Hio Hill Trail

The Dixon Preserve at Hio Hill is a relatively short loop. It has a killer view of Cape Cod Bay at the top of a gradual hill. Along the way, there is a jumble of elephantine boulders that school-age kids will love to climb. This newer nature preserve has trailhead signage, roadside parking, and benches for taking in the vista. There is a big pay-off to be had here for a little effort. The 88-acre property was purchased by the Town using Community Preservation Funds in 2018, and supposedly derives its name from a contraction of “Ohio.” Hio Hill is one of the tallest hills in town. The single entrance trail makes its way up undulating terrain. The first landmark is a clearing in the woods, anchored by a very large pitch pine tree. From here, a loop begins and ends. Head up toward the right or left. Coming back down, be careful to watch for the trail marker at the north end of the hill as ATV tracks cut into the preserve’s trail and lead off into private properties, confusing people walking the loop. The trees are the white and pitch pines, oaks, beeches, and hollies common to Plymouth forests, with a thick understory of shrubs. Seasonally, there is a great deal of bird song in the air. As you ascend the hill, you will pass through a boulder field of glacial erratics half-buried in the forest floor. These megaliths dropped down out of the melting glacier over 13,000 years ago. They are all rounded, suggesting that they tumbled along inside the ice shield for long distances from the bedrock off of which they cracked. Torrents of meltwater washed away smaller rocks, leaving only these enormous stone masses strewn about like a toddler’s blocks. The boulders are coated with various types of lichen, some smooth and sea green in color ( Medallion lichen) and some have big gray scales like alligator hide ( Toadskin lichen.) Near the top of the hill, the wide horizon of the ocean comes into view, from the power plant on the Cape Cod Canal in the south, all along the inner arm of the Cape to Provincetown, and finally deep out to Massachusetts Bay to the north. The view is not unobstructed; there are lots of trees. With the leaves out, the breadth of this vista is somewhat reduced. Still at any time of year, given clear weather, it is beautiful. Follow the trail down through more glacial erratics, back to the lone pine in the clearing, on to Old Sandwich Road.
Source: https://www.plymouth-ma.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif3691/f/uploads/2022plymouth_trail_guide.pdf