Crystal Lake & Heywood Branch is a 1.4-mile out-and-back near Gardner, MA. The route reaches Crystal Lake at the turnaround, 0.7 miles in. It is mostly level, with 29 ft of elevation gain. It scores 4/100 on the Ambleway Wildness scale: paved and peopled.
Elevation
0 mi1,086 – 1,125 ft1.4 mi
Getting there
Trailhead: Heywood Branch 42.59224, -71.99913
Nearest town Gardner, MA
Directions
AMBLEWAYwww.ambleway.com
Crystal Lake & Heywood Branch
1.4 mi · ▲ 29 ft · 29 min
Elevation 1,085–1,126 ft
Out & Back
Trailhead: Heywood Branch · 42.59224, -71.99913
Weather Aug 4: Overcast, high 77°F / low 59° · precip 0% · wind 6 mph · sunrise 5:44 AM · sunset 8:06 PM
Bikes allowed on the whole route · Parking lot at the trailhead
- Start on Heywood Branch, heading S.
- 0.4 miSharp left, heading NE.
- 0.3 miReach Crystal Lake, then turn around and head back the way you came.
- 0.7 miArrive back at the trailhead.
Each distance is the walk from the previous step. Tap a step for a map of its junction.
Trail surface
56% dirt44% paved
Weather
OvercastTemperature 77°F59°
Precip0%Wind6 mphUV7Humidity82%
Rained 1.9″ yesterday (4.9″ over the last week) · trails may be muddy
Hourly temperature
80°55°
Sunrise 5:44 AM12 AM3 AM9 AM12 PM3 PM6 PMSunset 8:06 PM
Wed
78°60°
Thu
86°67°
51%
Fri
90°68°
35%
Sat
89°67°
36%
Sun
90°65°
Mon
87°69°
17%
Sunset
The best sunset spot on this hike is 0.7 mi in (~18 min). Leave by 7:28 PM for the 8:06 PM sunset. Back at your car by 8:38 PM — 0 min before dark.
Good to know
- Bikes allowed on the whole route
- Parking lot at the trailhead
Other ways to reach this destination
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