Thorncrag Sanctuary

The Stanton Bird Club protects this 450-acre sanctuary in the city. The preserve includes two beautiful meadows, several bulky stone monuments and memorials, conifer and deciduous forests, forest streams, old farmstead remains, and a large boulder called Whale Rock. To protect wildlife, dogs and mountain biking aren’t allowed.

The most striking of the stone monuments is a large stone hearth set in a clearing surrounded by stone benches (the Anthony Fireplace, named for the family that donated the first parcels of land to the Stanton Bird Club in the 1920s). It’s about a half-mile from the Montello Street trailhead, requiring a gentle walk uphill most of the way. This hearth and a couple other stone monuments, including a large trailside stone bench you pass on your way to the fireplace, were constructed in the early 1930s as part of the development of the sanctuary. On clear days, you can see Mt. Washington from another landmark called Landry Bench (which is marked on the official map).

The club says the land was, at different times before becoming a sanctuary, a sheep and dairy farm, a tuberculosis sanatorium, a water bottling facility, and the homestead of a reclusive Baptist preacher, the elder Benjamin Thorne (1779–1864). (Bates offers some background.)

Walkers, runners, and x-c skiers can enjoy the ~6.5 miles of trails, much of it through beautiful mature forest. There is a fairly good climb here — the sanctuary encompasses the highest point in the city: 516 feet, 2 inches! (There’s a monument with a sundial marking the spot, with the exact measurement.) The perimeter loop, on the green trail, is roughly 2.7 miles.

Additionally, you can head down the far side of the pinnacle toward what the sanctuary calls “Whale Rock.” This is a large boulder (not an erratic) that lies in the power line corridor. From here, you can follow a blazed trail to Centennial Field and a 1-mile loop through a forest. The meadow trails might be a big spongy, but from a bench on the edge of the field, you get a nice view of Thorne’s Hill.

The trails at the two trailheads, on Montello Street and at the end of East Avenue, start off wide, smooth, and easy. They get a bit more uneven the farther you go into the woods.

Directions: The large main parking lot is off Montello Street, 100 feet or so from the intersection with Highland Spring road. Additional parking is possible at the gate at the end of East Avenue.