At Town Meeting in October, 2014, Westford voters appropriated $350,000 in Community Preservation Funds to support the $900,000 purchase of 44 acres for open space, passive recreation and conservation. Bill Turner, the town’s Conservation/Resource Planner, noted several benefits of the purchase: it supports the town’s open space goals, protects two endangered species, has existing trails with public access, and is a state preservation priority.
The access mentioned is at the end of Hopkins Place. The trails extend into the Timberlake property, town forest land to the north, and beyond. Recent efforts by Westford’s Tuesday trail group have consolidated these trails, adding loop options and a new trailhead on Tenney Road. This easement trail crosses a lovely bridge over babbling Spaulding Brook, then heads steeply up the rocky hill to join the trail network at a prominent boulder known as dinosaur egg rock.
The land is primarily typical New England oak/pine forest: white pine, pitch pine, red and white oak, and white birch. Judging from the age of the new, young white pines sprouting up in the sunny patches, lumbering was done here in patch cuts, perhaps most recently in 2013. The trails are sometimes rocky and boulder-strewn, and smoother walking elsewhere, such as by dinosaur egg rock. Observe how some of the boulders are used as “feeding tables” by the local chipmunks, strewn with discarded acorn shells. You can relax on one of the big boulders for rest or meditation. Look on the forest floor for club mosses, wintergreen, and partridge berry. Listen for crows, chickadees and titmice.
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Difficulty
EasyActivities
- Hiking
- Birding