Fox Island Marsh & Pilgrim Springs Woodlands Conservation Area.

     
       Day off, no plans, perfect weather. Wellfleet here I come. Since moving back from Florida I have fallen in love with Wellfleet, but had yet to hike one of it’s many trails. I decided on Fox Island Marsh and Pilgrim Springs Woodlands Conservation Area. There are two areas to park- both off Rte 6 - the Baker Road Trailhead is off Way 112 - The other trailhead is on Pilgrim Springs Rd. Coming fro Yarmouth both roads are on the left, with Way 112 first and Pilgrim springs next. The roads are a little less than 2 miles after the entrance to The Marconi Area at The National Seashore . Looking at the map I decided to start at Pilgrim Springs, which is 2/10 of a mile on the left. I picked this one because the trailhead is at one end, while The Baker trailhead looked like it was in the middle.
        Right at the beginning of the narrow trail that led into the thick woods and straight up a hill was an arrow marker on a tree. Always a good sign, I had the map with me and decided I would keep taking the trails to my left. That way I would eventually end up where I started. The trail widened in parts and had some benches along the way that overlooked the marsh thru the trees. All the way there were the arrow markers on the trees. There were a few dirt roads along the way that led to cottages, but the arrows made it easy to stay on the trail. The trail brought me to Whale Bone Point where I saw the beautiful views of Fox island Marsh and Blackfish Creek. It was low tide and I decided to walk along the shore. Since it was summer there was al kinds of small boats moored along the way. I kept walking until I saw what seemed like a private beach and turned back. I didn’t want to bother anyone. I did bother hundreds of the fiddler crabs on the way back and forth.
       I went back into the woods a little further down the marsh than where I had come out. The trail brought me to another dirt road and eventually the much larger parking lot of the Baker Road Trailhead. I followed the arrows back thru the woods and came to a spot where the arrows pointed left and right. My picking left worked and I was brought back down the hill I had first climbed and to my car.
     

     

Ratings 1- the cellar  2- shoddy  3- tolerable  4- worthy  5- wicked good

Accessibility - 5 - 2 choices both off Rte 6
Parking -  4 - Pilgrim Springs only room for 3 cars - Baker Road can fit 15 - 20
Length-  5 - about 3.5 round trip but can add more with marsh
Degree of Difficulty- 5 - only a couple of hills
Extras-  4 - Not far from beaches and National Seashore
Trail Markings- 4 - plenty but should have different colors for the different trails
Trail Maintenance-   5 - very good
Variation - 4 - Can mix and match but bring the map
Scenic  - 5- Awesome coming out of forest and seeing the marsh
Worth Returning - 5 - No doubt
Surface - Pine needles, sand
Beach -   No
Facilities - No
What I liked - Forest and Marsh - great diversity
What I didn’t -  The markers could have been better

Rating 46 out of 50