Find the top rated bike trails in Massachusetts, 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.
Love this rail trail !! Nice easy path , street crossings are easy to get thru. Great job by both cities.
I grew up in this area, and while the trail offers great views and an easy ride, two (2) huge barriers make this trail incomplete. The trail needs to cross US Route 1 and MA Route 128 to really be complete. Crossing Route 1 would link this trail to the Border-to-Boston Trail and crossing Route 128 at the Northshore Mall would allow the trail to continue into Downtown Peabody at Peabody Square and link to trails in Salem and points North. Both crossings used to have train tracks crossing the highways, but in both cases, the tracks across the highway were removed long before the trails themselves were built (the rail line was finally decommissioned in the 1980's, after an elderly driver was killed trying to beat the train as it crossed Route 1). Building the crossings would require constructing bridges to carry the highways over the trails, and require redesigning the adjacent interchanges (Lowell Street and Route 1, also Route 128 and Lowell Street) with the highways, a considerable expense that would cost tens of millions of dollars. The upside is that both interchanges are in desperate need of an overhaul, with traffic backups onto the highways at rush hour and stop signs at the tops of the ramps that merge onto the highways. That might have been acceptable in the 1940's, when these roads were built, but is intolerable now, with today's high traffic volumes.
Updates needed for map. Past the Ed Calcutt bridge, the trail spur to River Road is closed as private property. However the main trail has been completed along the river to Farquhar Road, adding about a mile to the existing trail. From the Farquhar Road exit you can take a left on the roadway to reach River Road.
I rode the Northern section of the trail, (the section north of rt 5 and on the east side of the river) so this review is about that, and how I got there. The trail appears to be nice and well maintained, it is in a larger city so it does have some city issues, but I always felt safe. Views are mostly of the Connecticut river and the rail line, Basketball hall of fame doesn't really look great from the trail, and the park along the trail is less interesting than the river itself. If you like looking at railway infrastructure that is still in use this trail will not disappoint either.
I used the Springfield train station to get food, drinks, and use the restroom, there was enough room to easily get my bike into the bathroom.
I took the Hartford line train from Wallingford CT to get to Springfield and I was really happy about how easy it was to do that, YMMV as CT line staff are being lazy and not opening the bike rack doors on some trains. I did this trail mostly to see how easy it is to take the train to the trail and I was happy with that part of the trip.
We rode it today 11/10/22, it was a 70 degree sunny November day. My son, who is disabled and I rode a tandem recumbent bike. We are trying to complete all the rail trails in New England. I have to say this was one of the most beautiful trails up to this point. The scenery changed all the time, from woods to marshlands to the Merrimack River. We will definitely do it again
We rode the Ashuwillticook Trail on 11/07/22 from the Pittsfield trailhead to Adams and back. The ride is excellent, with plenty of scenic highlights along the entire route, smooth paved surface and many places to stop and enjoy. The towns along the route looked inviting enough to divert us, but we had time constraints so we stayed on the route. The head winds on the way back were a challenge..
This is one of the best trails we have been on, not to be missed.
PS Recommend enjoying a long weekend and stayed at a B+B in Lenox...
Note: the restrooms along the route were all closed. I can understand given the time of year but it seemed somewhat premature given the warm weather we had been experiencing.
Nice trail, what it lacks in length it makes up for in bonuses. 1. Brick and Feather Brewery along the path with outdoor seating. 2. Discovery Center Museum near trailhead in Turner’s Falls, free, cool animal displays and lots of interesting information in this little gem.
My friend and I, both experienced riders, had a nice time on this trails today until we didn't With leaves on the ground, the shoulders on both sides of the trail are obscured. The paved trail is likely 3-4 inches higher than the shoulder. A few times heading north, we rode behind each other and to the right to create space of people coming towards us. We were several yards shy of parking lot at Gilson St when my friend moved right to make space. Obscured by piled up leaves, she could not appreciate where the the pavement ended and the shoulder dropped off. She corrected back onto the path, but not before her tires slipped on the leaves, and she suddenly lost control of the bike. She fell to the ground. I was behind her. Given the way she fell across the path, I couldn't avoid her, Two of us were now on the ground, bikes, too. I am grateful to the folks who stopped to help and show concern for our well-being. I am so very grateful to the gentleman, Tom, who took me back to my car in Ayer so I could come back and pick up my friend and our bikes, delaying his own cycling.. Thanks to the man who helped my put my friend's bike in my car. My friend is undergoing a medical evaluation to determine the extent of her injuries to her back, flank, and hip. Thankfully she was wearing a helmet when she struck the back of her head on the pavement.
We decided to go when the leaves were just starting to change color and fall. What a great time to go. So many awesome photos we were able to take. The trail is such a relaxing place to enjoy the outdoors. We were only able to do the first section from Crane Ave to the Berkshire Mall entrance. Took us about an hour to leisurely walk that distance before it started to get dark and we had to turn back around. I’m hoping they will decide to put some kind of lighting through out the trail. Otherwise, it’s nice and clean, pet friendly and plenty of spots to rest and take the scenery in and get a few photos. I feel like we will enjoy this trail more now that the crane Ave part is completed.
We decided to go when the leaves were just starting to change color and fall. What a great time to go. So many awesome photos we were able to take. The trail is such a relaxing place to enjoy the outdoors. We were only able to do the first section from Crane Ave to the Berkshire Mall entrance. Took us about an hour to leisurely walk that distance before it started to get dark and we had to turn back around. I’m hoping they will decide to put some kind of lighting through out the trail. Otherwise, it’s nice and clean, pet friendly and plenty of spots to rest and take the scenery in and get a few photos. I feel like we will enjoy this trail more now that the crane Ave part is completed.
Beautiful historic bike trail…well maintained…perfect fall day activity! Will do again!
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