Category Archives: Blog posts–Easy Walks

by | May 27, 2021 · 3:33 pm

Pedaling along the Blackstone river

Along the Blackstone Bikeway, Lincoln, RI

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

During the height of the pandemic we avoided our local rail trails because this is where everyone else was. As the rates of infection have eased and more have gotten vaccinated, we have felt safer returning to our nearby rail trails, and they are less crowded. We recently headed to Lincoln, RI to pedal along the banks of the Blackstone River on the Blackstone Bikeway. To find all the parking areas along the Blackstone Bikeway, plus so much more in the valley, be sure to check out this new on line intereactive map. The Blackstone Heritage Corridor has done an amazing job helping make us aware of all that is going on in the valley. I am lucky to be a volunteer with this great organization.

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by | May 17, 2021 · 4:00 pm

Using hiking poles

Navigating the rocky shoreline of Gooseberry Island, Westport, MA

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

I get so many questions about using hiking poles, and was thrilled when the Birdability website invited me to write about how I make best use of them. I keep sharing this article on social media, and finally figured I should simply share it here as well.

“On uneven surfaces, hiking poles provide great stability, since you have not just two but four points of contact with the trail. While using hiking poles is pretty straightforward, (right foot forward with left hiking pole reaching ahead, then left foot forward with right hiking pole planted ahead of you), it may take some practice to learn how to best use them when navigating slopes. (Up is easier than down.) To read more–https://www.birdability.org/blog/birding-while-using-hiking-poles

Happy trails!

Marjorie

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors, and is the author of Easy Walks in Massachusetts, 2nd edition, More Easy Walks in Massachusetts, 2nd edition, Easy Walks and Paddles in the Ten Mile River Watershed, Easy Walks South of Boston and Finding Easy Walks Wherever You Are. Her memoir, the backstory of Easy Walks, is My Liturgy of Easy Walks: Reclaiming hope in a world turned upside down.

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by | May 13, 2021 · 4:30 pm

Headed north for Easy Walks–Maine

Lobster boats in Bass Harbor

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

While the bulk of my trail books focus on Massachusetts, we like to get to Maine spring and fall, and Maine used to be part of Massachusetts, so it’s not too far off topic. It’s along drive to Mt. Desert Island, so we took a lunch break at the shoreline in Belfast, Maine, and noticed what looked like a bridge that crossed the harbor.

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by | April 28, 2021 · 2:09 pm

Finding Easy Walks right where you are

Spring is bursting out all over. Sometimes deep red is a precursor to the lacy greens of warmer weather.

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

Most of us, if we are looking for Easy Walks (not too many roots or rocks, relatively level, with someting of interest along the way) do not want to (or cannot) drive for two hours to enjoy an hour or so stroll. We need to stay closer to home. But we get bored taking the same paths.

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by | April 21, 2021 · 11:48 am

A simple Easy Walk in Milford, MA

The “missing link” portion of the Upper Charles Trail travels through downtown Milford, yet is hidden from sight as it sends its way, connecting the two major portions of the trail

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

The “missing link” section of the Upper Charles Trail in Milford was for many years just that—missing. Not true anymore, but it still has the feel of being hidden in plain sight. Access to this section of the trail is from behind some grocery stores, down a sidewalk to an almost hidden sidewalk type of entrance, or, as my friend and I agreed, to meet at the IHOP in Milford on Rt 109, where the sign says, “Trail parking”. Parking at a restaurant, getting on your bike, or pulling on your walking shoes and heading out works just fine at this unexpected trail access point.

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by | April 15, 2021 · 4:09 pm

Early spring along the Blackstone River

Maple trees have turned red, preparing to send out their greenery soon. Look close–it will be gone!

My friend Marcy met me at the Blackstone Greenway in Blackstone, MA on a warm early spring day. The tree branches are turning lacy as their red buds fill out and promise greenery will be here soon. We strolled together on the clear path. The last time I was here, the bridges were covered in ice.

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by | April 14, 2021 · 11:47 am

A singing brook-Pomfret CT

Mashamoquet Brook flows under a bridge leading to a loop hiking trail

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

One of the wonderful aspects of spring in New England is being able to spend time near woodland streams filled to the brim with melt water from winter’s snows. If any drop in elevation occurs, visitors to these streams are rewarded with the musical sounds of rushing water tumbling over rocks as the melted snow makes its way to the sea. We headed out to the “quiet corner” of Connecticut on a recent morning, to Mashamoquet Brook State Park just off Rt. 44 in Pomfret, CT, and thought we might take the loop trail through the woods. When we arrived, we saw that most other visitors crossed the bridge near the parking area that led to the woodland trail, while almost no one paid much attention to the stream running underneath the bridge. We quickly changed our plans.

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by | April 8, 2021 · 3:49 pm

Edmands Park, Newton offers Easy Walks

The remains of the old skating pond, now filled in wetlands

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

We visited family on a recent weekend and as we approached our family’s home we noticed that few others were at Edmands Park on Blake Street. We headed over there to do an afternoon explore and found wide, level trails that provided very Easy Walking. My husband grew up within walking distance of here, so he spent lots of time here as a kid. But his memories of the park are quite different from what we found on our recent visit.

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by | April 5, 2021 · 4:59 pm

Finding birds in varied places

Seagulls windsurfing along the shore at East Beach, Westport, MA

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

We have the best luck spotting birds when we visit shoreline spots we are familiar with. Again and again we find our way back to Gooseberry Island in Westport, MA and know we will see birds feeding just offshore on the rocky ocean bottom that offers great places for tasty creatures that diving birds are great at finding.

We visited Westport on a few outings in early spring and chose not to try Gooseberry Island, seeing a steady stream of cars crossing the causeway to the small spit of land jutting out into Long Island sound. But our most recent visit was on a day when rain was forecast. Perhaps it would be less crowded? Turns out, the answer was a resounding yes.

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by | March 24, 2021 · 12:03 pm

Skunk cabbage and outdoor fun

First skunk cabbage shoots emerging from the leaf litter

Marjorie Turner Hollman is a writer who loves the outdoors. Link to all Marjorie’s books.

The trees are still leafless, but I see hints of red on the swamp maples at the edge of our yard. A recent walk in the woods nearby offered my first glimpse of skunk cabbage, just poking up above the leaf litter.

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