As you travel west 0.4 mile along the edge of land nibbled by storm surges, you’ll pass over a wetland with some muddy patches where logs laid flat improve footing. After brushing past a boggy meadow, the trail snakes past an uncommonly large sassafras tree and a pine grove. You’ll see another grove of holly trees of varying sizes as well. After swinging left and then right, the trail spills into a grassy clearing. At this three-way junction, bear left to take the Salt Marsh Trail, and head southwest back to the seashore.
Approaching the beach, this former cart road encounters a substantial stone bridge built over a channel. The view straight on is of Nasketucket Bay, with Sconticut Neck lying prone on the horizon. The tidal zone of the Nasketucket River lies to the right, and just before it is Shaw’s Cove. The shallows behind the strip of sand left in a glacier’s wake have filled in over the ages to form salt marsh, which is home to a variety of endangered species. In fact, the marsh to the west is part of the South Shore Marshes Wildlife Management Area. If you’d like to spend some more time on a rocky beach, hike right, toward Shaw’s Cove. A 5-foot granite spike jutting from the sand 100 yards along serves as a handy destination point. After looping around this odd protuberance, head back to the Salt Marsh Trail.
Extensive boardwalks traverse the otherwise swampy areas of the forest.
Passing blackberry bushes and beach roses, return to the grassy junction you passed through before, and continue straight on the Salt Marsh Trail, heading northeast. Starting wide and becoming narrower, the trail travels through woods, climbing a subtle incline as it nears the Bridle Trail. At this split, keep left, beside the salt marsh. The Salt Marsh Trail soon turns to upland and once more crosses the Bridle Trail. Bear left onto the tried-and-true Bridle Trail, and follow it back to the parking lot.
NEARBY ATTRACTIONS
Immerse yourself in the rich maritime heritage of the area with a visit to the New Bedford Whaling Museum (18 Johnny Cake Hill, New Bedford; 508-997-0046). Admission is free for members, $17 for adults, $15 for senior citizens (65 and older), $10 for students (19 and over), $7 for children ages 4–14, and free for children under 3. The museum is fully wheelchair accessible.
GPS TRAILHEAD COORDINATES N41° 38.133' W70° 50.217'
DIRECTIONS From Boston take I-93 S. At Exit 4, merge left onto MA 24 S. After 18.3 miles, take Exit 14A onto I-495 S toward Cape Cod. Continue 19.7 miles, and at Exit 1 merge onto I-195 W. After 9.1 miles, take Exit 19A toward Mattapoisett, and at 0.3 mile merge onto North Street. After 0.9 mile, turn right onto US 6. Continue 1.7 miles to a left turn onto Brandt Island Road. Follow Brandt Island Road, bearing left at the fork, then bear right when you see the sign for Brandt Beach Road. You can park in the small gravel lot on the right, tucked behind the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Management (DEM) sign. There is room for approximately 15–20 cars.
7 PARKER RIVER NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE: Hellcat Trail
DISTANCE & CONFIGURATION: 1.84-mile double loop
DIFFICULTY: Easy
SCENERY: Salt marshes, sand dunes, Atlantic Ocean
EXPOSURE: Mostly shaded, with some exposed areas
TRAFFIC: Moderate
TRAIL SURFACE: Boardwalks traverse the dunes and marsh along the entire length of the trail
HIKING TIME: 30–45 minutes
DRIVING DISTANCE FROM BOSTON COMMON: 53 miles
ELEVATION: 5' at trailhead, no significant gain
SEASON: Year-round
ACCESS: Open sunrise–sunset. Daily entrance fee is $5 per car and $2 for people on foot or bicycle; annual pass is $20 (credit cards not accepted).
MAPS: Available at the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge headquarters and visitor center (6 Plum Island Turnpike, Newburyport, MA), the gatehouse, and the trailhead while supplies last. Also available at tinyurl.com/parkerrivermap.
WHEELCHAIR ACCESS: A small section of trail off the southernmost parking area (7) is designed for wheelchair users. In addition, Pines Trail (at parking area 5) and many of the wildlife-observation areas are wheelchair accessible.
FACILITIES: There are no concession stands on the refuge; however, there are several restaurants and shops where the Plum Island Turnpike ends just outside the refuge entrance. Facilities at Hellcat Swamp include restrooms, an information center, a public boat launch, and many wildlife observation areas.
CONTACT: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, fws.gov/refuge/parker_river, 978-465-5753
LOCATION: Plum Island, Newburyport, MA
COMMENTS: Although Plum Island’s 6.3-mile beach is closed April 1–August 31 for piping plovers to nest and rear their chicks, the Hellcat Trail remains open all year. Also, as an interpretive trail that’s entirely boardwalk, it is convenient for families with small children or less mobile hikers.
The Hellcat Trail is made up entirely of an extensive series of boardwalks to preserve the landscape.
TRAVELING OVER AN elevated boardwalk, this hike surveys the freshwater marsh of the Parker River Wildlife Refuge, passes through Plum Island’s inner beach, and then crests enormous dunes to reach a lookout over the Atlantic Ocean. Those interested in increasing their hiking time can add the Pine Wood Trail, located south of the Hellcat Trail, and/or the Sandy Point State Reservation hike that loops around the southern end of the island opposite Ipswich Bay.
DESCRIPTION
In days long past, there was not a more remote and forbidding place on Plum Island than the Hellcat Swamp. Today, thanks to an elevated boardwalk, nearly anyone can venture into the farthest reaches of the swamp and the inner beach that insulates the swamp from the sea.
Begin at the trailhead located north of the parking lot beside the path that leads northwest to a wildlife lookout tower. Step up onto the boardwalk and follow it south through bayberry bushes to a junction where the trail divides in two. To start the hike with a tour of Plum Island’s dunes, bear right, and continue east. As it’s an extended boardwalk, it is virtually impossible to lose the trail. Even the steps are painted yellow to help you avoid tripping or losing your footing. This is accessible to anyone who can walk.
Ahead, where the boardwalk bends north to cross the island, the trail passes through woodland where black oaks and red maples grow in an oasis created by the weather-shielding dunes and marsh. Farther along, the boardwalk reaches an area where freshwater vernal pools form when hard-hitting storms bore craters in the sand. As sources of rain-fed freshwater, these pools are critical to the island’s wildlife.
After bearing east once more, the trail cuts across the access road. Cross carefully, then take up the boardwalk again as it climbs into the beach’s back dunes. You’ll pass through a grove of tenacious black cherry (Prunus serotina) and cedar trees.
Continue left at the split beyond the road to loop around the Dunes Trail. As the trail emerges from the shelter of the inner dunes and proceeds through the more exposed territory of secondary dunes, you can’t help but notice the botanical changes. Where fierce wind and salt spray are able to penetrate, only the hardiest plants, such as beach heather (Hudsonia tomentosa), manage to survive. Their root system provides a modicum of stability for the shifting sand dunes. On the western slopes