Location: Towns of Groton, Marshfield, and Peacham, Vermont, in Washington and Caledonia Counties
Website: Groton State Forest
Google map: See the parking section below for maps of specific parking areas for accessing trails. If you are camping, go here: Horse Campground
Trail map: click here.
Description: Groton State Forest is a 26,000 acre forest located in northern Vermont. It is heavily forested and features cliffs, bogs, swamps, and lakes. Several state parks are located within the forest. Recreation includes hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, camping, swimming, boating, fishing, hunting, trapping, cross country skiing, and snowshoeing.
There is a railroad bed that has been converted into a trail, which is part of the Cross-Vermont Trail, as well as portions of the VAST snowmobile trail in the forest.
Terrain: There terrain is varied including forest trails, old rail bed, dirt roads, and wooden bridges. The rail bed is very flat and straight with packed dirt footing – great for a long trot or canter. The forest trails are soft dirt and grassy in places, rocky in others, and can be muddy in spots in the wet times of year. The terrain is hilly with some steep sections. Note: the Peacham Bog Loop trail is quite rocky, steep in parts, and more challenging than other trails in the forest.
Trail map: You can access an interactive trail map on Alltrails by clicking here. Below is a map you can download or print. Important: horses are allowed on gravel roads within the forest and on multi-use trails, as shown on the map. Horses are not allowed on the un-highlighted trails on this map or on the Alltrails map.
Camping: There is a horse camping area at New Discovery State Park, which is within Groton State Forest. Each of the 8 sites (which can be reserved) has a very nice corral for 2 horses (thank you to the Vermont Horse Council for providing these!), a picnic table, and fire pit. There is water in the center of the horse area and a bathroom with showers (bring quarters for the pay showers). They provide wheelbarrows for manure which they remove daily. The corrals are lined with sand so bring a hay net for your horse to prevent sand colic. You can access the riding trails from the campsite.
Access: The trails can be accessed off Rt. 232 (AKA State Forest Rd.) between Rt. 2 in Marshfield, Vermont (northern end of Rt 232) and Rt. 302 in Groton (southern end). It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere (as we like it) so we suggest you click on one of the parking lots below and put the location into your GPS to find your way.
Parking: One of the great things about this area is the many parking areas that can accommodate trailers and allow you to access different trails. See the map above for locations. Our favorites are the Northern Lot and Kettle Pond.
New Discovery State Park: only park here if you are camping because otherwise you will have to pay a day-use fee, which is not necessary because there are so many other places to park. Also, there is not really a good place to park a trailer for the day.
Northern parking lot: This lot is about 60′ x 65′ and can fit several trailers. It provides good access to many trail options. This lot tends to be less crowded with cars on weekends than some of the other lots.
Kettle Pond: This lot is about 50′ x 75′ and can accommodate several trailers. The rail bed trail is across the road: ride a very short way south (turn right out of the parking lot) and then cross the paved road to access the trail. Because of the pond access, this lot can fill up with a lot of cars on weekends.
Overlook: This lot is about 35 x 100 ft, except as you can see from the satellite image, there is a tree in middle of it than can cramp your style. You can park a trailer here but will need to do some backing up. There usually are not a lot of cars here, but they can make parking more challenging. You can ride right from the back corner of the lot down a trail to the rail bed.
Ricker Pond: there is no sign at the entrance to this lot but it is 0.9 miles south of the entrance to Ricker Pond State Park. The lot is 30′ x 65′. You need some backing up skills because it is not a pull-through and is a small lot. If there are many cars, there might not be room for a trailer. At the north end of the parking lot you can access the rail bed trail.
Coldwater Brook Road: Park here to access the Peacham Bog Trail. From Rt. 232 take Boulder Beach Rd. past Stillwater State Park, Big Deer State Park, and the Groton Nature Center. Turn left onto Coldwater Brook Rd. (narrow gravel road) and go approximately 1.25 miles to a large gravel parking area. There is plenty of room to park and turn a trailer around.
Aerial photos courtesy of Google maps.
Restrictions and warnings:
- Mountain-bikers and hikers also enjoy the trail system.
- Hunting is allowed, so know when hunting seasons are (Click here) and either don’t go during hunting season or take appropriate precautions.
- Trail and road conditions can change at any time. The actual conditions you encounter may differ from the information presented here. Horseback riding is inherently dangerous and you must employ independent judgement and use the information herein at your own risk. By accessing this site, you acknowledge and accept these limitations and agree to hold harmless Horse Trail Chicks, Monica Raymond, and Kerrie Garvey, from any liability, damages, injury, or death that result from using this information.