Swamp Walk, Wenham & Danvers MA
• 4-star hike
• 1 mile trail
• Easy difficulty | No elevation gain
• Wenham & Danvers, MA | Northeast Region
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Sturdy boardwalk provides a great vantage point for a nature walk.
Situated on the boundary of Danvers and Wenham, the Swamp Walk may be short but there's plenty to explore in the waters and reeds on this nature trail if you take your time. Not only will you find beavers and their nests, but also weasels (fisher cats), river otters, snakes, frogs and snapping turtles. The area is also a popular birding sanctuary visited by a varied range of feathered critters.
Much of the swampland is accessible by crossing over it on sturdy wooden walkways, affording great views into the swamp below. The boardwalk sections snake seemingly haphazardly across the swamp, spanning between tree-covered islands of solid ground.
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4★ Swamp Walk
AllTrails · GPX File · Directions |
Though the swamp walk itself is only a third of a mile in length, it's accessible only from the Danvers Rail Trail. Walking from the closest trailhead and parking lot totals 1.1 miles in length and it's the route we've highlighted on our map. For folk cycling the rail trail, a bike rack is provided at the North entrance of the Swamp Walk. We found no specific instruction that bikes aren't welcome on the trail, but they certainly aren't needed and on busy days we imagine they'd be an unwelcome obstacle on the boardwalks.
Rarely a straight line, but still accessible to most.
The Danvers-Wenham Swamp Walk is located on the East Coast Greenway.
Tangents:
• Danvers Rail Trail: Swamp Walk
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