Explore Salem, CT

Town Parks

• • Harris Brook Trail  – 0.9 miles – Unexplored aka Salem Multipurpose Trail
  • Salem Community Park –★★– 1.2 miles — Old woods road trails that overlap with the disc golf course

Land Trust

• • Salem Land Trust
    • Ahnert Preserve –★– No trails – Small area to explore along the brook (Parking Link)
    • Big Brook Gorge Preserve –★★– .6 miles — A short trail that dead ends in a gorge with an option to climb its high bank
    • Bingham Preserve –★★– .5 miles – A short trail with a view of a beaver pond at the back side
    • Darling Road Preserve –★★★– 3 miles – The loop requires a bit of a roadwalk but also has a section of the Richard Goodwin Trail and the tri-town marker
    • Salem Riverside Preserve –★★– .25 miles – A short well maintained lollipop loop with a view of the Eightmile River
    • Smuggler’s Rock Preserve –★★– 1.8 miles – Short trails climb to a balanced rock and a seasonal view
    • Tatson’s Woods –★– 1.2 miles – A seldom used trail to old farm fields and the remains of a grand old oak
    • Walden Preserve –★★★– 6 miles – Formerly a Nature Conservancy property with a hidden Pierce Arrow car and great varied trails
    • Woodland Warbler Preserve –★★– 2.6 miles – The trust’s newest property!
    • Zemko Sawmill Preserve –★★– 2.2 miles – Expanded trails now explore either side of Whittlesey Swamp

State Parks / Forest

• • Gardner Lake State Park –★★– No trails – Boat launch and small beach area
  • Minnie Island State Park –★★– Footpaths – A tiny island in Gardner Lake
  • Zemko Pond Wildlife Management Area –★★– 1 mile – Not much for trails, but a picnic area and pond for fishing
  • Nehantic State Forest –★★– 5 miles – Many unexplored trails in this large block of the state forest

The Rest

• • Richard H. Goodwin Trail – 13 miles
    • Salem’s portion of this long trail is in the Darling Road Preserve