Overview
Located directly adjacent to the Cape Cod Rail Trail on Route 6A in Brewster, Nickerson State Park features just over 20 miles of flowy, fast rolling singletrack. Offering easy access to picnic areas and facilities, this system offers an enjoyable cross-country mountain biking experience. It winds through pine forests around kettle ponds and bogs, offering scenic views of a unique sprawling Lower Cape natural landscape.
Photos
Area Details
Good cross-country singletrack is scattered throughout Nickerson State Park. Please note that the shoreline trails surrounding Cliff, Little Cliff and Flax Ponds are designated for hiking only. For avid photographers, scenic water views around Ruth and Higgins Ponds are especially striking.
The prominent feature here is a noticeable absence of trail obstacles like rock gardens and rooty sections. Most terrain mainly consists of loam covered with pine needles and some sandy elevation with typical Cape Cod erosion ruts. Notwithstanding this lack of significant technical riding, Nickerson’s MTB routes are still fun and twisty.
Note: you’ll have to piece together a ride by connecting all the trail sections located at different spots within the park. Please also be aware that there is no real signage to guide you, so be sure to bring a NEMBA trail map for reference.
Additonally, there are some unmarked trails just south of Nickerson which connect with a network off both sides of Freeman’s Way. These can easily extend your saddle time by at least another few hours and nine more miles of singletrack.
Parking & Directions
Parking is technically located inside the park’s main entrance. After turning on the access road, look for your first immediate right. Featuring picnic tables and facilities, this area holds 30 – 40 cars and is an ideal access point for the Nickerson MTB trails which are accessible from a connector path at the very back of the lot. Follow that until it intersects with the first cross trail and turn left, then follow this path all the way in across the power lines to enter the singletrack.