Hilton O’Connor Trail at the Town Forest

The town owns this 47-acre forest, and has created two trails loops — one long (1.5 miles or so) and one shorter. The longer loop bring walkers through forest and out to a pretty saltwater estuary. The trails are well-maintained and blazed; I got a sense the land is lovingly cared for. There’s a spot to rest on a bench under an oak tree at the edge of a meadow.

There are more “impressive red oaks along the trail and delightful fern alleys, bubbling brooks, and a winding salt marsh along the eastern edge of the forest. In late summer, look for monarch caterpillars in the meadow,” writes the Coastal Rivers Conservation Trust.

The Hilton O’Connor Trail is dedicated in memory of Diane Hilton O’Connor (1941-2011, a long-time member of the Bremen Conservation Commission and an active town citizen. You can read about her at the kiosk. After a career at the USDA in Washington, D.C., she retired to her family home in Bremen and “led the Bremen Town Forest trail project, fulfilling her vision for making woodland access enjoyable for current and future generations.”

Directions: You can pick up the trailhead at the Bremen fire department, off Route 32, and also park there. Look for the signs saying, “This way to kiosk and trails.” The kiosk is set a few feet into the woods.