North HIll Marsh & Round Pond

The town of Duxbury hosts many great areas to explore. The two mentioned on this page, North Hill Marsh and Round Pond are located on opposite sides of Mayflower Street so it makes sense to describe them together.

The area's 1230 of contiguous conservation land form the largest parcel of preserved land in the town.

The trails are managed by the Duxbury Conservation Commission and maintained by the town and by local volunteers. NEMBA members in particular are always picking up deadfalls and brushing back overgrowth.

The town has a No-New-Trails policy on all of its properties. (See the note below.)

    Riding these trails: 

With 31+ miles of trails at hand it would be pretty nearly impossible to ride everything in one outing. You'll find yourself returning here over and over to continue exploring. The first map, from the TrailForks app is the most useful. Not only does it show you the trails but as you're riding it will show where you are on the trail network as well as trace your route.  LoL You can even make a donation to SE MA NEMBA right from the app.

The trails range from easy wide carriage paths suitable for newcomers and family rides to some very hilly twisty singletracks that willchallenge both your techniacl skills as well as your lung power.

There's an abandoned motocross track, at the top of a hill in the Round Pond area. I challenge you to do three laps of the track without getting totally winded.

You'll see lots hikers, families, dogs and horses out on these trails. Please ride cautiously and respect the other users rights!  Also, till the Pandemic is over maintain social distancing and other Covid 19 precautions as possible.

The Bay Circuit Trail passes through these lands.  If you're looking for a really extended ride, you could add in their 230 miles.  :-)

    Parking:

The best places to park are on Mayflower Street. Here are the directions from the town's website. "From Rt. 3 South: Take Exit 10 off Rt. 3 and bear to the right. Follow Rt. 3A to the Duxbury Fire Station. Turn left onto and continue down Mayflower Street. The parking for North Hill Marsh are about a mile past the Duxbury transfer station on the right and left.

It should be noted that these lots can fill up fast. So, on weekends at least, many people also park behind Duxbury Town Hall wher a trail right out of the parking ;lot leads into North Hill Marsh.

    Cautionalry note from the Con Com.

• An Open Letter to Mountain Bikers who ride in Duxbury Conservation Lands

  In preface, the Conservation Commission is empathetic to the current lockdown

  situation; several of us have children at home who we are struggling to keep busy

  and engaged in productive activities. Especially as the weather gets better, we

  understand the desire for kids and teens to be outside and off screens. We

  encourage safe outdoor pursuits in Duxbury Conservation lands, provided these

  pursuits are allowed by the Town’s rules and regulations. These rules and

  regulations can be found on the Town website.

  Mountain biking is allowed on Duxbury Conservation lands, subject to the

  regulations. Over the years as biking has become more popular, bikers have used

  the lands in a manner that has been respectful to walkers, runners, equestrians, and

  to the woods and trails, with few exceptions. It has been a wonderful evolution to

  allow for positive multi-use of the Conservation lands. There are a multitude of

  trails in town, enough to provide for a challenging and exciting mountain biking

  experience.

  Unfortunately, there has been a significant increase in unauthorized trail making

  and structure building on Conservation lands. Cutting trees, digging, building

  jumps and similar activities is expressly prohibited on Conservation lands. Recent

  activity of this nature has been noted in the Conservation lands west of Island

  Creek pond. This activity (and similar activities elsewhere on Conservation lands)

  must stop immediately.

  If you have children that mountain bike on the Conservation lands, the

  Commission urges you to speak to your child to ensure we can continue multi-use

  activities on Conservation lands. The Commission does not want to close

  Conservation lands to all mountain biking activity because a select few are

  breaking the rules. The land is for everyone to enjoy, but the enjoyment must not

  leave a trace for others. Taking a shovel and saw to the woods has a long-lasting

  impact to the wildlife and to the public who seek to enjoy the lands in their natural

  state. The unsanctioned trail building also has created unsafe areas for young and

  inexperienced bikers.

  Please abide by the regulations and continue to use the Conservation lands

  respectively so that all may enjoy it for many years to come.

  The Conservation Commission

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