Parsons Reserve
Daffodil season is over. The Reserve remains open year-round for hiking!
Donor : William Parsons
Acreage : 32 acres
Location : Russells Mills Village | View Google Map
Year Acquired : 1992, 1999, and 2005
Access Point : Horseneck Road, just south of Russells Mills Village
Directions : There is limited parking at the Russells Mills Landing on Horseneck Road, just south of Russells Mills Village. After parking, you can carefully cross Horseneck Road north of the tennis courts and look for the Parsons Reserve sign over the wooden fence. During daffodil season, a second parking area is located on the east side of Horseneck Road. About 10 cars can parallel park here. If parking in this lot, please use the southern entrance (with the metal gate) to the Reserve.
Volunteer Stewards : Karen Rocha & Larry Shwartz
Additional Regulations: No mountain biking and no horseback riding.
Description
The Parsons Reserve is a lovely and ecologically significant property. Destruction Brook meanders through the property on its way to Slocum’s River, the floodplain cutting a wide swath between the towering rock outcroppings that dominate portions of the Reserve. A fecund vernal pool provides habitat for a variety of common and rare species. Wild turkeys roost in the oaks along the edge of the pool, and the beautiful beech grove nearby provides shelter for picnickers. Salamanders, wood frogs and rare plants call the place home, and deer wander the paths, foraging on the young shoots of briars and other understory plants. On the northern end of the property a wooded glade fills with hundreds of daffodils every spring. The Reserve’s southern trail to Horseneck Road is dotted with mature rhododendrons planted by Mr. Parsons when he acquired the property in the 1960s.
