Parks with Canals Offer Best Access to First Day Hikes

Winter view along the towpath shows a frozen canal.

        A visit to Riverbend Farm in Uxbridge offers a unique opportunity to walk along a historical canal. I stopped there this week to check out accessibility of both the "towpath" and the exhibits at the Visitor Center. This location is on DCR's offerings of First Day Hikes on January 1, 2023. 

        First Day Hikes are especially worth mentioning since this national phenomenon first started at a DCR State Park in 1992. There are seven Massachusetts State Parks offering a First Day Hike for 2023. Of the seven, two parks have reasonably accessible trails, both along canals. The Great Falls Discovery Center, adjacent to the Canalside Rail Trail in Turners Falls near Greenfield, is offering a 3-mile excursion along the paved trail and Riverbend Farm has a 1.5-mile trek planned on its towpath. Both outings offer hot chocolate back at the Visitor Center afterwards. Hiking the full distance is probably not a hard and fast requirement to achieve the reward! 

Ellisville Harbor Easy Walk to Rare Coastal Views

A flat, dirt trail through the woods.

 Guest Post! With permission for our Easy Walk friend, Marjorie Turner Hollman, here is her excellent post about an opportunity to experience an undeveloped coastal area and observe seals near Plymouth, Massachusetts.  Please note this is not a wheelchair accessible trail but does offer an easy walk to an overlook.                                                                                                                                      This was our second visit to Ellisville Harbor State Park in Plymouth, MA. On our first visit in August, we were led to believe the path to the shoreline was at least a mile. Since my “on foot” range is about two miles, this would leave no energy for actually walking on the beach. We chose to head on, and ended up at Shifting Lots Preserve, another open space quite nearby. We returned to the state park on a cool day in December, and decided to try reaching the beach. Turns out, the trail is closer to a half mile out, well within my capabilities when the weather is cool outside.

Cape Cod's Crosby Landing - A Special Spot of Natural Beauty

 

Cairn and vegetation along Namskaket Sea Path.

       A lesser known part of Nickerson State Park in Brewster, MA is Crosby Landing. While not a designated accessible area it is worth considering a visit, especially if you have someone to assist you if you use a wheelchair. You may be surprised to find that just past a short stretch of soft sand there is a natural hardpacked trail that parallels the beach for a half mile or so, with spectacular bayside views of marsh and tidal flats. It is called the Namskaket Sea Path. The trail width is just wide enough for wheelchair passage though dune vegetation.

        To get there, almost opposite the main entrance to Nickerson State Park, there is a short drive to the beach parking lot at the end of Crosby Lane. Along this paved lane, you'll pass a beautiful old estate, Crosby Mansion. In the lot there is one designated accessible parking space. 

Biking and Hiking in Blackstone

Marjorie on the first bridge.

Last week I ventured towards Rhode Island to the Blackstone River Bikeway, located at 85 Canal Street in Blackstone, MA. That is where you can access a 3.7 mile section of completed bike path for a very pleasant walk or ride. The Bikeway is part of a much larger trails project, still in progress. I met up with my friend Marjorie Turner Hollman, an author and specialist in Easy Walks.

On this warm spring day, I found Marjorie suited up in her gel packs, which keep her cool on days that threaten to get too warm. With her national parks volunteer hat and walking attire, she was the perfect ambassador to greet me to her part of our state. As we walked she pointed out various highlights along the trail - nearby rapids, trailside playground, and flowering red maple trees. How wonderful to be out on the trail in good company and to learn more about the area from a local person who loves it well!

Easy Walk at Chestnut Hill Reservation

Reservoir loop trail with well-packed snow.

I took a Sunday afternoon stroll in Brighton yesterday at Chestnut Hill Reservation. The 1.5 mile loop around the reservoir is one of DCR's Healthy Heart trails and a popular place to walk alone or with others. My iPhone clocked it at 2 miles around, which for me was a hour's walk. Social distancing is easy on the 15 foot wide hard-packed stone dust pathway.

The reservoir loop is entirely level also. Most people might be inclined to park in a small lot for about 20 cars at 355 Chestnut Hill Road known as Gate A next to the Reilly Skating Rink. There are no accessible parking places for people with disabilities in this lot, probably because of a steep 100 foot paved entry up to the water level and wide gravel walkway. 

Easy Walks and Hikes in the Connecticut River Valley

The cover of Marjorie's recently
 published book. 

Easy walks and hikes are in ever higher demand as people age and yet there are too few ways to find out about them. Marjorie Turner Hollman provides a handy reference to Easy Walks (a term she has coined) in south central Massachusetts through her publications. Her latest book, "Finding Easy Walks Wherever You Are" provides essential information to help you seek out Easy Walks close to home, especially timely for the pandemic.

Marjorie has a few disabling conditions that make her an excellent measure of what is required of a trail to be considered an Easy Walk. In short, an Easy Walk would be on flat to mild terrain, have minimal low rocky conditions to navigate, and could be anywhere from a quarter mile to two and a half miles in length. Any slightly more challenging terrain might last only 20-30 feet. A step or two might be encountered at a bridge. Any wheelchair accessible path would constitute an Easy Walk, but some Easy Walks will extend beyond wheelchair accessibility.

Read on to learn some Easy Walk locations in the Connecticut River Valley, and find out about Easy Hikes too.

Scenic Easy Walk In North Central Massachusetts

Scenic roadway along the Quabbin shoreline.

Despite a gray cloudy day I ventured over to Gate 35 at the Quabbin today. A facebook follower had alerted me a few months ago to this unexpected wheelchair accessible experience and finally I had a chance to follow up. What a lovely find!

Gate 35 is located along the northeastern tip of the massive reservoir, technically in the town of Athol, at the end of N. Old Dana Road off Route 122 in New Salem. There is roadside parking at the gated end of the road and room around the gate to pass through in a wheelchair. A kiosk with map and various rules is within sight at a fork in the dirt road beyond the gate.