Find the top rated cross country skiing trails in Massachusetts, whether you're looking for an easy short cross country skiing trail or a long cross country skiing trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a cross country skiing trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Excellent experience on this fresh paved trail. The scenery of the ponds and mountains in the distance was worth the trip.
I traveled all the way from California with high expectations for this trail and I wasn't let down (except for the repairs being made on the damaged portion of the trail). It's all good. I made it work.
What an awesome trail for a mid October bike ride!
- The colors of the trees reflected upon the numerous ponds and lakes.
- The pleasant chirping and squawking of active birds.
- Leaves fluttering gently to the ground.
- A wide, smooth path carpeted in golden brown leaves.
- Historic buildings.
- Industrious squirrels.
- Old, historic stone walls.
- Deep, dark woods.
- Rolling, grass covered hills.
- Harvested pumpkins on a farm being sorted into bins.
- Goats, horses, and the friendliest trail users you could ever hope to cross paths with!
I took a leisurely four hours out and back and over 200 photos and video to capture my wonderful memories of this trail. Thank you Massachusetts and New Hampshire!
Contrary to the symbol on the map, parking is NOT available at the Fresh Pond end, even on Sundays, unless you live in Cambridge, and even then, "Permit Required". I drove almost two hours to get there and back, and never got to walk it.
I have ridden this trail many times, and always enjoy it. It is well maintained, well marked, plenty of great places to park for a variety of stop/starting points. Several lovely bridges over roads that would be difficult or impossible to cross. A bike shop along the route, even EV charging stations at the lot by the West Concord train station, where you can also visit the lovely shops and cafes nearby!
Be aware that the section from West Concord towards the Sudbury expansion is well used by the nearby Middle school for after school activities and can be heavily congested during that time. Road cycling can be a challenge weekday afternoons when school is in session.
Although Martha's Vineyard is beautiful--I would highly suggest biking only from Oak Bluffs to Edgartown. All the bike trails are literally right along the highway, with cars, trucks, and tour buses zooming by at ridiculous speeds. We were surprised because there was so much advertising about biking on the island that we thought for sure it would be a fantastic experience. Leaving Edgartown we road the so-called trail along the Edgerton West Tilsbury highway it was seriously not something I would never do again --as an experienced biker and love most trails this was just too boring unless you like riding 3 feet from the highway. We ended up cutting the ride short and going north back to Vineyard Haven. We did get in 21 miles, but I would skip biking on Martha's Vineyard and head back to the Cape to check out the Cape Cod Rail Trail, which is beautiful, scenic and a gem to ride on.
First: be aware that a recent storm has washed out a section of the trail about 2 miles from the Ayer parking lot in Sept 2023. People are portaging past it, but some set-ups might not work in this situation. That said, this is a great trail. Plenty of parking at many points along the way, some even have EV chargers!
This is a very fun and very well maintained trail. It crosses throught the heart of several cities/towns, so there is a lot to see. The trail is pretty flat for the whole duration, so it is an easy ride or walk.
I rode the trail from Pittsfield to the end in North Adams and back on 8/5/23. The trail is paved and in good condition and restrooms at the Pittsfield trail head were clean and working fine. Nice scenery including lakes and the Berkshires- I was able to finally identify Mt Greylock after the morning clouds had dissipated. The grade is gentle and I was able to keep up a consistent pace for the ride.
I rode from Ayer to Nashua and back over 2 hours on Labor Day morning. It is a pleasant ride on a level grade and I was able to keep up a steady pace for the whole ride. The trail is asphalt and in sections there are uneven areas where possibly tree roots have displaced the pavement. It is a big improvement over the last time I rode in several years ago. At that time there were many small conical mounds projecting 2-4 inches above the pavement, again presumably due to tree roots. I hit one one that was in the shadows and was bounced clear off the bike. All those spots have been repaired as far as I could tell. 4 stars because of the pavement issues but a very nice and scenic ride (even accounting for the grouchy local man moving brush in a wheelbarrow along the trail who responded to my "good morning" with a "get screwed").
We biked the trail today from Franklin and although it was a beautiful ride through the forest, our trip ended at the 4 mile mark because the path turned into a single lane rocky/sandy pathway. We traveled it briefly but it was not doable. It’s frustrating after reading from several apps and websites that it did not mention this. They all state it’s a 22 mile ride. Still had fun. Love getting out on our bikes!
Asphalt smooth and trail is terrific. Easy, flat trail with some water views passing Silver Lake/Pittsfield.
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