Northfield Mountain Recreation and Environmental Center
Northfield Mountain is a pumped storage facility owned and operated by FirstLight. Northfield offers a wide variety of recreational opportunities as well as an extensive array of environmental and recreation programs. We are a four-season recreation facility situated along a beautiful sweep of mountainside, with satellite facilities conveniently located along a 7-mile stretch of the Connecticut River.
99 Millers Falls Road, Northfield, MA 01360 Get directions
Upcoming Events
A Walk in the Woods: Yoga and Hiking at Barton Cove
Saturday, May 17, 12:00 – 3:00 p.m. Pre-registration is required at www.bookeo.com/northfield
Let’s reconnect to ourselves and our forest neighbors with an afternoon of yoga and hiking along Barton Cove. We’ll shift our focus between our inner and outer landscapes to deepen our presence and attune to nature as it manifests in our own bodies and the world around us.
The hiking will be mostly silent and gently paced(~3 miles w/a few short, steep sections), alternating with a gentle yoga practice that integrates mindful movement, conscious breathing, and meditation. Beginners welcome. Ages 13+. Bring water, dress in layers, and feel free to use hiking poles, or let us know if you need to borrow some.
Libby Volckening, E-RYT 500, YACEP, teaches a breath-centered style of Hatha yoga that focuses on developing healthier movement patterns and reintegrating body, mind, and spirit. She draws inspiration for her yoga teaching and practice from many sources, including Patty Townsend, Gary Kraftsow, Tom Myers, and Bonnie Bainbridge-Cohen. For more information, visit her website www.yogalibre.net
Birds of Spring
Saturday, May 24, 8:00 – 11:00 am. No reservation is required.
Every spring a massive seasonal movement of birds occurs as winter flocks of seed-eating birds depart for the northern nesting ranges and are replaced by millions of other birds arriving from their winter ranges in Central and South America. This movement peaks during May, providing us with a chance to observe them in their often colorful plumage.
Meet at the Northfield Recreation and Environment Center from where we will travel to the First Light picnic area at the end of the road directly across from the entrance road to the center.. Bring binoculars and dress for the weather.
The trip is co-sponsored by Northfield Mountain Recreation and Environmental Center and the Northfield Bird Club. It is free and open to the public, and will be led by naturalist David Brown, a lifelong birder.
Fish Printing at the Great Falls Discovery Center
Saturday, June 10th, anytime between 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. No registration is required.
This fun activity combines science and art through the traditional Japanese practice of Gyotaku, or fish printing. Discover the intricate beauty and important function of fish fins and scales. Drop in at the Great Falls Discovery Center on Avenue A anytime between 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. to create your work of art on paper using scientifically accurate replicas of Connecticut River fish. This event is part of the annual Family Fish Day organized by the Great Falls Discovery Center.
Wild Edibles and Medicinals Plant Walk
Saturday, June 28, 10:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Pre-registration is required at www.bookeo.com/northfield
Join us for a plant walk exploring the bountiful wild edible and medicinal herbs of late spring and early summer! We’ll discuss identification, medicinal and edible uses, recipes, and sustainable harvesting practices for many of our locally abundant plants.
Jade Alicandro weaves a love of bioregional herbalism and kitchen medicine into her work as a community and clinical herbalist. She loves sharing the wonders of the plant world with others and inspiring connection with our locally abundant flora, and has been teaching in the Valley on this subject since 2010. She offers in-person bioregional herbalism classes, hosts monthly online classes in her Viriditas Community, and teaches an online kitchen herbalism intensive each winter, Spice Rack Medicine. Forever in love with the weeds, her current favorite plants are Wild Rose, Nettles, and Chicory. Learn more about her work at www.milkandhoneyherbs.com and on Facebook and Instagram @milkandhoneyherbs.
Activities
Northfield Mountain Recreation and Environmental Center maintains 26 miles of trails that offer excellent year-round activities
Hiking
Northfield Mountain Recreation and Environmental Center maintains 26 miles of trails that offer excellent hiking in warmer months, May through November. In order to preserve the integrity of the trails, hiking is not permitted once the ski season begins, or during spring mud season. The wide carriage-width trails that make up most of the trail system are designed for cross-country skiing. Additionally there are 6.0 mi. of traditional hiking trails that wind past streams, hemlock groves, old rock quarries, and the striking Rose Ledge cliffs. Below are links to our trail map, trail report and trail guides for the Rose Ledge Trail and the Hidden Quarry Trail.
Please enjoy the trails and respect other hikers. We also ask that you please keep your dogs on a leash and pick up after them.
The Visitor Center restrooms are open June-October and when we are open for skiing. There is also a porta potty available.
Sign up here for our monthly Enewsletter to stay up to date with events and information.
Maps and Guides
If you are heading out to the trails, feel free to download our trail map. We also posted the map to the Visitor Center doors if you would like to take a photo of it when you’re at the site.
Download Trail Map
Rose Ledge Guide
Hidden Quarry Guide
Facility Rentals
Pavilion
Fee: $300 plus a refundable $150 cleaning/damage deposit fee for exclusive use of our post and beam pavilion and adjacent lawns along the Connecticut River*.
Please note: If a large tent is to be set up and removed on the nearby grounds, the Pavilion must be rented on the days before and after the event. Contact us for three-day rental discounts and information.
To reserve, please email us at northfield@firstlight.energy or call 1-413-659-4426.
- Available Wednesday through Sunday, 8:30 a.m.-7:00 p.m. Memorial Day weekend through Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
- Maximum group size is 100 people. The 8 picnic tables in the Pavilion seat 64.
- Swimming and beaching or anchoring of any watercraft on the riverbank is not permitted.
- There are two 110 volt/20 amp outlets under the serving table with GFI protection. Disabled guests will find the service entrance most convenient. All others should use the Pavilion parking area directly off Pine Meadow Road.
- Disabled guests will find the service entrance most convenient. All others should use the Pavilion parking area directly off Pine Meadow Road.
*Address of the Pavilion is 156 Pine Meadow Road. From the Visitor Center at 99 Millers Falls Road in Northfield, head north on Route 63 and it is the first left onto Ferry Road. At the bottom of this short road, turn right onto Pine Meadow Road and the Pavilion parking lot is on the left. Please share the address and directions with your guests.
Yurt
Fee: $100 with a refundable $100 cleaning/damage deposit fee. Located behind the Visitor Center.
- Available between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
- Maximum group size is 30 people.
- A pellet stove keeps the yurt warm in any season. Limited electricity is provided.
Visitor Center Auditorium
(Currently Unavailable)
Fee: $150 with a refundable $100 cleaning/damage deposit fee for large indoor meeting room in our Visitor Center.
Available between 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. April through October.
Maximum group size is 60 seated in rows.
PLEASE BE AWARE THAT USE OF ALCOHOL IS NOT PERMITTED IN YURT OR AUDITORIUM.
Questions? Email us at northfield@firstlight.energy or call 413-659-4426.
With some changes to amenities and procedures, the natural beauty of the Northfield Mountain Recreation and Environmental Center trails remain a refreshing and invigorating place to visit for outdoor winter recreation.
Cross Country Skiing
Northfield Mountain has more than 25 miles of trails designed specifically for cross country skiing and groomed for both classical and free-style skiing. Our trails offer some of the finest Nordic skiing in the region, from beginner trails to the demanding 800-foot vertical climb of Tenth Mountain Trail. Hikers, dogs and other pets are excluded from our trails during the ski season.
Hours of Operation: The trails will be groomed and opened to skiing and snowshoeing when there is adequate snow cover, Wednesday – Sunday, 9:00 a.m.– 4:30 p.m.
What you need to know for the 2024-2025 season:
When snow cover is sufficient, trails at the center will be groomed as needed. Cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and fat biking will be allowed for all guests with a valid trail ticket. At times when snow cover is absent, too icy, thin, or inconsistent for skiing, the trails may be opened for hiking, walking, and studded fat bikes. Visitors can get information about trail conditions and allowed activities by visiting FirstLight’s Northfield Mountain Trail Report, Facebook, or the Western Mass Cross Country Ski Areas Association.
- Ski and snowshoe rentals will be available daily this season. We will not be offering seasonal rentals.
- The Visitor Center will be open for access to the restrooms only
- Trail pass and equipment rental transactions will be purchased at the ticket window by credit card only
Trail Fees and Rental Equipment
2024-2025 Daily Ski and Snowshoe Rental Rates
Ski and Snowshoe Rentals
Snowshoes, and a limited number of skis, boots, and poles will be available for day rental this season when conditions permit us to open the trails for skiing. Payment will be accepted by credit card only.
Snowshoeing
More than six miles of trails are reserved exclusively for snowshoeing. The trails meander through scenic sections of the mountain, with great views from Rose Ledges. Free snowshoe trail tickets must be picked up at the ski shop before heading out. Please see our price chart above if you need to rent snowshoes.
Fat Biking
A pass is required when we are open for skiing. Tire size must be larger than 3.5″ and tire pressure must be less than 10 psi. Exit trails if your tire creates ruts more than one inch in depth. Please do not walk on groomed trails. Always check trail report below before heading out.
Grooming
Northfield Mountain can take on the largest blizzard or the lightest dusting of snow with their fleet of grooming vehicles. The trails receive regular grooming–usually in the early morning, with tracks set for classical skiing and areas groomed flat for skating.
Maps and Guides
If you are heading out to the trails, feel free to download our trail map. We also posted the map to the Visitor Center doors if you would like to take a photo of it when you’re at the site.
Download Trail Map
Rose Ledge Guide
Hidden Quarry Guide
