Walnut Hill Woods

The 92-acre Walnut Hill Woods was gifted to the Franklin Land Trust by Stephen Hale and his family in 2012. The Hale family gifted a conservation restriction to the Town of Buckland prior to the gift. During the family’s 58-year ownership of the property, careful management helped cultivate the exceptional northern hardwood forest that dominates the hilltop today. Under the Franklin Land Trust’s ownership, Walnut Hill Woods will continue to be managed with timber quality, wildlife habitat, and passive recreation in mind. Future selective timber harvests will provide revenue and improve the woodlot’s already considerable habitat value for species ranging from wood warblers to black bear and will honor the Hale family’s tradition of forest stewardship.  In 2014, Franklin Land Trust was awarded a grant from the MA Recreational Trails Program to support work by the Student Conservation Association to improve access, trail construction and expansion of the property’s 2.5-mile network of woods roads and opening this remarkable working forest to the public. Visitors to Walnut Hill Woods are particularly encouraged to visit in early spring to enjoy its wealth of wildflowers, and in fall for the clearest views of the stone walls and old foundations scattered across the hilltop.

Hiking Difficulty: challenging

Narrative Address: Access along right-of-way begins at end of Maynard Hill Road, off of Charlemont Road in Upper Buckland.