Location: Weir Hill, North Andover, MADate: January 8, 2017
Distance: .87 miles roundtrip
Elevation Gain: 92 feet
Our Hiking Time: 1 hours, 7 minutes roundtrip
Trail Blaze: Yellow Circles (Edgewood Farm Trail)
Difficulty: Easy
Trail Map
It’s hard to believe we were hiking in shorts and t-shirts just over a week ago, and today we romped with our snowshoes in six inches of snow. We watched the snow fall all day yesterday, hoping for that perfect mix of enough snowfall paired with a sunny post-storm morning. As soon as the kids woke up, they asked when we could go snowshoeing on Weir Hill. So after breakfast, we layered everyone up, invited our neighbor Meg to join us, and set off for our adventure.
Because it’s harder to hike in the snow, especially for little legs, we stuck to the Edgewood Farm Trail, which has almost no elevation change. Knowing the twins still might get tuckered out, even with a flat trail, we brought along a sled and a Ergobaby carrier. It took all of two minutes for Evan to declare he was too tired to move, and plop his body in the sled. The girls trekked along while I pulled Evan.
About 15 minutes into our hike, Kate decided she’d had enough. We ditched the sled, and Kendra and I each carried a twin on our backs while Addison and Meg led the way.
Once we hit the wooden bridge, the twins wanted to walk again. Because what kid can resist running across a bridge just their size? On the other side, Addison began hiding behind trees and called for us to find her, and Kate plopped down to make snow angels.
At this point, the cold was starting to seep in, so we decided to head back. After crossing the bridge again, Evan wanted back in his carrier. Just after I got him on Kendra’s back, Kate decided to belly flop into the snow. Face covered, and cold, she got a tad hysterical. After wiping her cheeks and nose, and giving her some snuggles, she finally cried out, “I just wanted to make a belly snow angel!” I could barely keep from laughing as I explained to her that it’s really hard to do that without ending up with a faceful of snow.
As we headed down the last bit of trail, Addie retrieved the sled and somehow convinced Meg to pull her the rest of the way back. It was a great start to the day, and we capped off our adventure with a stop for second breakfast at the Good Day Cafe! Here’s hoping to a snowy winter and lots more romps on our Tubbs.
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Know Before You Go!
- Weir Hill is open for day use only (sunrise to sunset).
- Admission is free.
- Dogs are allowed on the trails, however, swimming for people and dogs is not allowed in Lake Cochichewick and Stevens Pond.
Directions to the trailhead:
From I-93: Exit 41, take Rt. 125 North 7.3 mi. Merge left onto Rt. 114 West and then right back onto Rt. 125. Follow for 0.2 mi. and turn right onto Andover St. Continue for 0.6 mi., bear right at fork, and continue 0.2 mi. to intersection. Proceed straight for 0.1 mi., turn left onto Stevens St., and continue for 0.8 mi. to entrance and roadside parking on right.
From I-495: Exit 42, take Rt. 114 East 1 mi. Turn left onto Rt. 133 East and follow for 0.2 mi. to traffic light. Proceed straight onto Andover St. Continue as above.
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