Home of a Story Walk – That We Didn’t Go On
Exploring Burns Farm was a misadventure that turned into an adventure. We headed over to Milford to check out the Beaver Brook Association’s story walk at Burns Farm. We parked at the trailhead, opened All Trails and headed up the hill to the trail that is shaped like a loop. Spoiler alert: “Burns Farm Loop” is the actual name of the trail across the street. We were just on a loop trail at Burns Farm. But come along with us and learn about this great trail we took by accident!
Hiking Burns Farm
First things first, you will definitely want All Trails in your pocket. There are a bunch of intersections and other trails to take. This is a more rugged trail with lots of roots, small path sections and bridges but I would still put it in the easy category. It is not stroller friendly and you’ll probably need to give a toddler a lift. The pace on our hike was set by a four year old who had no trouble. We were in the forest for about an hour and a half taking our time to check out the water and mud.
On the trail I thought of two specific purposes this trail would be a great resource for:
- If you want to try out a slightly more challenging trail with your kids to help them work on their skills before tackling a more serious hike.
- If you used to be a hiker before being a parent and you want to get back to building those skills again.
This trail gives a little taste of everything with inclines, declines and I think you’ll agree the different bridges make it feel more adventurous!
This area and the trails also connect with Milford’s Hitchiner Town Forest. The trailhead for Hitchiner’s trails is a few minutes down the road and you could easily access the BBA’s trails from there as well.
Brook Trail & Hazel’s Trail Loop
From the trailhead, the path heads right uphill towards a meadow and then into the forest. We guessed and went left at the start of the loop – we were still looking for the elusive story walk at this point – and this meant we went up a bit, mostly downhill by the river and then a big uphill at the end. If you want to challenge yourself, it might be harder to go the other way and do the whole Brook Trail uphill. Brook Trail is less manicured than the Hazel’s Trail side of the loop.
I took these pictures of the trail in March when mud season was in full swing. There were patches of wet but I’ll call it a fun amount of mud, as long as you are wearing proper boots.
Leave No Trace
Fun Fact I learned from Leave No Trace: When you encounter mud or water on a trail it is better for the trail for you to forge right through. If you were to walk around, and everyone else behind you walked around, it would cause a gradual widening of the trail and damage trail-side vegetation.
The Bridges
Who doesn’t love a bridge on a trail? Well this one had bridges around every corner! Each a little different, these structures might just nudge a tentative explorer out of their comfort zone and build some confidence along the way.
Burns Farm: Quick Facts
| Unpaved lot at trailhead |
| Head uphill from the trailhead for this 1.4 mile loop trail |
| Head downhill from the trailhead and across the street for the story walk trail |
| Not stroller friendly |
| No bathroom |
| Beaver Brook Association’s Trail Map |
| Address: Burns Rd Trailhead, Milford, NH |
Learn more about Beaver Brook’s Hollis location with its nature play area, story walk and stroller friendly trails.
