Alton's Way Trailwalk

About the Area

Alton McDonald (the namesake of the Alton's Way Trail) was a city boy who fell in love with, and married, a country girl (Helen Brosch) and also fell in love with Wilbraham, serving our town well as police sergeant, fire commissioner, etc. since moving to Wilbraham in the 1930s. He loved this land and took over farming it as his father-in-law (Anthony Brosch) aged. Alton lived on the tractor trails which ramble through the open land and through the woods between the McDonald barn and the Wilbraham Middle School. Alton farmed the current soccer fields and the other hay fields until his late 80s.

There wasn't an inch of those trails that Alton didn't know, use, and love. He would be so pleased to know that, not only was this property named the McDonald Nature Preserve, but that the main tractor trail is now known as Alton's Way. One of the nice aspects of the Alton's Way Trail is that it is a living lesson in ecological succession. The pond on the trail is changing to bog on its edges. Its fields are showing a change from pine to hardwood (aspen, birch, cherry, and a lot of alder because the area is wet). The trail really is a "lesson" trail. It displays the process of succession very nicely.

• Facilities:
  • South End -Parking on right side of middle school, no toilet facilities
  • North End -Parking at entrance to McDonald property, no toilet facilities
• Features:
  • wide open vistas of hay fields
  • impressive stand of pine trees
  • beautiful woodland walks
  • the McDonald barn
• Activities Permitted: All passive recreational activities are permitted. Please be careful not to leave litter and not to deface the property. Please park in designated areas and be respectful of neighborhoods in the area.
  • Hiking
  • Cross-country skiing / snowshoeing
  • Educational studies
  • Nature observation
• Trails: This list starts from Wilbraham Middle School. Overall, most of the footing is easy to traverse, but there is a small stream to cross and some matted grass areas. The elevation is mostly flat with a few small, rolling hills. As there are many trails along the way that meander off to the right into the Cedar Swamp area, it is important to follow the directions below as closely as possible. Use of a GPS to track the way points below is advisable.
  • First part is matted grass (prepare for possible ticks)
  • Next section is a well worn trail which meanders through hay fields and crosses under the Western Mass Electric Company power lines
  • Then skirts the wood line of the Cedar Swamp
  • Trail then turns north into the woods for a half mile (Note the stand of hardwood trees in this area.)
  • Trail exits the woods onto a perpendicular path just before a stand of pines; turn right onto path for a short distance (As you exit the woods, do not take the trail that continues straight across.)
  • Exit woods, turn right, take the next left
  • Final trail portion meanders through a breath-taking section of woods (In the winter, houses from the Marilyn Drive area can be seen off to the right in the distance.)
  • Continue to follow trail, bearing left
  • After 2/3 of a mile, keep lookout for barn to left (If your trail does not lead to a field with a barn, backtrack and take another trail until you're on the right one. At this point, the trails are short anyway, but a GPS would be helpful.
• Location:
  • South End - Wilbraham Middle School, Stony Hill Road, Wilbraham, Massachusetts
  • North End - McDonald Farm, Washington Road, Wilbraham, Massachusetts
• Elevation Factors: The trek starts at the 300 foot level and is mostly downhill with slight rises and declines until it bottoms out at 270 feet in the power line area. It then begins rising back up to 310 feet with a dip down to 290 feet and then the biggest rise up to 315 feet. From the two mile point to the end, the trail stays around 290 feet.
• Directions:
  • To South End - From Crane Park on Main Street in Wilbraham, take Springfield Street to Stony Hill Road. Take a right on Stony Hill Road and proceed one mile to Wilbraham Middle School on the right. Park in the soccer fields parking lot on the right side of the middle school.
  • To the North End - From Crane Park on Main Street in Wilbraham, proceed pass Wilbraham and Monson Academy down Main Street to Boston Road (Route 20). Take a left onto Boston Road. Spec Pond will soon be on your right. Take a left onto Grove Street (which is next to Jake’s Restaurant) and continue for one-fourth mile to Manchonis Road. Take a right onto Manchonis and then the first left onto a narrow dirt road called McDonald Way. Finally, take another left onto Washington Road. The McDonald Preserve is at the end of the road.
• Map: View the map (PDF).

Hiking Directions

Note: The Cedar Ridge parcel includes the path between way points 13 and 14. Access to the path here was granted in an easement by Mile Oaks to the Town.