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The Old Colony Rail Trail, named after the railroad line that operated in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, offers a serene journey through quiet Cape Cod beach towns. At 8 miles, the trail is suitable for a short ride out and back, or a longer journey when combined with the Cape Cod Rail Trail.
About the Route
The eastern point of the trail leaves off from Depot Road, in the center of Chatham, across from the fire station and adjacent to Veterans Field, home of the Chatham Anglers baseball team of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Trail users will find ample parking in the elementary school lot across the street, a large playground, and rest rooms just a short walk down the hill at the Chatham Community Center.
The route, in general, is flat, family-friendly, and easily managed. The easternmost 1.5 miles of the trail is mostly on quiet, quaint streets with slight vehicular activity. The remainder of the trail is on an off-road dedicated child-safe bike path. Inexperienced cyclists should face few difficulties. Should trail users wish to bi-pass the first 1.2 miles share-the-road portion of the trail, trail users can park at the Chatham Airport on George Ryder Road or the parking lot at the corner of Meetinghouse Road (Route 137) and Main Street (Route 28).
The trail then heads down Hitching Post Road for 0.2 miles, then turns left onto Tip Cart Drive. At the bottom of the hill, cross over Crowell Road to join the first segment of the off-road trail. The trail passes tennis and pickle ball courts, basketball court, and parking lot through a short wooded area emerging to cross Stepping Stones Road. At the bottom of Stepping Stones Road continue straight across the intersection and onto Wilfred Road. This on-street portion of the trail is only 0.6 mile and Wildred Road is a quiet neighborhood street with scarcely any vehicle traffic. The off-street trail continues at the end of Wilfred Road. Here the trail begins its loop around the Chatham Airport before pausing at George Ryder Road where signage directs trail users to turn right to continue on the Old Colony Rail Trail or left for the short ride to West Chatham. This section of the Old Colony Rail Trail offers a unique view of this small airport used primarily for personal small aircraft. Lunch can be obtained at the airport restaurant, or a short ride to West Chatham, and rest rooms and water bottle fill are available at the police station located across from the airport hanger on George Ryder Road. After crossing George Ryder Road, and passing a rest area with picnic table, the remaining 5.4 miles of the trail remain off-road.
While there are several cross streets along the way, the trail, in general, is peaceful, enjoyable and extremely well maintained. Here, trail users can enjoy the solitude of nature, for the next few miles, interrupted only by other trail users. The trail passes a granite post border marker announcing the entry into the town of Harwich from Chatham. Approximately three (3) miles from George Ryder Road is a half-roundabout and then crossing over Route 39. While this can be a busy crossing, warning signs alert drivers to slow down and visibility for both trail users and drivers is good. Once crossed, the trail continues past Brooks Park in Harwich Center where there are restrooms and water bottle fill available (in season). Approximately 1.2 miles from this point, the trail reaches its western end at the next roundabout where it connects with the Cape Cod Rail Trail from the north and west.
Connections
At the western end of the trail, the Old Colony Rail Trail connects to the Cape Cod Rail Trail.
The Old Colony Rail Trail runs between Cape Cod Rail Trail (Harwich) and Depot Rd. (Chatham), where parking is available.
Parking is also available at:
Please see TrailLink Map for all parking options and detailed directions.
Overview The Old Colony Rail Trail is named after the railroad line that operated in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. At 8 miles, the trail offers a serene journey through quiet Cape Cod beach towns. The trail is suitable for a short ride out and back, or a longer journey when combined with the Cape Cod Rail Trail. About the Route The eastern point of the trail starts at Depot Road, in the center of Chatham, across from the fire station and adjacent to Veterans Field, home of the Chatham Anglers baseball team of the Cape Cod Baseball League. Here you will find ample parking in the elementary school lot across the street, a large playground, and rest rooms just a short walk down the hill at the Chatham Community Center. The route, in general, is flat, family-friendly, and easily managed. The first 1.5 miles of the trail is mostly on quiet quaint streets with slight vehicular activity. The reminder of the trail is on an off-road dedicated child-safe bike path. Inexperienced cyclists should face few difficulties. Should you wish to bi-pass the first 1.2 miles share-the-road portion of the trail, you can park at the Chatham Airport on George Ryder Road or the parking lot at the corner of Meetinghouse Road (Route 137) and Main Street (Route 28). If you start at Depot Road, begin by proceeding down Hitching Post Road for 0.2 mile, then turn left onto Tip Cart Drive. At the bottom of the hill, cross over Crowell Road to join the first segment of the off-road trail. The trail passes tennis and pickle ball courts, basketball court and parking lot through a short wooded area emerging to cross Stepping Stones Road. At the bottom of Stepping Stones Road continue straight across the intersection and onto Wilfred Road. This on -street portion of the trail is only 0.6 mile and Wildred Road is a quiet neighborhood street with scarcely any vehicle traffic. The off-street trail continues at the end of Wilfred Road. Here the trail begins its loop around the Chatham Airport before pausing at George Ryder Road where signage directs you to turn right to continue on the Old Colony Rail Trail or left for the short ride to West Chatham. This section of the Old Colony Rail Trail offers a unique view of this small airport used primarily for personal small aircraft. Lunch can be obtained at the airport restaurant or a short ride to West Chatham and rest rooms and water bottle fill are available at the police station located across from the airport hanger on George Ryder Road. After crossing George Ryder Road, and passing a rest area with picnic table, the remaining 5.4 miles of the trail remain off-road. While there are several cross streets along the way, the trail, in general, is peaceful, enjoyable and extremely well maintained. Here you can enjoy the solitude of nature, for the next few miles, interrupted only by other trail users. You will pass a granite post border marker announcing your entry into the town of Harwich from Chatham. Approximately three (3) miles from George Ryder Road is a half-round-about and then crossing over Route 39. While this can be a busy crossing, warning signs alert drivers to slow down and visibility for both trail users and drivers is good. Once crossed, the trail continues past Brooks Park in Harwich Center where there are restrooms and water bottle fill available (in season). Approximately 1.2 miles from this point, the trail reaches its western end at the next roundabout where it connects with the Cape Cod Rail Trail from the north and west.
Trail starts just outside downtown Chatham near Veterans Field. There are lots of road crossings but traffic stopped in all cases to let us go. Also some places to grab a bite on the trail of you need a break.
Started in Brewster on the Cape Cod Rail Trail and 4 miles south picked up the connecting Old Colony trail into Chatham. This time I plotted the entire route on the Map My Ride app since navigating Chatham can be confusing once the rail trail ends. This time was no exception with 2 different road closings along the way. My wife likes looking around the downtown, the lighthouse and views at the southern tip is worth the trip and - if you want to see seals - further up Shore Road is the Chatham Pier Fish Market. There were 50+ there today putting on quite a show.
We entered this trail off the Cape Cod Rail Trail on our E-Bikes. Trail was in fine condition with interesting views along the way. The bonus was the Chatham road loop which takes you along the ocean and by the Chatham lighthouse. There's a map at the end of the Old Colony trail for this loop but we needed our trusty GPS to keep us on track.
Great trail. Level path for most part. Does get very busy with walkers and kids. Lots of stopping to cross road. Lots of paths to hop off bike and do some walking. A few picnic areas along the way also. At the trailhead there is an awesome place to grab breakfast or lunch: Hanger B Eatery. It is located at the Chatham Airport.
Be very aware that the last mile of the trail in the town of Chatham is on city streets with very heavy car and truck traffic. This is absolutely not safe for families that are traveling with little kids on bikes. Suggest parking at the airport or another place and begin the travel westward from there.
Rented bikes and rode this trail from the terminus in Chatham. What a great trail. Completely paved and well maintained. Mostly level with some slight inclines here and there. Nice leisurely ride. Going past the airport was neat because I was able to see a plane takeoff and another land on the different legs of the ride.
June 2021: Jumped on the trail at the parking lot at Rt 137 and Rt 28 in Chatham, which about the midpoint of this trail. Went west to the terminus, the junction with the CCRT, about 3.7 miles, mostly flat, very scenic and quiet. From there, I turned around and did the 8 miles to Chatham, then back ~4 miles to my car. Highlights: many well marked road crossings, and just short hops on roads. For my ride, at about the 12 mile point, returning from Chatham, there is a nice breakfast stop at the Chatham airport (Hanger B) I didn't go all the way to the Chatham terminus, since the traffic was building this Saturday morning. Kudos for the air and tool station that is situated at the midpoint, where I parked, at RT 137 and Rt 28 junction!
Trail for all levels. Fun with the family.
Great trail, mostly flat and very scenic.
We started our ride in Dennis on the Cape Cod Rail Trail (CCRT). Once we hit the bike rotary around the 3 mile mark, we got onto the Old Colony. At this point, you can also continue on the CCRT. The scenery on this trail changes from cranberry bogs to ponds to forest in 8 short miles. There are many road crossings and some road riding. Road crossings are well marked and easy to follow. Services along the trail, like food and restrooms, are also well marked. The trail is reasonably flat with some small hills on the latter part. The trail ends near the old Chatham train depot, which is now a museum. NB: The museum doesn't open until mid-June.
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