Cape Cod Trails Conference Home Page
Long Walks on Cape Cod
Copyright 1998 Cape Cod Trails Conference
Falmouth Long Pond
USGS Maps: Pocasset, Falmouth, Woods Hole
Trailheads: 1. Park
in the lot for Falmouth Animal Hospital
on the north side of Route 151, one-quarter
mile east of Route 28 in Falmouth.
2. Park on the north side of Thomas B. Landers Road,
just east of Route 28, in Falmouth.
3. Park on the south side of Brick Kiln Road,
east of Route 28, in Falmouth.
4. Parking lot for the trail on Goodwill Park
Road, midway between Route 28 and Gifford
Street in Falmouth.
As a shuttle from north to south, the trail affords a hike of about
eight miles. That assumes walking one side of Long Pond or
the other.
We will describe the hike in a series of three loops, including
a
circle of Long Pond. You can then decide how and where you wish
to
walk by combining guides.
Guide to Part 1, south from Route 151 to Thomas Landers Road,
and return. Round trip: 5.8 miles.
From Trailhead 1, walk carefully across Route 151, then 0.2 mile
west on the shoulder to a point opposite the sign for Route 28
North. A blinking yellow light is in front of you.
The trail going
south is obscure, at first. You will see a narrow foot path,
with
a Town of Falmouth conservation marker on it.
On this leg, the trail is an eroded dirt bike trail, paralleling
Route 28. Walk south, crossing the railroad tracks in 0.5
mile.
At 0.8 mile, the fairways for the Ballymeade Country Club are on
your left. At 0.9 mile, bear left at the fork.
At 1.0 mile, near a golf course green, is a lookout to Buzzards
Bay. Watch for a jog to the left and then right at 1.6 miles,
as you go through the scrub pine. At the fork at 2.3 miles,
follow the trail to the right, heading dead south.
When you come to a woods road at 2.5 miles, bear right to walk
southwest. Exit to Thomas B. Landers Road at 2.9 miles, passing
by the Raymond household. Turn around and note carefully
where
you came out. It is obscure and unmarked.
The trail, or rather woods road, is accessible from the south by
walking carefully east on Landers Road from the ramps to Route
28.
At the first dirt road to your left, walk north for about 40 yards,
circle around a bush, and follow the woods road in front of you
to
the north.
There are no signs or markers indicating the trail. It looks
as
though you are trespassing on the Raymonds' property, immediately
to the east. But the trail is on barrier land for Route 28.
We
encountered no dogs, passing by the house.
Guide to Part 2, south from Thomas B.Landers Road to Brick Kiln
Road and return. Round trip: 5.2 miles.
From Trailhead 2, walk east along the south side of Landers Road
0.2 mile to Research Road, entering Falmouth Technology Park.
Walk
south along Research Road for 0.2 mile to a pronounced bend in
the
road to the east.
At this point, you should see an overgrown woods road directly in
front of you, continuing south. Pass a sturdy rock vehicle
barrier
at 0.6 mile. Detour the pond in the road by passing around
to your
left to another road heading southwest.
At 1.0 mile, walk south on a woods road, up the hill to a clearing
on your right overlooking Buzzards Bay. From the lookout,
circle
back to road heading south; walk around the perimeter fence of
the
wastewater treatment facility, then catch a shortcut through the
woods to the paved access road. Walk out to Blacksmith Shop
Road
on it, at 1.7 miles from Trailhead 2.
Walk south on the service road just beyond the guard rail, where
a faint trail heads east. A Falmouth Conservation marker
is on
a tree near the trail. Then, if you are adventurous, you
can find
your way east and south, then west and south on a series of trail
through a pretty little woods.
Eventually, you should emerge on the service road, just north of
Brick Kiln Road. Or you can just walk south down the service
road,
paralleling Route 28 for 0.7 mile, to Brick Kiln Road. The
distance
from Trailhead 2 will thus vary from 2.4 to 2.6 miles.
At the end of Service Road, walk east on Brick Kiln Road briefly
to the woods road leading south. It has a large Town of Falmouth
conservation sign on a tree. Trailhead 3, if you care to
use it
is about fifty yards to the east. It has room for four cars.
Guide to Part 3, north from Goodwill Park around Long Pond to Brick
Kiln Road and return. Round trip: 5.7 miles.
Hiking from the south, park at trailhead 4. Goodwill Park
is about
one mile north of Main Street in Falmouth off Palmer Avenue to
the
west, and Gifford Street to the east. Down Route 28 from
the north,
Palmer Avenue, look for the entrance to Goodwill Park on your left,
about one mile south of the narrowing of Route 28 to two lanes.
There is no road sign at the entrance. Look for two stone
stan-
chions on a narrow road (one way) with a plaque on one. Drive
in
0.2 mile to the large parking lot facing Grews Pond to the north.
A large picnic shelter is to your right, near the pond.
Walk east briefly to the beginning of the trail behind a large
orange vehicle gate. Walk north on the trail 0.3 mile to
a dirt
road, then walk west briefly to the continuation of the trail
around Long Pond.
Where the trail splits, continue due north. Long Pond comes
into
view to your left. Ignore the side trails to the pond.
You are
on a wide, well-worn track around the pond. At exactly one
mile,
another woods road comes in from the right.
At 1.3 miles, bear left to follow the main track around the north
shore of the pond. At 1.7 miles, where the track is very
close to
the pond, look for a foot path going north. This is the trail
going north to Brick Kiln Road.
If you are hiking from the north, follow the trail from Brick Kiln
Road as it meanders south, southeast, then east. At a low
point,
it becomes a narrow foot path, overgrown with briars. At
0.4 mile
from Trailhead 2, walk east at the fork.
This is a well-worn trail. At the next fork in another 0.1
mile,
bear right and walk south, then southwest. Intersect the
main
track around Long Pond at 0.6 mile from Brick Kiln Road.
Then
follow the directions below.
If you are circling the pond, continue west for another 0.1 mile
to where the main track makes a pronounced turn to the south.
If
you continued west, you would reach the double lanes on Route 28
in another 0.2 mile.
Walking south, we zeroed the pedometer to measure the distance
from the northwest corner of Long Pond. Proceeding on the
main
track on the west side of Long Pond, ignore trails to the pond.
The main track meanders southeast, east, then south.
At 0.9 mile from the northwest corner, the main track turns
sharply to the east, then meanders southwest and southeast to
parallel the west shore of Long Pond. At 1.5 miles, you come
out
to the causeway between Long Pond and Grews Pond, and walk by the
Falmouth Department of Natural Resources buildings.
Walk across the causeway for another 0.2 mile to the trail you
took at the beginning. It is just beyond the visible east
shore
of Long Pond. Walk south the 0.3 mile to return to trailhead
4.