MCRT Mountain Bike Connections

Mountain bike trails off the MCRT (from West to East)

The Facing Rock Wildlife Management Area in Ludlow offers 58 mountain bike trails for intermediate to advanced riders, and hikes with varying terrain including fields, rocks and ledges. It connects with the MCRT via the Jabish Canal Trail (going southwest from MCRT) in Belchertown.

The Jabish Canal Trail intersects the MCRT in Belchertown and provides a mostly easy 2-mile ride along the Jabish Canal.

The nearby Bunker Hill area – just north of the MCRT in Belchertown – has green, blue and black diamond trails all interconnected.

The Swift River Greenbelt trail begins just South of the State St bridge over the Swift River, where the on-street alternate MCRT route enters Bondsville from Belchertown.  It continues south for 1.8 miles next to the Swift River, as a mostly flat dirt path.   North of the abutments of the former MCRR bridge over the Swift River in Bondsville, the old Rabbit Run railbed is a hiking and mountain bike path on the west side of the Swift River to Cold Spring Rd, about 1.5 miles long.

The Woods Road area in Barre is located just South of the MCRT alternative route and future trail location, starting at a parking area ½ mile south of Rt 32 on Barre Depot Road. This network of trails near Rocky Hill in Barre offers over 8 miles of intermediate and challenging mountain biking. 

Town Farm Hill just ¼ mi north of Route 32 in South Barre (the current alternative MCRT route) offers 27 trails of mostly intermediate difficulty. To access, take South Barre Road or Worcester Road off the MCRT route to Nichols Road.

Ware River Trail – The 15-mile trail begins ¼ mile East of the MCRT Ware River crossing on Route 122 in Barre. It’s a flat, easy double-track ride on an old railbed, with a few bridge crossings over streams, and some sandy / washout spots that can be crossed quickly. Much of the trail can be ridden with hybrid bike tires. Riders and walkers enjoy the remote, quiet experience with very few road crossings.   

Rutland State Park – The MCRT converges with several of the many mountain bike trails in the 300 acres of Rutland State Park, including Red Pine Trail, Pitch Pine, Midstate Trail, Whitehall Pond Trail, Whitehall Road and Barrack Hill Road.
The MCRT is a short ride on Manning Street to the Trout Brook Conservation Area which has several 2- and 3-mile loops of easy to moderate trails (map here).

The MCRT runs near the Quabbin Aqueduct in Holden and intersects with several trails in the DCR Wachusett Watershed area.  The Mill St trail loops can be accessed at the top of a series of switchbacks from the Mill ST. parking lot.   The River Street trails connect to the MCRT at 3 locations between the 2 bridges over the Quinapoxet River, just north of the River St parking lot.  All of these trails are easy / intermediate, through mostly wooded areas.  DCR DWSP prohibits going off their approved trails in order to protect the watershed.

The trail in the Ross Dam and Conservation Land in Berlin intersect with the MCRT route at a parking lot on the south side of Rt 62 in Berlin, 1/3 mi West of Coburn Road. South of this area, there’s an extensive MTB trail network in the Sudbury Valley trustees Mt Pisgah Conservation Area.  

The Assabet National Wildlife Refuge can be accessed from the MCRT via White Pond Road and Bruen Rd in Hudson and Stow. Most of the trails are reserved for hikers, but there are two large double-track relatively flat loops for mountain and gravel bikers (about 9 miles in total).

Memorial Forest, Hop Brook Reservation in Sudbury and the southern section of the Assabet NWR all abut the MCRT near the Sudbury / Hudson town line, with an extensive network of MTB trails that are mostly easy, with a few challenging sections. The soil is sandy, with many roots in some areas. This is a unique pine barren forest that’s much like Cape Cod, with scrub oak and pines.

The Jericho Town Forest in Weston offers 53 great mountain bike trails, and crosses the MCRT at multiple points, including the BCT Bike Route in Lincoln, Jericho A, B and E trails.

Prospect Hill Park, in Waltham is just off Lunda Street from the MCRT and has 44 trails for all abilities over 252 acres.

A little farther East on the MCRT is the Beaver Brook Reservation in Waltham, which can be accessed from Beaver Street to the Eager Beaver Trail. This area has several green and blue trails, and provides a connection to the Western Greenway, which takes you over to many additional trails in the Beaver Brook North Reservation via the Metropolitan Parkway Bike Path.