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Trail Conditions
- Unknown
- Snow Groomed
- Snow Packed
- Snow Covered
- Snow Cover Inadequate
- Freeze/thaw Cycle
- Icy
- Prevalent Mud
- Wet
- Variable
- Ideal
- Dry
- Very Dry
Trail Flow (Ridden Direction)
Trailforks scans users ridelogs to determine the most popular direction each trail is ridden. A good flowing trail network will have most trails flowing in a single direction according to their intension.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of riders are riding a trail in its intended direction.
The colour categories are based on what percentage of riders are riding a trail in its intended direction.
- > 96%
- > 90%
- > 80%
- > 70%
- > 50%
- < 50%
- bi-directional trail
- no data
Trail Last Ridden
Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine the last time a trail was ridden.
- < 2 days
- < 1 week
- < 2 weeks
- < 1 month
- < 6 months
- > 6 months
Trail Ridden Direction
The intended direction a trail should be ridden.
- Downhill Only
- Downhill Primary
- Both Directions
- Uphill Primary
- Uphill Only
- One Direction
Contribute Details
Colors indicate trail is missing specified detail.
- Description
- Photos
- Description & Photos
- Videos
Trail Popularity ?
Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine which trails are ridden the most in the last 9 months.
Trails are compared with nearby trails in the same city region with a possible 25 colour shades.
Think of this as a heatmap, more rides = more kinetic energy = warmer colors.
- most popular
- popular
- less popular
- not popular
ATV/ORV/OHV Filter
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Activity Recordings
Trailforks users anonymized public ridelogs from the past 6 months.
- mountain biking recent
- mountain biking (>6 month)
- hiking (1 year)
- moto (1 year)
Activity Recordings
Trailforks users anonymized public skilogs from the past 12 months.
- Downhill Ski
- Backcountry Ski
- Nordic Ski
Jump Magnitude Heatmap
Heatmap of where riders jump on trails. Zoom in to see individual jumps, click circles to view jump details.
Trails Deemphasized
Trails are shown in grey.
Only show trails with NO bikes.
While Billerica State Forest is a relatively small 370 acres DCR property divided by roads into three parcels, it has fast become a local gem for mountain biking, trail running and hiking.
Since there are currently no designated parking lots, most riders access BSF from Russell Mill Town Forest in Chelmsford. However, there is limited parking on the side of Rangeway Road, next to Rte 3.
The Gilson Hill side of BSF contains the majority of the high quality and exceptionally fun singletrack trails.
Riders usually begin by ascending Yellow Rabbit and then navigating around the Gilson Hill Loop. The top of Gilson Hill is the second highest point in the Town of Billerica. After finishing the Gilson Hill Loop, one can ride the Northern Loop either clockwise or counter-clockwise, however riding the loop clockwise maximizes the downhill/enduro features of the trail. There is also a very fun lollipop trail called The Inner Loop off of the Northern Loop.
On the northern side of Rangeway Road is a small but fun <3-mile loop, and if one wishes to put in an extra mile, you can cross Chelmsford Road and do a short loop around the Manning State Forest. However, be aware that this section is intensively used by walkers and people using the exercise stations along the path.
The attached GPX file is a 18-mile ride that includes most of Russell Mill and the Billerica State Forest trails. For a shorter ride, you can beeline it to Billerica.
Merrimack Valley NEMBA is responsible for most all of the best trails in both Russell Mill and the Billerica State Forest, so be sure to support them by joining their chapter.
Here is a link to the NEMBA map: https://www.nemba.org/sites/default/files/Billerica%20State%20Forest%20OSM%20Map.JPG
Since there are currently no designated parking lots, most riders access BSF from Russell Mill Town Forest in Chelmsford. However, there is limited parking on the side of Rangeway Road, next to Rte 3.
The Gilson Hill side of BSF contains the majority of the high quality and exceptionally fun singletrack trails.
Riders usually begin by ascending Yellow Rabbit and then navigating around the Gilson Hill Loop. The top of Gilson Hill is the second highest point in the Town of Billerica. After finishing the Gilson Hill Loop, one can ride the Northern Loop either clockwise or counter-clockwise, however riding the loop clockwise maximizes the downhill/enduro features of the trail. There is also a very fun lollipop trail called The Inner Loop off of the Northern Loop.
On the northern side of Rangeway Road is a small but fun <3-mile loop, and if one wishes to put in an extra mile, you can cross Chelmsford Road and do a short loop around the Manning State Forest. However, be aware that this section is intensively used by walkers and people using the exercise stations along the path.
The attached GPX file is a 18-mile ride that includes most of Russell Mill and the Billerica State Forest trails. For a shorter ride, you can beeline it to Billerica.
Merrimack Valley NEMBA is responsible for most all of the best trails in both Russell Mill and the Billerica State Forest, so be sure to support them by joining their chapter.
Here is a link to the NEMBA map: https://www.nemba.org/sites/default/files/Billerica%20State%20Forest%20OSM%20Map.JPG
source: Merrimack Valley Nemba
Primary Trail Type: Cross-Country
Land Status: State Forest
Land Manager: DCR

Access Info:
Since there are currently no designated parking lots, most riders access BSF from Russell Mill Town Forest in Chelmsford. However, there is limited parking on the side of Rangeway Road, next to Rte 3.
Region Supporters & Maintainers
trail builderSponsor
Activities Click to view
- Mountain Bike
49 trails
- Hike
49 trails
- Trail Running
49 trails
Region Details
- 15
- 16
- 17
- 1
Region Status
Caution as of Oct 31, 2021Stats
- Avg Trail Rating
- Trails (view details)
- 49
- Trails Mountain Bike
- 49
- Trails Hike
- 49
- Trails Trail Running
- 49
- Trails Snowshoe
- 47
- Total Distance
- 14 miles
- Total Descent Distance
- 5 miles
- Total Descent
- 947 ft
- Total Vertical
- 196 ft
- Highest Trailhead
- 313 ft
- Reports
- 248
- Photos
- 23
- Ridden Counter
- 13,991
Popular Billerica State Forest Mountain Biking Trails
Photos of Billerica State Forest Mountain Bike
trail: Forest Ridge
55 |
May 14, 2021 @ 1:20pm
May 14, 2021
trail: Route 3 Overlook
46 |
Apr 10, 2021 @ 7:46pm
Apr 10, 2021
trail: Flow Rock Flow
95 |
Apr 10, 2021 @ 7:45pm
Apr 10, 2021
trail: Inside Loop Connector
90 |
Jan 29, 2021 @ 5:11pm
Jan 29, 2021
trail: Gilson Hill Loop
49 |
Jan 7, 2021 @ 1:42pm
Jan 7, 2021
trail: Northern Loop
61 |
Jan 7, 2021 @ 1:42pm
Jan 7, 2021
trail: Inside Loop
53 |
Nov 11, 2020 @ 4:51am
Nov 11, 2020
trail: Northern Loop
79 |
Nov 10, 2020 @ 6:53pm
Nov 10, 2020Videos of Billerica State Forest Mountain Bike
youtuber

trail: Inside Loop
14:32 |
127 |
Feb 10, 2021 , Chelmsford
youtuber

trail: Gilson Hill Loop
14:32 |
146 |
Feb 10, 2021 , Chelmsford
youtuber

trail: Northern Loop
14:32 |
136 |
Feb 10, 2021 , Chelmsford

trail: Inside Loop
8:39 |
329 |
Jun 27, 2020 , Chelmsford
Recent Trail Reports
status | trail | date | condition | info | user |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Yellow Rabbit | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
Gilson Hill Loop | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
One Rock Lollipop Loop | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Dry | Shodan54 | ||
Northern Loop | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
Inside Loop | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
BSF Extra Credit | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
Rangeway Trails | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
Sidewinder | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
Forest Ridge | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 | ||
Flow Rock Flow | Apr 3, 2022 @ 9:13am Apr 3, 2022 | Ideal | Shodan54 |
Activity Feed
username | action | type | title | date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | bcborder | add | report | Rangeway Doubletrack | Apr 4, 2022 @ 11:11am Apr 4, 2022 |
![]() | Shodan54 | add | report | Yellow Rabbit and 10 more | Apr 4, 2022 @ 5:20am Apr 4, 2022 |
![]() | gerryeaton | ridden | trail | Yellow Rabbit | Mar 30, 2022 @ 10:33am Mar 30, 2022 |
![]() | Bronsonpeet | comment | trail | Fire Road/Northern Loop Connector | Mar 27, 2022 @ 5:58pm Mar 27, 2022 |
![]() | Bronsonpeet | ridden | trail | Inside Loop | Mar 27, 2022 @ 3:56pm Mar 27, 2022 |
Recent Comments
username | type | title | comment | date | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | trail | I don’t think this trail exists anymore | Mar 27, 2022 @ 5:58pm Mar 27, 2022 | ||
![]() | trail | Pretty easy trail, the features not so much.... | Sep 5, 2021 @ 6:43pm Sep 5, 2021 | ||
![]() | report | Thank you for the report. | Dec 3, 2020 @ 8:27am Dec 3, 2020 | ||
![]() | trail | There has been some really nice work added to... | Nov 10, 2020 @ 2:54pm Nov 10, 2020 | ||
![]() | trail | fun in both directions as there are features... | Oct 5, 2020 @ 8:13am Oct 5, 2020 |
Nearby Areas
name | distance | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Russell Mill Pond & Town Forest | 9 | 9 | 1 | 1.2 km | |
Vietnam Veterans Park | 4 | 1 | 1.4 km | ||
Great Brook Farm State Park | 31 | 17 | 3 km | ||
Land off Whipple Road | 4 | 1 | 3.7 km | ||
Livingston Street/Pinnacle Street Trails | 7 | 5.4 km |
Local Badges
-
Completionist0 awarded
Bike & Skill Parks
name | type | city | rating |
---|---|---|---|
Billerica BMX | skill park | Billerica |
Activity Type Stats
activitytype | trails | distance | descent | descent distance | total vertical | rating | global rank | state rank | photos | reports | routes | ridelogs |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mountain Bike | 49 | 14 miles | 948 ft | 5 miles | 197 ft | #397 | #200 | 20 | 248 | 2,652 | ||
Hike | 49 | 14 miles | 948 ft | 5 miles | 197 ft | #268 | #155 | 3 | 248 | 12 | ||
Trail Running | 49 | 14 miles | 948 ft | 5 miles | 197 ft | #269 | #154 | 248 | 6 | |||
Snowshoe | 47 | 14 miles | 948 ft | 5 miles | 197 ft | 20 | 1 |
- By markholloway
Trailforks & contributors
- Admins: MV NEMBA
- #26133 - 4,657 views
- billerica state forest activity log | embed map of Billerica State Forest mountain bike trails | billerica state forest mountain biking points of interest
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