Borderland State Park (Easton, MA)

Borderland State Park
259 Massapoag Avenue, North Easton MA, 02356

If you like extreme cross country biking and trail biking, this is the place for you. Oddly enough, it's also a great place for disc golf or a walk with the family. In the case of the latter, start from the Visitor's Center at the address above and choose the Leach Pond Trail. From there, you can also explore the grounds around the Ames Mansion. This is where the disc golf course begins too.

I've ridden here many times over the years and always find the challenge simultaneously frustrating, humbling, and rewarding. I typically ride a revamped Raleigh M80 (1999) with only 80 mm of suspension in the front. While this setup works well for trails like Massasoit, it is quite underwhelming in a rocky and rooted place like Borderland. Yet, riding Borderland early in the season sharpens my skills and makes places like Duxbury's North Hill Marsh and Massasoit State Park a lot easier.

I usually start my ride from across the street at the Clifford G. Grant Reservation. After riding through the reservation from Oliver Ames High School, I enter the park via Bay Road and take an immediate right onto Bob's Trail. 

Bob's trail will lead you into the heart of the park and take you north over some moderately technical rock walls and roots. This section is a primer for things to come. After about a mile, you'll come to a field in the center of the park. From here, you can continue north towards the Upper Granite Loop and try the designated NEMBA route (very difficult). Throughout the park you'll see several trail maps indicating accessibility and direction. As a general rule, when you ride north the trail becomes rockier and more technical. The gravel paths of the Leach Pond trail circumscribe the park and offer a good avenue for exploring the other trails the peel off of it.

I definitely recommend visiting Borderland State Park at least a couple of times a year to keep your mountain bike skills sharp. I also recommend visiting to walk the Leach Pond Trail for a walk, especially in the fall.