Best trails in Wilbraham, Massachusetts

Note: When parking area is full, please try other Wilbraham trails in order to prevent overcrowding on the trail. The Tom Leary Trail is one of several trails in the Rice Nature Preserve in Wilbraham. It is named in honor of Tom Leary and the work he did to establish the Rice Nature Preserve. The map you see here actually has several of the other trails in the preserve included in it in addition to the trail named after Tom. As most of the reviewers have noted, this trail leads to a spectacular view of Wilbraham, the Pioneer Valley, and the Holyoke range. The Open Space and Recreation Plan Committee added a boardwalk to the beginning of the trail to ease any trouble with muddy areas near the trailhead. For more details about these trails, please refer to the Town of Wilbraham's Rice Nature Preserve webpage at https://www.wilbraham-ma.gov/index.aspx?NID=298Show more

The Mount Marcy trail provides a short, steep hiking experience with breathtaking views, especially during the fall and spring, when there is less foliage. The south leg of the loop is fairly wide and has many switchbacks and a few steep sections. The easiest hike up Mount Marcy is to take the south leg up and back. The north leg is narrower, has many rocks and roots and more steep sections; nevertheless it is easily do-able if one goes slowly, and then one can return to the parking lot via the south leg. The parking lot holds 6-8 cars. In addition to the views and the great short hiking experience, there are three geodetic markers at the summit, and the base of a tower which was used for postal airplane navigation during the 1930's and 40's. Show more

This map puts together several of the Crane Hill Trails. This area provides a nice walk in the woods with a few pretty steep spots. It borders suburban housing at the beginning of the hike and one or two other spots, but that does not detract from the overall beauty of this property. A free public disc golf course shares portions of these trails. In those sections, hikers and disc golfers need to be aware of each other and mindful of each others’ needs. The named trails in this map are the Crane Loop/12-Mile connector, and the Crane Hill Summit Trails which together form a loop. For more information about these and other trails at Crane Hill and additional maps, please check https://www.wilbraham-ma.gov/296/Crane-Hill-Twelve-Mile-Recreation-Area.Show more

The Thayer Brook Conservation Area Trail is an easy, pleasant walk through the woods. The trail has many small rocks and roots. There is a large glacial erratic midway on the route, named Whale Rock because of its shape. From Whale Rock, the trail leads down to Thayer Brook and then uses boards to cross the brook. Once across the brook, the trail heads up to to Bennett Road. The trail is in excellent shape up to Whale Rock and is easy to follow from Whale Rock to Thayer Brook. Show more

This route covers most of the trails at the McDonald Nature Preserve in Wilbraham, MA. The trail is a pleasant, easy trek through open fields and woodland. Great for birding in the spring and fall. Some sections may be muddy at times. More details for this trail can be found at the the Town of Wilbraham website: https://www.wilbraham-ma.gov/index.aspx?NID=295Show more

The Oakland Trailwalk is a pleasant walk in a "pocket" of preserved land in Wilbraham. Some portions of the trail have a suburban view (houses, back yards) which does not detract from the overall loveliness of the open space. A few portions can be muddy or icy at times. More details about this trail can be found at https://www.wilbraham-ma.gov/index.aspx?NID=672Show more

The Easy Trail at Thayer Brook is a wide crushed gravel trail suitable for running laps, a short walk, or a walk with kids in or out of strollers.Show more

This is a mostly soft, grassy surface loop. There are several trail crossing to explore within the main loop. This is a lush forest loop with tree canopies throughout. There are nice views of Sawmill Pond and plenty of birdlife.Show more