#43-TOPSFIELD

WILLOWDALE STATE PARK


WILLOWDALE STATE FOREST


WILLOWDALE STATE FOREST TRAIL MAP


WILLOWDALE MEADOW

WILLOWDALE MEADOW


WILLOWDALE MEADOW TRAIL MAP




HAVERHILL CONSERVATION AREA

HAVERHILL CONSERVATION AREA


IPSWICH RIVER WILDLIFE SANCTUARY

MASS AUDUBON - IPSWICH RIVER WILDLIFE SANCTUARY


IPSWICH RIVER WILDLIFE SANCTUARY TRAIL MAP
















HOOD POND AREA

HOOD POND TRAILS


HOOD POND AREA TRAIL MAP (WILLOWDALE)





BRADLEY PALMER STATE PARK


Bradley Palmer State Park is a 721-acre (2.92 km2) park that features meadows where blueberries can be picked, equestrian runs, stands of climax white pine and hemlock, and a central paved road lined with white pine and in one stretch of a few hundred yards of rhododendron and mountain laurel thickets. The estate is bordered on the north by the Ipswich River and Willowdale State Forest. Some of the land there is private but the park has contiguous access to the ruins of Willowdale Mill, a colonial structure.

The Discover Hamilton Trail loops through the park. Willowdale State Forest is just north of Bradley Palmer.

Besides being open to public at will, the park has many structured uses. It is currently used as the home field for meets of the Masconomet Regional High School Cross-county Team. In the autumn the neighboring horse farms conduct fox hunts (they bring their own fox). Sometimes equestrian meets are held there. Numerous hurdles are in evidence in the equestrian runs, which are periodically mowed. Horses brought in by trailer at will may usually be seen on any non-winter day, more so toward the autumn.


History

The park is the former estate of Bradley Palmer, a noted attorney of the early 20th-century. During the 1960s and '70s the park was the location of the Massachusetts Civil Defense Training Academy. The academy utilized the rooms of the Willow Dale estate as classrooms, dormitory and mess facilities. A disaster town was constructed in a clearing apx. One-quarter mile east and consisted of a burn house, five story rappelling tower, shed class rooms and four collapse building simulators.
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BRADLEY PALMER STATE PARK


BRADLEY PALMER STATE PARK TRAIL MAP


BRADLEY PALMER STATE PARK reviews yelp.com


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MULTI TOWN RAIL TRAIL CONCEPT