Brush Hill Road Parking Area East

Home Road, Sheffield, MA

About Brush Hill Road Parking Area East

This Brush Hill Road parking area provides access to the Three Mile Pond Wildlife Management Area. The WMA's most prominent feature is its pond, which is frequented by hunters searching for waterfowl around the water. Three Mile Pond is the largest pond in Sheffield, and it incubates a thriving population of great blue herons. The Department of Fisheries and Wildlife manages the site and has improved the pond for public use in recent years, including the addition of a boat launch suitable for kayaking, canoeing, or standup paddleboarding. The pond is usually easy to navigate, but in the late summer, dense vegetation can block certain sections of the pond. The pond is situated over mineral-rich, calcareous bedrock, nurturing a unique aquatic ecosystem that is hard to find anywhere else in Western Massachusetts. The alkaline water can, under the right conditions, be crystal clear, but it is usually quite murky.

Away from the pond, the WMA consists of a northern hardwood forest dominated by red oaks and sugar maples. This unmaintained forest harbors sizeable populations of turkey, deer, bear, and stocked pheasants. This parking area provides access to the WMA's western and eastern forested areas. The western forest rests on the slopes of the East Mountain State Forest borders the Appalachian Trail corridor. Reaching the Appalachian Trail from the west, however, is difficult due to the need to ascend hundreds of feet up a steep ledge. Those looking to take on the adventure can get to the trail by trekking around the northern perimeter of the property before climbing through a re-entrant to reach a campsite trail that connects to the AT. The eastern section of the forest is flatter and better for hunting but borders numerous private residential properties, so hunters must be careful to remain on public land.