Find the top rated bike trails in Methuen, whether you're looking for an easy short bike trail or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a bike trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The Common Pathway travels 5.5 miles from the outskirts of Peterborough south to downtown’s Noone Falls area, paralleling US 202 and the Contoocook River for most of its journey. The small town of...
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...
The trail begins in the small town of Boxford, about 25 miles north of Boston. For just shy of 5 miles, the hard-packed stone-dust pathway follows a former rail bed through Topsfield, meandering...
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...
About a dozen miles west of Concord, the Stevens Rail Trail offers a quiet, wooded route along the former Concord-Claremont rail line in Contoocook Village. It starts off Krzyzaniak Road and continues...
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...
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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 Neponset River Greenway is a south Boston jewel, utilizing the best in design and construction standards as it winds through the Neponset River valley, offering a low-stress, high-quality...
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...
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 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...
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 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 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...
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 smooth paved surface of the Londonderry Rail Trail offers a pleasant, tranquil 3.3-mile adventure for trail users in south-central New Hampshire. Its route follows a corridor once used by the...
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...
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,...
Walkers and bicyclists alike enjoy Upper Charles Trail, a popular rail-trail crossing through small towns. Traveling the entirety of the trail puts users on varying trail surfaces, mostly packed...
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 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...
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...
The Harrisville Rail Trail runs for just under two miles between the outskirts of Harrisville and Hancock in rural New Hampshire. The former railroad bed is located on lands conserved by the Harris...
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...
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 Neponset River Greenway is a south Boston jewel, utilizing the best in design and construction standards as it winds through the Neponset River valley, offering a low-stress, high-quality...
The trail begins in the small town of Boxford, about 25 miles north of Boston. For just shy of 5 miles, the hard-packed stone-dust pathway follows a former rail bed through Topsfield, meandering...
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...
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 Clipper City Rail Trail is part of the Coastal Trails Coalition, which is developing in the four towns of Amesbury, Newbury, Newburyport, and Salisbury along the Merrimack River and will...
Many commuters choose the Minuteman 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...
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 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...
Bruce N. Freeman was a Massachusetts state representative from 1969 to 1986. Beginning in 1985, he championed the creation of a bike path that would run along the former Penn Central railroad line...
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...
The North Central Pathway is envisioned as a trail network connecting points of interest through and between Winchendon and Gardner. Several completed sections of trail make for a lovely ride or walk...
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...
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...
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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 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 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...
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 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 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 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...
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 Common Pathway travels 5.5 miles from the outskirts of Peterborough south to downtown’s Noone Falls area, paralleling US 202 and the Contoocook River for most of its journey. The small town of...
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...
The smooth paved surface of the Londonderry Rail Trail offers a pleasant, tranquil 3.3-mile adventure for trail users in south-central New Hampshire. Its route follows a corridor once used by the...
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...
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 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...
More and more, airport lands near previously under-used rail corridors are being transformed from largely neglected vacant lands into urban greenways. These new vibrant spaces are used not only by...
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...
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...
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,...
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...
The Old Eastern Marsh Trail (a.k.a the Salisbury Rail Trail) runs for 1.4 miles between the north bank of the Merrimack River and Mudnock Road in Salisbury. The beautifully landscaped trail was built...
Many commuters choose the Minuteman 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...
I love the community path - the art, the kids, the people hanging out. It seems really well used.
Of course the path just ends. There's a not totally horrible way (with kids) to get to the Museum of Science aka the Charles River Path from the end of the community path. We took a side street to Central Ave., then the bike line on Somerville to Union Sq., crossing via sidewalks. Then the bike lane on Somerville Ave, with a RT on Medford, to School, to Thorndike. The Medford Street portion goes underneath a train bridge with fast traffic, but there is a bike lane. Considered Webster > Cambridge St. to get around that, but the last part of Webster is a Show for kids.
Started on this trail (by the noted parking), with a goal of connecting to the MBT. We found the trail very smooth and well maintained, not crowded (even on a weekend) and very pleasant. Not long enough for a ride by itself, but definitely a more interesting way to start your Minuteman experience.
I ride a recumbent trike. At the beginning of the Salem bike path there are three sets of post to block vehicular traffic I guess, but the posts are not wide enough for recumbent trikes. I had to lift my trike sideways and angle it so I could get it past the barriers. I ended up going back route 114 so I wouldn't have to pass the post on the way home. I will not ride my trike there again.
they still use old fashioned stanchions & raised brick lane dividers. my Wife crashed twice & broke her wrist 2 days ago. the stanchion she crashed into is reportedly (by a town employee) the site of multiple SERIOUS crashes (Pond St, Chelmsford)
also, there are other multiple poorly designed issues such as at some road crossings
do yourself & your family a favor & stay off this trail
I live near one of the main stopping points for this Rail Trail. It's gorgeous in any and every season. I noticed a lot of people saying there isn't a stopping point from Ayer until you get to Pepperell - don't forget about Groton! If you stop near the bus depot and go up the road, there is a health food place with some GREAT smoothies as well as a Dunkin' Donuts and a convenience store. From Pepperell to Nashua, there aren't any major stops, but there is a vending machine with a few chairs if you bring a couple dollar bills!
Overall, this is a great, family-friendly, small town Rail Trail. It cuts through some of New England's best small towns (in my entirely biased opinion) and both terminal points are worth a little look around (though Ayer might be more accessible, especially with kids!).
I've been a hiker for about 20 years. For some reason I'm not into it that much anymore, so I bought my Trek D-3. This trail is perfect for smooth hard dirt riding. I only did about 8 miles round trip from the Webster Beach area. I'm new to biking and noticed I'm using different muscles then hiking. But I am retired and try to get out every day. Soon 8 miles will be nothing. That should be coming up and I'm going to go back to this rail trail. It's very shady and relaxing. I plan on doubling that mileage on my next visit here.
6/27/18: well maintained trail for the first mile (from Whittier). Last 1/2 mile by the stables is not well maintained and not good for trail running. Beautiful scenery, very flat and mostly very dry. A few trees down, but nothing you couldn’t lift a bike over. Bring your bug spray and keep moving.
The towns of Saugus and Revere used recycle asphalt for their trail surface. It's free but totally unsuitable for skinny tire bikes. With time and weather, large stones have come to the surface making for a very bumpy ride. If you have a mountain bike you'll be fine but with a hybrid or road bike you'll be in for an unpleasant ride.
Did this for the first time this morning, 6/18/18, the entire length and enjoyed the ride tremendously. Well marked with numerous crossings and stops if you would like to. The Chelmsford end is a little rough and tough to cross the busy intersections but certainly bearable. Friendly people enroute, good nature with some small animals along the way. I saw a small snapping turtle off to the side along Heart Pond. Will certainly ride this trail again... thanks!
The new section is great. There seems to be plenty of access points and is very wide. The old section has very limited accessibility. What is really sad about this older section in Chelmsford is the lack of accessibility and the feeling one gets the town doesn't want anybody on the trail so they can get rid of it. The section that goes thru town has mostly some type of fence up to keep you on the trail. The intersection in town is lacking proper crossing signs and narrow crossing barriers. Then when you get to Rte110 crossing forget seeing the other section, at the lights a sign states walk your bike but where. Really sad is the athletic field next to the trail , there is no trail access, you have to walk back to the side walk. You have to wonder how much money the businesses around this trail is missing out on. Further down the trail which parallels rte110 the shopping centers have a fence blocking access to the trail. My recommendation is bike the trail but spend your money else where. CHELMSFORD WAKE UP. Great parking in Acton, I parked at Nara park, you could swim after the ride. Another great place is on rte2a behind Donelan's. There are smaller parking areas along the new section. The old section before Chelmsford center is mostly wooded. There is a small lake/pond with a beach off of the trail and you could go swimming there.
Loved this trail! Clean, scenic, and well marked. It starts out in the quaint town of Ayers and continues to take you through beautiful scenery of marshes, wildlife and what appeared to be a vineyard. We loved how the quaint towns have signs showing local attractions, restaurants and other businesses. We even veered off the path 1/4 of a mile to see the covered bridge in Pepperell, Ma.
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