be experienced from the 22-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail....
The Cape Cod Canal Bikeway connects Cape Cod Bay and the communities of Sandwich and Sagamore on its eastern end with Buzzards Bay and the community of Bourne on its western end. Following both banks...
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...
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...
Although the Neponset River Greenway totals more than 5 miles in length, it's currently open in several short disconnected sections on the southern outskirts of Boston. The trail is paved and provides...
The West Warwick Riverwalk is located in a park just behind West Warwick High School and John F. Deering Middle School. The paved trail goes for about a mile north following the Pawtuxet River. A...
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 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 newly open Bradford Rail Trail occupies the former Pan Am rail lines, beautifying an area that once lay strewn with garbage and weeds. The city and numerous dedicated volunteers created the...
The Nashua River Rail Trail is a beautiful and peaceful rural trail extending through the Massachusetts communities of Ayer, Groton, Pepperell and Dunstable. The trail continues into New Hampshire...
The Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park recalls the role of canals in transporting raw materials and manufactured goods between emerging industrial centers. Walk along restored sections of...
Nestled in Boston’s Charles River Reservation, the Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike Path offers a pleasant walk or ride along both sides of the river from the city’s Museum of Science to Watertown. To reach...
The Mattapoisett Rail Trail is a work in progress. As of autumn 2011, it runs for just more than 1 mile between Reservation Road at Mattapoisett Harbor and the Phoenix Bike Trail in Fairhaven, joining...
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...
A lovely, albeit short, rail-trail in northeastern Massachusetts, the 1.3-mile Amesbury Riverwalk (a.k.a. Powwow Riverwalk) is the first completed section of the Coastal Trails Network, linking 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...
Alewife Linear Park is a beautiful paved trail stretching 2 miles east from the Alewife T-station in Cambridge to Cedar Street in Somerville. The park came about after the Massachusetts Bay...
Rhode Island's best-known rail-trail, the East Bay Bicycle Path, hugs the shores of Narragansett Bay, from Bristol in the south and north to India Point Park in Providence. The 14-mile paved path...
The Assabet River Rail-Trail provides a forested escape from the surrounding urban bustle. Traveling 5.6 miles (with plans to expand it) the trail connects the towns of Hudson and Marlborough and...
50 Quarries have operated in Quincy, "The Granite City", since 1826. This trail provides a short tour of the railway corridor where the stone was carried from the Quarries.
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 Arkwright Riverwalk, founded on a former rail bed purchased from Penn Central Railroad, is located in Coventry, a rural central Rhode Island town that was built around textile mills. The one-mile...
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 1.1-mile, multi-use Clipper City Rail Trail and Harbor Walk connects the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) commuter rail station and the Merrimack River near downtown Newburyport....
A lovely, albeit short, rail-trail in northeastern Massachusetts, the 1.3-mile Amesbury Riverwalk (a.k.a. Powwow Riverwalk) is the first completed section of the Coastal Trails Network, linking the...
Shaped like a Y, this 4.1-mile rail-trail connects Marblehead, Salem and Swampscott. From the trail junction in quaint Marblehead, one branch meanders through conservation areas and past harbor...
Although the Neponset River Greenway totals more than 5 miles in length, it's currently open in several short disconnected sections on the southern outskirts of Boston. The trail is paved and provides...
The Old Colony Rail Trail offers a scenic recreational route through the charming towns of southeastern Cape Cod. The trail, which occupies an abandoned Old Colony Railroad corridor, stretches from...
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...
Opened in 1999, the Phoenix Bike Trail packs a surprising diversity in its 3.5 miles, passing through woodlands, salt marshes, farms and commercial and residential areas. Tree-lined for much of its...
The rugged and beautiful Reformatory Branch Trail meanders more than 4 miles through three natural areas: Elm Brook Conservation Area, Mary Putnam Webber Wildlife Preserve, and Great Meadows National...
The Washington Secondary Bike Path actually comprises four trails along an old Hartford, Providence, & Fishkill Railroad corridor. Together, the Cranston Bike Path, Warwick Bike Path, West Warwick...
The Nashua River Rail Trail is a beautiful and peaceful rural trail extending through the Massachusetts communities of Ayer, Groton, Pepperell and Dunstable. The trail continues into New Hampshire...
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...
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...
Nestled in Boston’s Charles River Reservation, the Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike Path offers a pleasant walk or ride along both sides of the river from the city’s Museum of Science to Watertown. To reach...
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...
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Southwest Corridor Park is a 4.7-mile linear park through the Boston neighborhoods of South End, Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. A recreation and commuter route popular with walkers, runners, and cyclists,...
The newly open Bradford Rail Trail occupies the former Pan Am rail lines, beautifying an area that once lay strewn with garbage and weeds. The city and numerous dedicated volunteers created the...
The Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park recalls the role of canals in transporting raw materials and manufactured goods between emerging industrial centers. Walk along restored sections of...
The abandoned rail bed is predominantly owned by the Town of Marshfield. Sections of the abandoned rail bed are open to the public and actively used for recreational uses such as walking, running,...
The health and fortunes of Lowell have been intimately tied to the Concord River for hundreds of years. This tributary of the more famous Merrimack River continues to be at the heart of the local...
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...
The Bruce Freeman Rail Trail follows the route of the former Framingham and Lowell Railroad. It begins at the Lowell/Chelmsford city line, about 30 miles northwest of Boston, near Cross Point, a major...
Although the Neponset River Greenway totals more than 5 miles in length, it's currently open in several short disconnected sections on the southern outskirts of Boston. The trail is paved and provides...
The 1.1-mile, multi-use Clipper City Rail Trail and Harbor Walk connects the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) commuter rail station and the Merrimack River near downtown Newburyport....
Cape Cod’s briny seaports, sandy beaches, delectable seafood and diverse landscape of salt marshes, pine forests, and cranberry bogs can all be experienced from the 22-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail....
The Cochituate Rail Trail (CRT) is a developing, multi-use trail that will run from the Village of Saxonville in Framingham to Natick Center, a distance of 4 miles. Currently, its northernmost mile in...
The Ten Mile River Greenway follows the winding course for 3 miles along the James Turner Reservoir (Ten Mile River). Though short, the trail is quite scenic and runs between the Kimberly Ann Rock...
The Arkwright Riverwalk, founded on a former rail bed purchased from Penn Central Railroad, is located in Coventry, a rural central Rhode Island town that was built around textile mills. The one-mile...
The trail begins in the small town of Boxford, about 25 miles north of Boston. For just shy of 5 miles, the hard-packed gravel and stone dust pathway follows an abandoned rail bed through Topsfield,...
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 Upper Charles Trail will one day span more than 20 miles, connecting the communities of Milford, Ashland, Hopkinton, Sherborn and Holliston along a former CSX rail bed. The trail is being...
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...
Quonset Point Bike Path is a fantastic two and a half mile trail. The Quonset Point Bike Path is a part of the beautiful town of North Kingstown.The Quonset Point Bike Path is paved and off road and...
Checked this out today to see if my wife would enjoy it...the good news is she will! Her 'complaint' about the East Bay trail was that it felt narrow (compared to the Shining Sea trail in Falmouth).
This is nice and wide w/ one exception where they give notice that it narrows (and even then it's still pretty wide).
The last 3-4 miles in Coventry had a steeper incline than the rest of the trail. As a result, I think when I bring my wife (not an avid rider) I'm going to park behind the Coventry PD (near Station St.) and head south first to get the incline out of the way and then head back up north past the PD as far as she feels comfortable.
At the southern end, the Summit General Store was a good stop. I didn't get anything to eat at the counter, just some trail mix and cold drink but it was convenient. I did see several folks stopping in for lunch while I was sitting there.
The break after Route 122 in Blackstone now picks up at the parking lot off of Canal Street, near the corner of St. Paul Street. Going west from this point is about 3 miles of wide graded asphalt trail. The old Triad Bridge has been redone and is a safe beautiful crossing. I saw a lot of people--walking, riding bikes, pushing strollers, even skateboarding--when I rode this section a few Sundays ago.
But at the end of this section is Route 146 (a limited access divided highway) and there are no signs telling you how to cross it or to get back on the trail on the other side.
Beautiful, mostly flat trail along the Seekonk River and Narragansett Bay that ends at a small town with wonderful restaurants for lunch. If you are only looking for a snack, a coffee shop (with restrooms) situated in a refurbished station house is 1/3rd of the way. The trail boasts the best in bird sightings including Osprey, Egret, Swan, and American Goldfinch. Many small side trails deviate from East Bay in case you want to go exploring. Parking located at two possible places off of I-195 in Providence. The first exit, which is a little confusing and limited near India Point Park (Gano Street) requires bicycles to negotiate a quiet neighborhood after crossing the Seekonk, which can be confusing. There is another parking lot off Riverside (2nd exit). Either way, it is worth the trip.
Rode 30 miles today (including some trails in colt state park). Coming from Pennsylvania where the Rail Trail in our town is a poorly maintained gravel trail...this was wonderful. I have honestly never ridden a nicer trail. Yes there are cracks and bumps along the way, but with my hybrid bike with front shocks it was a very pleasant ride. Sure it is all in your perspective and what your use is for the trail, but from my perspective this trail was an absolutely wonderful experience.
jonbower & rectrike summarize my concerns exactly. We rode this on 8/6 and there was only one section that had the root bumps marked (orange cone & paint). There were several bumps that warranted similar treatment.
And, it was pretty busy late AM, several times had to slow down to a stop in order to let traffic clear.
On the plus side, it's still got some great views (hadn't ridden this in ~10 years. The Del's stand is a great spot to stop.
We parked in Colt Park which was really convenient and went to Quito's in Bristol for lunch (and ice cream across the street).
Several have commented on the section of trail between Lake St., Bellingham and Prospect St., Franklin that was upgraded in June, 2017. Great!
You might like to know that west of this section and the improved trail to Center St, the one mile of rough trail between Fox Run Road and the new Route 126 tunnel is now under design. This includes a new parking area just east of Route 126.
It is state policy to add improved sections to existing improved sections.
Also, a DCR manager was quoted in the Boston Globe recently as saying that design work on the trail over the Blackstone Viaduct to the RI border would begin this fall.
It is important to realize that DCR has to jump through many hoops before construction can begin. But, keep pushing for results!
We did this trail in 2 days, Dennis to Webster then Webster to Wellfleet. The trail is nice and scenic Dennis to Orleans because you go by some ponds. There are some nice beaches and a state park where you can cool off. There is not much scenery from Orleans to Wellfleet. At the end of the trail in Wellfleet there is a general store and port a potties. You would have to ride about 2 miles on route 6 which is very busy or go about 5 miles on very hilly roads to get to any restaurants and that is pretty much all there is in Wellfleet. I suggest take a break at the end, get some food at the store, then head back. Or just go to Orleans. If you do go into Wellfleet and come back route 6 go all the way to the Marconi Beach turnoff where there are walk lights for an easy crossing.
There are road crossings, especially on the Hudson side of the trail, but they are very manageable. The path description doesn't do this path justice. It's a nice ride with frequent benches to take a break. There are hills especially going from Hudson to Marlboro. Enjoy!
Nice ride with shade and some pretty spots. Ponds, railroad bridges, tunnels. Go from urban to country. East/west has incline all the way but ride back quick.
It's another awesome bike path on the Cape. Watch out for frost heaves and roots causing bumps. It could also be a little overgrown out of the season but it's usually in pristine condition between May and October (when it's also pretty busy).
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