Pilgrim Springs - Small's Swamp Trails, Truro MA

     I was already in Truro so after finishing The Pamet Area I thought I might as well check out The trails at Pilgrim Heights, which is also part of The National Seashore. There are two short trails that were easy to find off Rte 6 going towards P-Town  thanks to the big sign on the highway. The road brings you right to the huge parking lot. Pilgrim Spring Trail and Small’s Swamp are right next to each other. They are to the right of an interpretive shelter that provides historical information of the area.

     Pilgrim Springs Trail is to the right and I went there first. The trail  heads into the woods on a wide dirt path. The trail gets narrow as it leads you up a hill with bushes on both sides. The top of the hill provides a picturesque view of East Harbor Creek, Pilgrim Lake, sand dunes, marsh and The Atlantic Ocean. The trail then gets smaller as it brings you down steps to a clearing with a stone marker that identifies the spot where it is believed The Pilgrims first found fresh water. To the left of the marker is a bike path, to the right the trail heads back into the woods and ends up at the restrooms on the other side of the parking lot where I parked.

    
 Small’s Swamp Trail brings you up and down hills, some with steps, around the remains of Thomas Smalls farm and the kettle swamp. After walking down a hill the trail splits, I went left and down a steep hill with built in steps The trail at times is bordered by wood and leads to a boardwalk before heading back uphill and some fabulous views. Different looks at The Ocean, swamp, sand dunes and lake can also be seen at numerous spots along the trail. Looping back into the woods the trail  brings you back to  where the trail had split and back up to the parking area;
     On the signs Pilgrims was listed as 0.3 miles and Small’s 0.7 but my pedometer had both at 1 mile. So my short easy walk, because my back was hurting and I was starting to come down with what ended up becoming bronchitis, turned into 7+ miles up and down steep hills. In other words a GREAT DAY !!!


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

Accessibility - 5 - Off Rte 6 - Pilgrim Heights sign
Parking -  5 - Huge parking area
Length-  4 -  Even both together are short but hills make up for length
Degree of Difficulty- 4 - hills but many parts have steps
Extras-  4 - Historical - not far from P-Town
Trail Markings-  3 - None but really not needed
Trail Maintenance- 5 - excellent
Variation - 3 - 2 loops - not much
Scenic  - 5 - Spectacular
Worth Returning - 4 - Yes to check out the different seasons
Surface -  pine needles, dirt, board walk, steps, sand
Map -   no
Beach -   no
Facilities - yes
What I liked -  The history and the views
What I didn’t - length

Rating 42 out of 50