New England National Scenic Trail - NET

Home
United States
Springfield, MA
New England National Scenic Trail - NET

The New England National Scenic Trail (NET) is a 235mi long-distance hiking trail through MA and CT.

The New England Trail (NET) invites you to explore the beautiful places and changing seasons that inspired America’s first landscape painters and reflect the essence of the New England landscape today. Stretching over 235 miles through more than 40 communities from Long Island Sound in Connecticut to the Massachusetts-New Hampshire border, the NET features open fields, deep forests, mountain peaks

, waterfalls, streams and the region’s unique traprock ridges. Whether you’re out for a quiet afternoon walk with friends or a multi-day backpacking adventure, this four-season recreation trail is easy to love and has something for everyone. Consider the NET as your open invitation to experience the forests, fields, mountains and river valleys of New England.

06/16/2026

Views From the New England Trail: MA Section 8

MA Section 8 of the NET runs concurrently with a portion of the Robert Frost Trail (Orange Blaze).

It can be accessed at the Notch Visitor Center and Harris Mountain Road in Amherst, MA. The trail passes along the ridges of Mt. Norwottuck and Long Mountain of the Holyoke Range, with many opportunities for views of the Pioneer Valley along the way.

A notable sight of this section is the Horse Caves. These ledges along Mt. Norwottuck provided temporary shelter for indigenous people when hunting in the area.

Section 8 provides a good four-mile day hike with a loop that takes you to the top of Mt. Norwottuck, past the Horse Caves, and back to the Notch Visitor Center via the Robert Frost Trail. Hiking this time of year will allow you to see the many mountain laurel flowers blooming across the trail.

📸Thank you to Benji van der Hulst, AMC NET Outreach Assistant, for these wonderful snapshots of Section 8!

06/13/2026

Calling all Bark Rangers! "Raise the woof" and join NPS for Bark in the Park celebration at Springfield Armory National Historic Site on June 20 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Picnic with your pup, complete a Bark Ranger activity booklet, get a treat at the pup cup station, make a bandana and more!

The AMC NET Outreach Assistant will share maps and insights into dog and human friendly sections of the Trail! Make sure to stop in at the museum and get your passport book stamped with the NET stamp.

For more information: https://www.nps.gov/planyourvisit/event-details.htm?id=784C8EB2-DF18-B2D1-C407BD413613C9B1

06/05/2026

Have you wondered how hiking trails are maintained? Do you ever notice rock steps on your hike and wonder who put them there? Do you want to learn about trail sustainability in a changing world?

Join Appalachian Mountain Club staff on June 13 for a scenic morning 4-mile loop hike to Mount Norwottuck & the Horse Caves on MA Section 8 to learn about the importance of trail crews work in protecting public land.

To register for the hike: https://activities.outdoors.org/s/oc-activity/a5UVX0000017NDp2AM/act00020724

We hope to see you on the trail!

05/30/2026

Next Saturday is National Trails Day! NTD was started by the American Hiking Society in 1993 to promote the benefits of hiking, highlight the importance of trails, encourage people to get outdoors, and advocate for trail service.

Our trail partners, Appalachian Mountain Club and Connecticut Forest & Park Association, are hosting events along the NET to celebrate the 33rd NTD! 🥳

We hope to see you out on the trail next weekend. ☺️

To find events in MA: https://activities.outdoors.org/s/oc-activity/a5UVX000000zW1N2AU/act00018734

To find events in CT: https://ctwoodlands.org/events/ct-trails-day/

📸Thank you to J. Koteen Photography and CFPA for capturing previous National Trails Day hikes and events!

05/22/2026

Views From the New England Trail: MA Section 19 & Royalston Falls

This is MA Section 19 of the NET. It is the northernmost section of the trail and runs concurrently with the Tully Trail, protected by the Trustees of Reservations for over 70 years.

It can be accessed through parking on MA Route 32. This section of the NET descends into the Falls Brook area, which flows into the nearby Royalston Falls. It is a great spring hike, especially on a rainy day where you’ll see the brook and waterfall at their peak.

If you stay on the NET you’ll hike up to the New Hampshire state line, making your way onto the Metacomet-Monadnock trail, with 18 miles to the summit of Mt. Monadnock. If you keep down the Tully Trail, you will end up at Royalston Falls. The hike to Royalston Falls makes for a good in-and-out hike, with a round trip of about 1.5 miles. Dogs on leash are welcome as well.

For thru hikers, there is a lean-to shelter a mile into the section with four bunks and nearby water access. As with other overnight sites, reservations for the shelter are available via the NET website.

📸 Thank you to Benji van der Hulst, AMC NET Outreach Assistant, for these wonderful snapshots of Section 19 & Royalston Falls!

05/16/2026

Views from the New England Trail: Massachusetts Section 9 📍

This is Section 9 of the New England Trail in Massachusetts! It is a 2.7-mile traverse through the forests and hills of South Amherst and Belchertown. The trail passes over hills, some steep, some smooth. Its changes in elevation adds challenge to your walk. You may be able to get a glimpse of the Mount Holyoke Range at some points on the way! Right now, the blooms on the trail are subtle, but you will see azure bluets popping up all around.

📸 Thank you to Benji van der Hulst, AMC NET Outreach Assistant, for these wonderful snapshots of Section 9!

05/09/2026

The Trail celebrates a successful day in Critical Maintenance Training. 👷‍♂️👷👷‍♀️

On Saturday, May 2, the Appalachian Mountain Club’s New England National Scenic Trail - NET team gave new and returning volunteers alike a chance to learn hands-on skills in trail maintenance.

AMC staff members Audrey Fatone and Connor Piechota guided volunteers through Section 2 of the NET in Southwick, MA, where they demonstrated the function and proper handling of trail tools. Volunteers learned the basics of drainage building and management, corridor clearing, removal of fallen trees and what features make a trail sustainable. Open discussion allowed volunteers to give their insight on trail maintenance.

Thank you to all staff and volunteers for their participation.

05/01/2026

This we are recognizing our Trail Adopters (MA) and Trail Managers (CT) for all they do to help preserve and maintain the New England Trail. With over 45 maintainers along the New England Trail, the efforts of this amazing crew do not go unnoticed. As stewards of the trail, the adopters and managers are responsible for clearing blowdowns, blazing sections, and overall, being advocates of the trail. If you are hiking along and see one of these folks, don't forget to say hello and thank them for all their work; our trail wouldn't be the same without them!

04/25/2026

Thank you to all the volunteers and participants who attended the hike and bike event with Appalachian Mountain Club and All Out Adventures at Ashley Reservoir in Holyoke! The weather was perfect minus the bugs!

Participants and volunteers got to use various adaptive bikes, trikes, and hiking equipment around the reservoir. We are grateful to AOA for providing adaptive equipment and educating us on how to make the outdoors more accessible to everyone!

04/22/2026

The NET Crew wishes you all a very Happy Earth Day!

As a National Scenic Trail, we are lucky to have amazing organizations like Connecticut Forest & Park Association, Appalachian Mountain Club, and National Park Service helping to maintain, protect, and conserve the New England Trail. Without these organizations, the NET would not be the same.

We hope you are able to today and take a moment to thank the Earth for everything it gives us 🌍

📸Thank you to Karl Fellenbaum for capturing this wonderful sunset over the NET from a few years ago ☺️

Address

Springfield, MA

Website

http://www.newenglandtrail.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when New England National Scenic Trail - NET posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to New England National Scenic Trail - NET:

Shortcuts

Want your organization to be the top-listed Non Profit Organization in Springfield?