Tully Trail East

I would like to thank everone who attended for an excellent hike! We started at 9 AM sharp to hike the eastern side of the Tully trail, one of my favorites. The weather was great, and the views were all clear. We stopped to observe the excllent views of the three major wateralls along the way. Royalston Falls, dumping 45 feet into a deep canyon was not frozen, but had plenty of ice along the sides. Spirit falls, a wide brook followed the trail down a several hundred foot descent was only frozen in a few small pools. Doanes Falls, with three major sections brought a great end to the hike, as it is where we had spotted cars.

We also stopped at two seperate sections of ledges viewing the flood control areas and Tully lake, one where we had lunch.  Between the major sights, we followed the trail along the perimiter of the flood control area. We passed signs of former land use, including old foundations, rusted equipment, and old dams wich are out of use.

Everyone kept an excellent pace, and we made good time. It took us 5.25 hours including lunch, I had extimated it would take 6 hours. This completed the hike at 2:15, allowing people plenty of time to get back to different points around New England.

This could be an excellent prelude to a full 22 mile Tully Trail loop hike in the spring!

Come join me as I hike the Eastern side of the Tully Trail. This hike will bring us along numerous elaborate waterfalls, including Royalston Falls, Spirit Falls, and Doanes Falls. We will also get to see the scenic views from the ledges, Tully lake, and the Royalston Falls shelter. This will be an 11 mile hike, taking roughly 6 hours, and is rated as moderate to strenuous. The terrain will be fairly easy, follwing the rolling hills of Central MA, with a few climbs/descents of several hundred feet at a time.

This trail is in the Tully Lake conservation area, which was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1949. This section of trail follows a small riverbed which feeds Tully Lake from the North. Along this trail, there are signs of old farms, with occasional rusty farm equipment and vehicles left for decades.

This will be a one-way hike with spotted cars (I will pre arrange with one person on the hike).  Please dress warmly, as this is a 6 hour hike in January. I also suggest you bring plenty of water and food as there are no stores nearby. Rain will cancel this event, snow will not unless it is enough to make the roads unsafe. Microspikes may be needed if there is ice/snow on the trails by January 8th, but I will advise as the time gets closer based upon weather conditions.

We will be doing an 11 mile section of the 22 mile Tully Trail loop. I am very familiar with this area and have hiked the entire trail, as well as different sections many times.

We may go out to seat somewhere locally afterwards if there is sufficient interest.