Trail Blazer: Hilltop Orchards

 

Hilltop Orchards, the winery and apple orchard in Richmond, Massachusetts, has hired John Morton, a two-time Olympian (as a biathlete in skiing and shooting), to create a yet-to-be- named 2.7-kilometer cross-country-skiing and hiking trail that wanders through Hilltop and into nearby woods. The trail’s development is all part of owner John Vittori’s ongoing “use not abuse” plan to preserve the two-hundred-acre property as open space.

 

The trail’s official opening, Over the Orchard and Through the Woods, takes place Saturday and Sunday, January 15 and 16, from 1 to 5, when skiers can take to the snow or duck inside for free hot cider, hot cocoa, and wine before a blazing fire in the barrel room. Following the official opening, the trail will be available to ski or hike Thursday through Sunday; tickets cost $10.

 

THE GOODS

Hilltop Orchards
./Route 295
Richmond, Mass.