Middlesex Fells Reservation

Great place year round for anyone that is looking to spend some time out for a hike of a bike ride. I have been coming here weekly with my dog for the last 5 years and am so glad I started coming. Only time Rangers might give a hard time about dogs off the leash on the trails is typically May-​August.

What? There’s green space north of the city? As a south shore dweller, Blue Hills has always been my go to for hikes and trail runs. However, my friends and I wanted to try something different. We had originally planned to hike the full Skyline trail, but with wet weather decided to opt for an abbreviated version. Started at the Sheepfold and hiked to the southern fire tower and back. I think it took 2 hours out and back through woods, pine and lots of rock outcropping to scramble up and down. I definitely will get back to explore, and maybe do done trail running next time. Great find barely 15 minutes north of the city!

Perfect place for a hike with my dog. I never did find the off leash dog park and parking can be a challenge but I will definitely be back!

The Fellsway and Woodland Road desperately need crosswalks, sidewalks, and crossing buttons that start indicator lights. Crossing between the sections was very dangerous. Very frustrating to deal with so many trailheads ending as a dead ends on busy roads, couldn’t figure out where to cross between E/​W. Traffic was going about 50mph with no regard to would be crossers as well.
We almost just called an Über from a dead end trailhead to get out of there out of frustration, since the sun was starting to go down and we were tired from a day of wandering around.
Finally found a trail crossing the Fellsway but I had walk into traffic and stand in the middle of the road to stop traffic so my wife and roommate felt comfortable crossing.
Really got a bad vibe from the whole area being so pedestrian unfriendly, for a park like this, right outside of Boston; you think that would be a priority.
TL:DR; while little risk from wildlife, you might be mauled by a car trying to cross the road, so stick with one section of the park: P

We love going here on the weekend and week day evenings! It’s a great escape from the City, yet so close! For dog lovers/​owners Sheepfold is a good off-​leash park with lots of space and there are tons of trails you can walk your dog on leash. Also, plenty of mountain bike trails! There is a descent amount of parking.

Excellent place to spend a day. We went there with the dog and were able to have her off leash and walking through the park for a great day. everyone was respectful and the park was clean.

I first heard of Fells Reserve from a colleague. She and her husband hike there regularly. I decided to research the trails online and was elated to see that it was only 15min away from my place. The distance was appealing considering we were renting a car for the weekend and only had 4 hours before we had to return the rental. We weren’t certain where to park when we arrived and wasn’t sure what trail we would be close to. There wasn’t many designated parking spots, but I believe we could’ve parked alongside the road. We found a small parking area and opted to path there instead.
We started off on the sidewalk before venturing off into the woods. Again, we weren’t sure where we were going since there weren’t any signs. After pulling up our map we saw we were close to the Fells Reserve. It was beautiful! Eventually we found ourself along the Cross Fells Trails (I believe that’s the right order), which was rated a difficult course on the website. It’s a 5 hour trail one way, but we were only out the for 2.5 hours. The scenery was beautiful! It was amazing to see the Boston skyline from where we were. The trail was a reasonable course and this is coming from a person who has only hiked twice prior.
I’d highly recommend you take a visit!

I don’t have a car, but I wanted to go hiking, so my friend and I walked 40 – 45 minutes from oak grove station as a warmup for the actual hike. #thestruggleisreal Yes, I was complaining the entire 40 minute walk, but once we entered the reservation and reached one of the lakes (I’m not sure which one), every quibble I had dissipated. This place is BEAUTIFUL. If you want to spend time with mother nature, I don’t know a better place than this reservation. It is really breathtaking, even the woody areas. I’m running out of adjectives here, so just venture out there whenever you’re free and you will see what I’m talking about. We did about ²⁄₃ of the skyline trail with a bunch of detours and a lot of picture taking — it took us about 4 – 5 hours and I could have easily stayed there for longer if the sun wasn’t setting.
Just a couple notes for first-​timers: there are no trashcans and absolutely no portapotties. It is just you and nature, so keep that in mind when you’re chugging your water, ladies. The Sheepfold OffLeash Dog area is nice, but yes, you are greeted with a bunch of full poopbags at the entrance, but again, that’s because there are absolutely no trashcans available on the premise. Please drive out to this place. It is not what I would call T-​accessible. Lastly, make sure you have a fully charged smartphone with googlemaps in hand because it will become your best friend if it isn’t already.

We had a great time here with our dog! It’s a great off-​leash park with lots of space. There was a descent amount of parking as well which was nice (coming from boston and all.). I do have to say the lot was a bit difficult to find. However, it was out mistake by not looking at their map online, which clearly shows where the parking lot is.

Being first time visitors the Fells Reservation we accessed the first portal. Unfortunately that turned out to be Sheepfold Dog Park.
I say unfortunately because the dog owners apparently either do not know or they do not care about their responsibility of cleaning up their dogs’ feces.
Within 25 feet of the meadow entrance we found five fresh piles, one still steaming and one done with the owner looking on.
If you are without a dog, avoid Sheepfold.
If you are a dog owner using Sheepfold, show some responsibility.

It’s great that you can be so close to the city of Boston yet feel like you’re off in the wilderness (except for the hum of cars and trucks driving down Route 93). I’m lucky enough to live nearby so I always enjoy taking weekend trips here. My personal favorite is going through the trails in the fall and winter. Winter hikes are great because there aren’t quite as many people, the trails are challenging enough to give you some exercise while not being dangerous (although do need to consider icy days). The large boulders and rocks to climb can give those of you who want to make it little more interesting the chance to have fun while others that you may be with can take the simple trail.
While there of course are better places to hike outside of greater Boston, what makes me a fan of this is the proximity to the city.

Lovely little hidden gem right outside of Boston. Nice area to get away from the city, and to return to nature without have to take a super long drive.
Trails are a bit confusing, and when you park, the maps are very faded. While on some smaller trails, they’re not that well marked and you could get a little lost (I suggest downloading a map and getting a compass just in case)
They have easy to hard trails here. Very hilly and some parts are very rocky. But the water views and natural scenes are just beautiful. We saw a lot of different berries and mushrooms growing all over this place.
Next visit we’ll have a better idea of the trails, and how this place is mapped out. Don’t forget your camera, there are some beautiful things to be photographed out here.

This was a pretty well-​rounded Boston trip. I got to do a lot of outdoor activities including a short (~1hr long) trail to get a view from the top of the hill. There’s not much parking available. You just need to find space next to the road, which gets a bit dangerous since it’s hilly and you can’t really see if there are cars coming towards you when you’re backing out.
Anyway, the trail is pretty mild, just a little bit of up and down. As we made our way up, we hung out at Panther Rock, which was a little cave-​ish thing. I thought the guys just made up the name of the rocks, but no, there was actually a sign that called it the Panther Rock haha As we made our way to the tower, we passed by a lake which looked nice and serene but there might’ve been a lot of bugs.
When we finally got up to the tower, we were able to go inside and get a great 360 degree view of the hills and the surrounding towns. It gets a bit windy up there, so it’s nice to have a lil jacket or something.

Driving home from too many hours spent inside on a beautiful summer day, I knew I needed to find a place to release some energy and enjoy the sun. Middlesex Fells ended up being the stop for this trip, and I am happy that I came upon it. It took me awhile to figure out where to acquire a map, park, and start each trail. I opted for the 2 mile Crystal Springs trail this time. The trail was a mix of wide and narrow paths and hit a lot of intersections along the way. While, for the most part it is well marked, there were definitely some intersections where I had to double back. I was also surprised to find that the path was not a complete loop. I ended up in a playground and had to use my intuition to navigate the random other paths to return back to my starting point.
Besides those hiccups, the woods themselves were beautiful. It seems like this is a big place for mountain bikers and I can see why.
So, while I would definitely return, make sure you’re with someone who has a good sense of direction and pay attention to those red dots.

My goodness, how have I waited this long to review something that is essentially in my backyard?!
MFR, oh how I adore everything about you but the mosquitoes. Wild raspberries on the trails? You betcha! Hearing growling noises that will scare the every living daylights out of you, only to find out later it was a lion from the zoo and not some sort of wild cat? Uh huh, one of the funniest stories of my life.
I’ve now hiked both sides of the Fells and I prefer the Medford side over Malden/​Melrose. I dunno, it’s just prettier in general and much larger from what I could tell. I think my longest hike is about five miles but this summer I have pledged to myself to complete an entire loop on the Medford side.
I wish I rode a better mountain bike to try the trails a different way but hiking will suffice for now. The coolest thing I’ve done is taken a metal detector with a friend and we found some old mining equipment from about 100 years ago. I can’t believe I have yet to hike up to Wright’s Tower and check out what I’ve been told are incredible views of Boston but that will be happening soon as well.
Parking is fairly ample but get there early on the weekends. There are at least 5 — 7 parking lots on each side although I’ve never really counted. If the first is full just continue along Border Rd. until you come to the next one, maybe you’ll get lucky and find someone already leaving in the next lot.
The best place to picnic is the first parking area on the Medford side right after the 93 ramp. Pull up into the parking area next to the small pond there, hike up the trail about ¹⁄₈^th of a mile and find a bunch of picnic tables that are hardly used. There is also a fun rope swing there next to the pond to use yourself or even better if you have kids.

The signage really sucks and you’ll very likely get lost. But if you’re ready to just «get away» from Boston without actually having to go far, this is the place for you! In the middle of a very busy semester, I was craving a good hike so I took my parents here in late October.
I would definitely recommend our hike: we parked at the Sheepfold Parking Lot and chose our own adventure from there. The parking lot opens up into a dog park/​meadow. Then you can choose to stay in the meadow or veer off into the woods. We decided to go into the woods with the ultimate goal of making it to the Bear Hill Tower. We definitely got lost and had to ask some fellow hikers + use my dad’s iPhone to point us in the right direction.
It was very easy walking, and once we got to Bear Hill, we climbed 5 flights to the top (a little scary on a windy day but totally safe) and OMG. 360 degree views. You can see the Boston skyline, Cambridge, fall foliage, everything. It was so breathtaking, I felt like I had won the lottery. It’s a much better view than Wright’s Tower (although Wright’s is a lot easier to find).
I know there have been complaints that there are too many people there with their dogs. I didn’t feel this at all. Once we were in the woods, we passed a total of 15 people over ~3 hours. And we went right in primetime fall foliage season.
Highly recommended, beautiful park! Just bring your smartphone so you don’t get *completely* lost!

Great location off 93. The mountain bike loop is challenging — not for beginners!
I managed to damage my big chain ring. Be careful, or get a bash guard.

Love this reservation — it’s so big (east and west of 93!). Full of many different bodies of water and trails.
Sometimes you can even see the tops of Boston buildings.
I love the rocky feel as well!

So I came here on a class field trip for my Environmental Science class and I wasn’t all that impressed.
I’ve been to a number of other places like this. If you would like to see my reviews for Breakheart Reservation, Lynn Woods Reservation or Deer Island then by all means check them out because they all got 5 star reviews. This place is far from being the best or even close to it.
There was very little parking at the entrance of the park so we had to double back to a side-​street that was ahead a bit and park there. It wasn’t too bad since it was only like a 3 minute walk to the park after we parked. The place was crawling with Garter snakes and I mean CRAWLING which I personally have no issue with but all the girls on the group were freaking out (so keep that in mind if you’re bringing someone who may be afraid of snakes).
The scenery wasn’t all that spectacular either but I will say that once you do get to the top, it is quite a view to behold. It’s very crowded too for the size of the park which is a big downside. I also saw a lot of droppings from pets that people clearly care not to pick up after which goes to show you the type of people who go there. I gave this place a 4 star review solely because of the amazing view at the top but the broken bottles, graffiti and trash that littered the place didn’t really add to the majesty of the experience.

Went for some hiking in a chilly April with my lady friend. We walked a few miles along a number of paths, some along road, some relatively flat woodsy parts, and some up hill hikes. She said she often runs the trails and I can imagine it’s really good for that. Not too many rocks or things to trip on and cool terrain.
Went to a cool tower with a view of the city and Medford. Looking at the map, it’s huge and has Spy Pond and a lot going on.
Also, there’s a huge green at the beginning, perfect for dogs and finding poop to step in. Soooo much poop.
Overall, quick drive from the city, really nice reserve-​like park with lots of options and really feels like you’re in the woods, not surrounded by city. I’ll definitely be going back.