Hopkins Forest > Taconic Crest > Shepherd’s Well > RRR Brooks > Buxton Ravine
Distance: 8+ miles
Difficulty: Moderate to difficult, includes climb to Taconic Crest Trail
Hike Leader: Robin Sears, WRL Director
Loop: Ascending through Hopkins Forest to the Taconic Crest Trail via Birch Brook Trail. Descending on Shepherd’s Well, RRR Brooks, and Buxton Ravine.
Join the WRL Executive Director on a hardy hike that has so many features we love! Forests, meadows, swaths of ferns, a babbling brook, and stunning views.
We’ll begin and end at the parking area of Hopkins Forest. As a warm-up, we’ll start on the gravel path of the lower Hopkins Forest loop to the 4-way intersection. Then, we’ll ascend gradually on the north side of the upper loop for 1 mile to the Birch Brook trailhead. The Birch Brook trail climbs for a mile steeply up to the Taconic Crest Trail, where we turn left to head south until meeting the Shepherd’s Well trail. As it descends, the Shepherd’s Well trail opens up to a sweet patch of blueberries and huckleberries, and amazing views to the east, south and west. After taking in the view, we’ll head downhill to meet the RRR Brooks trail. We’ll follow it to the Sara Tenney trail, on through the meadow to Bob’s Ski Loop, the Hunter Family Trail, and finally to the Buxton Ravine trail – which brings us back down to the base of Petersburg Road. We finish with a .5 mile walk along Northwest Hill Road back to the parking area.
- Limited to 10 participants.
- Bring lunch, water and tick repellent.
- Wear sturdy shoes that are happy to get muddy
- Dog friendly!
Please register using the form below.
Cancellations call (413) 458-2494.
Bookings
Bookings are closed for this event.