Trails: 10 miles of the Metacomet and Monadnock trail connect Mount Holyoke and the nearby Holyoke Range. Access fee:Parking fee Nearest town: Hadley, MA Trail map: Available at the park and on the website Web site:Skinner State Park Points of interest: Summit House, an old 1800s hotel, offers programs on weekends Other activities: Hang gliding Lodging: Camping: No campground in the park Weather forecast:Northampton Tourism info:Northampton Chamber | Greater Springfield Visitors Bureau Getting to the trail: The main entrance to the park is north of Springfield on Route 116 to Route 47 then 4 miles north. Map of local region:Hadley
Trail Name: Skinner State Park I have hiked there: Several times I last hiked there in: Apr, 2004 Trails that I hiked: Aldrich Access Trail, Brookbank Trail, Bunker Link, Big Tree Trail, Cliff Side Trail, Conglomerated Rock Trail, Christmas Trail, Devil's Football Trail, Dakin Trail, Falling Bridge Trail, Forgotten Road Trail, Jacob's Ladder, Lithia Overlook Trail, Low Place Trail, Metacomet & Monadnock (M&M) Trail (this is the long main trail), Northwest Passage Trail, Other Swamp Trail, Robert Frost Trail (another main trail), Trolley Bed Trail, Taylor Notch Trail. Favorite trails: Metacomet & Monadnock (M&M) Trail (this is the long main trail) Best time to go: Spring and Fall Trail marking: Very good Trail maintenance: Fair Rating: 4 stars What I liked: This is nearly my back yard What I disliked: Dogs and crowds Additional comments: Mount Holyoke Range - Skinner State Park
Main Trail; Metacomet-Monadnock Trail, M-M Trail, Robert Frost Trail, Ridge Trail
Located in central western Massachusetts, Mount Holyoke Range State Park, J. A. Skinner State Park, Mt. Tom State Reservation and Mt. Sugarloaf State Reservation. These parks and reservations offer about seventy-five miles total of marked and mapped trails, mostly a day hike if you don’t get lost. These are all wooded over woodlots and pastures, eroded from clear cutting and full of dumpsites, hard to tell if you don’t know what you’re your looking for. Some steep trails can be a bit tricky on foot. This area offers a good diversity of streams, ponds, wetlands, verticals and a variety of trees, mostly not indigenous. Trails can be swamp to solid with both jagged and smooth bedrock, broken rock, soil, sand, clay or other muck. The peeks and lookouts offer scenic views of the broad agricultural landscape, the Connecticut River and the Oxbow. Although rare, there is some wildlife including black bears, dear and cougars. The bird life includes some eagles, hawks, owls and other rare birds that are attempting to make a return. Fall foliage viewing is popular but please, don’t do your leaf peeping when driving. Hiking during hunting season is discouraged.
On the trails, you will find three different types of hikers, the indigenous New Englander, tourists and the hard-core environmentalist know to the locals as Eco-Nazis. The indigenous New Englander is mostly a shy and timid critter but when cornered, will offer plenty of hospitality. Tourists often feign to be indigenous, typically headed in the wrong direction and regularly seen tending to blisters along the trails. Hazard warning; trails are sometimes blocked by the hard-core environmentalists in an attempt to keep the ATVs out and several times I have seen old barbed wire across the trails.
Rock climbing on Mt. Tom and Mt. Sugarloaf is gnarly, loose sandstone rock and other breakaways. Mountain Biking is at your own risk, carry a full first aid kit for not only for your bike but for your self as well, and a change of underwear for the surprise vertical sections.
You can find Indian arrowheads, small fossils and plenty ticks sometimes along the trails. Historic sites include; The Devils' Football, a magnetic boulder, The Summit House, a popular hotel in the 1800's, The Horse Caves, during Shay's Rebellion used as shelter, Eyre House ruins, A military plane crash and much more.
Being minutes from civilization and two major highways, it is a popular day trip for those looking to escape the concrete and asphalt. Overall, a good quick fix for the tailholic despite some rough spots or a good warm up for the longer trails to the north and west.
Submitted by: R C from: South Hadley Date submitted: April 13, 2004
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