Emery Preserve West - Plymouth, MA

Location:

Ship Pond Road, West of Rt. 3

Area:

113.46 acres

Gifts of:

86.9 acres - Mary B. Emery, Arthur H. Emery, Edward S. Emery III, Richard B. Emery, and Mary Charlotte (Emery) Russell, 1973;
3.6 acres – H. Shippen and Lydia Goodhue, 1986; 21.27 acres, 1998;
1.69 acres, 1999 - Edward S. Emery III, and Mary Charlotte (Emery) Russell;

Directions:

Rt. 3 to Exit 3.West on Clark Road to stop sign. Left onto Long Pond Road. Continue about two miles to sharp left turn onto Ship Pond Road (dirt road). Travel for 1/4 mile to trailhead on left.

Parking:

Along edge of Ship Pond Road.

Consisting of two parts, this preserve is located on a glacial upland, just east of Long Pond. The preserve includes several forest types and a small stretch of shoreline on a kettle pond.

West of Route 3, the preserve consists of several parcels that extend along both sides of Ship Pond Road, from Long Pond Road nearly to the highway. This land is characterized by rolling topography and dry kettle holes. In the northern section, the trail passes vegetation that still shows the effects of a 1946 fire; pitch pine and scrub oak dominate. Along the road there are more mature oak-pine woods, and to the south the land falls away into a fine grove of white pines in various stages of development. Forest floor plants range from delicate pink lady’s-slippers, starflowers, and pyrolas to the grotesque cauliflower fungus. Occasionally, a great horned owl is found in the tall white pines, while black-capped chickadees, prairie warblers, rufous-sided towhees, common yellowthroats, hermit thrushes, ovenbirds, and other species frequent the northern section.

The southern part of the preserve may once have been the site of clay pits and a brick-making operation.

Read about one visitor's walk at Emery Preserve