A. Harlan Calef Isinglass Preserve: Public Trails
PROTECTION: Conservation Easement
Trail length: about 1 mile
Difficulty: Easy to moderate
Location: Town Farm Road off Rt 202 across from Ayers Lake
Activities: Hiking, snowshoeing, XC skiing, fishing. Mountain biking, horseback riding on designated trails (see map)
Parking: On unnamed road 0.4 miles down Town Farm Rd. Do not park on the roads, as this is access to private homes.
Acreage: 300
This property, owned by the Calef family for nearly a century, was acquired in 2014 and named after Harlan Calef (1910-2005), who loved this property and resisted its development. The “Town Farm” used to be on the property in the 1840s and 50s to house indigents, housing homeless people who worked the farm for room and board.
An expanding set of trails are on the property, giving access to the Isinglass River, old cellar holes, stone walls, shagbark hickory trees, an old bridge abutment, an old cemetery and Barrington’s Stonehenge.
A 29-acre portion of the property on the east side of the river can be accessed near 447 Scruton Pond Road (sorry, no parking lot) with about 2.5 miles of easy trails
