Thomas & Palmer Brook

State Road/Route 23, Great Barrington, MA

About Thomas & Palmer Brook

The Thomas & Palmer Brook Reserve, located on Route 23, offers visitors multiple ways to explore the outdoors. The most popular feature of the reserve is a flat, half-mile loop along the accessible Meadow Loop that provides views of Monument Mountain to the north and smaller hills of Western Massachusetts in other directions. This walking trail runs over the Thomas & Palmer Brook and encircles a wetland that nurtures local wildlife and bird species. Birding and wildlife viewing are popular activities here, and doing so is made easy by the several benches and open viewing areas found throughout the site. The site is surrounded by large sugar maple trees, providing excellent foliage in the fall.

The reserve also offers a moderate hiking experience through the forest on the Woodland Trail. This trail can be accessed from the east side of the Meadow Loop, and gradually increases in slope before reaching the Whale Rock trail, which offers a quarter-mile ascent to exposed bedrock atop the Threemile Hill ridge. The trip to Whale Rock is one mile long from the parking lot with roughly 450 feet of elevation gain. Hikers are asked to remain on the trail due to the sensitivity of the surrounding ecosystem.