Wendell State Forest
Nature preserve
7,757 acres44.7 mi of trail
NET/M&M Trail (white)Hannah Swarton TrailBear Mountain TrailMormon Hollow / Hannah Swarton+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Photo: John Phelan · CC BY-SA 4.0–Not graded
Outdoors in Wendell
More than half of Wendell’s land is conserved: 61%
61% of Wendell’s land is conserved, about 12,532 acres. The biggest trail networks: Wendell State Forest (44.7 mi), Fiske Pond Conservation Area (2.8 mi), Quabbin Reservoir Reservation (1 mi). 1,797 acres are parks and preserves, 2,114 per 1,000 residents.
Conserved land
61%
12,532 acres · of 31.9 sq mi of land
Trails
60 mi
1.9 per sq mi of land
Park land
1,797 ac
2,114 acres per 1,000 residents
Near a park
87%
of residents within ½ mile
Highest peak
1,293 ft
Orcutt Hill
Lakes & rivers
7
2 beaches
The map
Conserved land, trails & bike routes
Tap a number to zoom to a park. Tap a layer to hide it.
Easements protect land from building but are usually private.© OpenStreetMap contributors · USGS PAD-US
Places to walk
Pick a walk
The longest trail network is Wendell State Forest, with 44.7 miles. Directions go to the nearest trailhead or public parking.
Fiske Pond Conservation Area
Nature preserve
122 acres2.8 mi of trail
Pond Loop Trail (white)To Old Egypt Road (red)old NET TrailFiske Point Trail (blue)+1
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
Quabbin Reservoir Reservation
Managed by DCR - Division Of Water Supply Protection
619 acres1 mi of trail
No dogs
Directionsto the parking lot
Millers River Access
Nature preserve
51 acres0.3 mi of trail
Dog rules not recorded
Directionsto the parking lot
All 8 parks & preserves
Wendell State Forest7,757 acres · 44.7 mi of trail
DirectionsFiske Pond Conservation Area122 acres · 2.8 mi of trail
DirectionsQuabbin Reservoir Reservation619 acres · 1 mi of trail · DCR - Division Of Water Supply Protection
DirectionsMillers River Access51 acres · 0.3 mi of trail
DirectionsWendell Wildlife Management Area590 acres
Farley Road Conservation Area39 acres
Depot Road Conservation Area11 acres
Town Common2 acres
DirectionsWho protects it
12,532 conserved acres
61% of Wendell’s land. Who manages Wendell’s conserved land, from the USGS Protected Areas Database. Approximate, because parcels can overlap.
Land trusts & nonprofits1,234 ac
State conservation835 ac
Other state land313 ac
State parks190 ac
Town or city127 ac
State fish & wildlife65 ac
State natural resources2 ac
State Resource Management Area · 7,700 acPrivate Conservation · 2,016 acConservation Easement · 1,828 acWatershed Protection Area · 1,211 acState Conservation Area · 585 ac
Good to know
Conserved doesn’t always mean open to visitors. 1,349 acres are conservation easements, usually private land. Public access isn’t recorded for 26 of 154 parcels. The walks above are places people visit.
The biggest protected parcels
| Parcel (PAD-US) | Managed by | Acres | Public access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wendell State Forest State Resource Management Area | Not recorded | 7,696 | Unknown |
| Whetstone Wood Wildlife Sanctuary Private Conservation | Not recorded | 1,570 | Open |
| Quabbin Reservoir Watershed Watershed Protection Area | Not recorded | 675 | Restricted |
| Wendell Wildlife Management Area State Conservation Area | Not recorded | 585 | Open |
| Quabbin Watershed Land Watershed Protection Area | State conservation | 536 | Closed |
| Massachusetts Audubon Society Private Conservation | Not recorded | 169 | Unknown |
| Massachusetts Audubon Society~ Private Conservation | Not recorded | 105 | Unknown |
| Town of Wendell Local Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 100 | Closed |
| Mass Audubon Society Land Private Conservation | Not recorded | 75 | Closed |
| Millers River Access State Other or Unknown | Not recorded | 54 | Open |
5 smaller protected places aren’t shown.
Things to do
18 places to go in Wendell
Beaches, playgrounds, peaks, falls and more. Pick a kind.
Beaches in Wendell
2 beaches without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see them.
Playgrounds in Wendell
1 playground without a name on the map. Tap “Show all on map” to see it.
Peaks in Wendell
Orcutt Hill1,293 ft elevation
DirectionsBear Mountain1,276 ft elevation · In Wendell State Forest
DirectionsBear Mountain1,220 ft elevation
DirectionsLocks Hill1,220 ft elevation
DirectionsBullard Hill1,168 ft elevation
DirectionsWhales Head1,106 ft elevation · In Wendell State Forest
DirectionsJerusalem Hill971 ft elevation · In Wendell State Forest
DirectionsLocke Hill833 ft elevation
DirectionsPlus 2 peaks without a name on the map.
Community gardens in Wendell
Wendell Community Garden
DirectionsTrails & water
15 named trails and 7 lakes & rivers
Named trails
Open to bikes · 3.9 miHorses · 3.4 miUnpaved · 31.1 mi
NET/M&M Trail (white)5.8 mi
Hannah Swarton Trail2.2 mi
Bear Mountain Trail1.7 mi
Mormon Hollow / Hannah Swarton1.4 mi
Pond Loop Trail (white)1.1 mi
M&M Trail (old route)1.1 mi
Nipmuck1.0 mi
old NET Trail0.4 mi
Moose Trax Trail0.4 mi
Hammerhead's Hiatus0.3 mi
5 more trails
To Old Egypt Road (red)
0.3 miCCC Trail
0.3 miLynn's Falls Trail
0.2 miFiske Point Trail (blue)
0.2 miHemlock Bluff Trail (yellow)
0.1 miLakes & rivers tap for directions
Biking & sports
0.0 miles of bike routes
Bike lanes are often missing from the map in smaller towns, so that number is likely low.
Courts & fields
2Basketball
Includes school and college facilities, which aren’t always open to the public.
History along the way
History →1 place on the National Register
The country’s official list of places worth saving (National Park Service).
Wendell Town Common Historic DistrictDistrict · listed 1992
About itWhen to get out
The best walking months in Wendell: May to July and September
NOAA’s 1991–2020 normals for the town and the daylight at its latitude. Outlined months have long days, highs of 59 to 86 °F and little rain for the place.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daylight (h) | 9.4 | 10.5 | 11.8 | 13.3 | 14.6 | 15.3 | 15.0 | 13.9 | 12.4 | 11.0 | 9.7 | 9.1 |
| High (°F) | 32 | 35 | 43 | 56 | 68 | 76 | 81 | 80 | 72 | 60 | 48 | 37 |
| Rain (in) | 3.6 | 3.0 | 3.7 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 3.7 | 4.4 |
February is the driest month (3.0 in) and July the warmest (highs of 81 °F). 4.9 inches fall in October, the wettest month. The climate in Wendell →
Next door
Wendell and its neighbors
Wendell has the second most mapped trails of the 5 towns around it. Tap a town to see its outdoors.
| Town | Conserved of land | Trail mi per sq mi | Park acres per 1,000 | Near a park ½ mile | Outdoors |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wendell | — not graded: under 1,000 residents or part of its town | ||||
| Erving | 35% | 2.5 | 264 | 87% | A+ |
| Montague | 43% | 2.3 | 782 | 79% | A+ |
| Orange | 34% | 0.4 | 763 | 79% | A |
| New Salem | 81% | 0.4 | 277 | 49% | A− |
The four inputs of the Outdoors grade, from the engine; shares are of land, not water.
Questions about parks and trails in Wendell
Where can I hike in Wendell?
The longest trail networks: Wendell State Forest, 44.7 miles; Fiske Pond Conservation Area, 2.8 miles; Quabbin Reservoir Reservation, 1 miles; Millers River Access, 0.3 miles. Each one is on the map above, with directions to the nearest trailhead or parking.
Are dogs allowed on Wendell’s trails?
Wendell State Forest and Fiske Pond Conservation Area don’t have dog rules recorded on the map; check the signs at the trailhead.
Is there public land near Wendell?
68,083 acres of parks and open public land lie inside Wendell or within 10 miles of it (PAD-US), 3,212 of them inside the town line.
Trail talk
Conditions, parking and favorite walks from Wendell neighbors.
Share a tip
Sources
Where this page comes from
Conserved and public land: USGS Protected Areas Database of the United States (PAD-US), service updated July 2026. Parks, trails, playgrounds, beaches and other places: OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), map data as of 2026-10-28. Land and water area: Census 2025 Gazetteer. Residents near a park: 2020 Census blocks. National Register: National Park Service. How TownRatings grades the outdoors →