Eastern: Mt. Holly Preserve

Clickable map.  Click here for a larger version of this map.

Size
47.5 acres

What to see
Like the other preserves of the Indian Brook Assemblage (Mildred E. Grierson Sanctuary and Marian Yarrow Preserve), Mount Holly is composed largely of upland mixed hardwood forest. In the several acres of meadows at the preserve look for wildflowers or look up into the sky for a glimpse of a red-tailed hawk searching for prey. There is also a large outcrop of cliffs made of 6 million year-old Fordham gneiss. Indian Brook, bordered by a swamp, runs south along the eastern boundary and eventually into the Cross River Reservoir.

Trails

• The main trail at Mount Holly Preserve is blazed Red and can be accessed from either Mount Holly Road or Mount Holly Road East. This trail will first lead you on level terrain through classic deciduous forest and patches of old field and then drop rather steeply toward Indian Brook and its surrounding wetlands.
• From the brook, the Yellow and Orange trails offer loops of varying distances that reconnect to the Red trail (note: our map is slightly incorrect: the northeast part of the Yellow trail connecting to the Red trail is actually Orange on the preserve).
• The Green trail provides a brief meadow excursion and also reconnects to the Red trail.

Directions

• I-684 to exit 6;
• east on Rt. 35 to North Salem Rd.
• Left on North Salem Road for 0.25 miles to Mt. Holly Rd;
• right (east) onto Mount Holly Rd. for 1.5 miles to a sharp left.
• To reach the Mt. Holly Preserve, go straight here onto Mt. Holly Rd. East for approx. one mile. Preserve is on left side of road.