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Every hiking trail on Martha's Vineyard: 220+ miles on more than 100 properties. Menemsha Hills, Cedar Tree Neck, Felix Neck, Aquinnah, and tick safety tips.
Martha's Vineyard has 220+ miles of trails on more than 100 properties managed by the island's conservation groups, and roughly 40% of the island is permanently protected. No mountains, but plenty of variety: coastal bluffs, salt marshes, pitch pine forests, freshwater ponds, and glacial meadows packed into about 90 square miles. No trail here is beyond a family or a beginner.
Two hundred and twenty miles of trail on more than 100 properties, and most days you will have a woods road like this one to yourself.
Filmed April 2024The island moves on: shops, signs and prices may differ from what you see here. The text of this guide was checked October 2026.
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Oak woods in the leafless months, when the trails are quietest. September and October bring color and cool walking.
September–October is a lovely time to hike: pleasant temps (65–74°F), fewer crowds, lower tick activity and fall color. Ticks are the main safety concern: alpha-gal positive tests at the island hospital (from Lone Star tick bites) surged from 2 in 2020 to 742 in 2025. The routine that works: permethrin-treated clothing, DEET repellent, a full-body tick check after every hike and 20 min in the dryer on high. The free TrailsMV app works offline, which helps up-island where cell coverage drops out.
AllTrails rates it 4.8/5 (349 reviews). 211 acres, about three miles of trails. Prospect Hill (308 ft) has views over Menemsha Harbor, the Elizabeth Islands and Gay Head Lighthouse. Harris Trail to the summit, continuing down to the rocky beach past 19th-century ruins with 45-ft brick chimney. 383 ft elevation gain. Most strenuous hike on MV. ~20 car parking off North Rd. Free. Dogs on leash. Allow 90+ min.
The boulder beach under the sand bluffs at Menemsha Hills. The trail down from Prospect Hill passes the 19th-century brickworks chimney on the way.
400 acres. White Trail through oak/beech/cedar forest to coastal bluffs looking across the Sound to the Elizabeth Islands. Waterfall, cranberry bogs, stone walls. Several miles of trails from three trailheads. Free, 8:30 AM–5:30 PM, year-round. Dogs on leash. No swimming at beach.
194 acres, 4 mi of trails along Sengekontacket Pond. A wide variety of birds and active osprey nests. $4 adults, $3 kids. Old Farm Road is stroller-friendly. No dogs.
Full guide: Felix Neck trails, ospreys and kayak tours.
632 acres. 2-mile trail to Atlantic beach + freshwater Long Cove Pond. Advance pass required mid-June to the end of August. Parking $25 non-members. Walking or biking in is free. Free library passes available. No dogs ever.
The island's highest point, at 311 feet. Trails with views down the south shore to the Atlantic. WWII Army Signal Corps remnants on Radar Hill, a quarter mile from the summit; the Radar Hill site later served as a radar station from 1952 to 1959. Off Tabor House Rd; a 400-foot hardened universal-access trail starts at the Radar Hill lot, the longer walk from the Pasture Road trailhead. 148.9 acres. Dogs leashed April to September.
191 acres. 3 miles through meadows and ridgelines to Waskosim’s Rock, a big glacial boulder perched on a ridge. Marked the colonial-era English/Wampanoag boundary. 17th-century homestead remnants (cellar holes, stone walls). Free.
South Head Trail (0.9 mi, year-round) descends to Moshup Beach beneath the Gay Head Cliffs. North Head Trail (~1.0 mi) has lighthouse views and is open Sep 15–Jun 14 only. Summer parking $35/day. Climbing the cliffs and taking clay are not allowed.
5,300 acres, the island's largest conservation area. 14 miles of trails through pitch pine woodland. DCR suggests the Dr. Fisher Road to Quampache Trail loop (3.5 mi) and the 10-mile paved bike loop. Best shade on hot days. Free. Dogs on leash. It's easy to get turned around, so a map helps. The forest began in 1908 as a reserve for the heath hen; the last one, Booming Ben, was seen here on March 11, 1932, and a plaque and sculpture off the bike path mark the spot.
Cape Poge: 516 acres, 7-mile barrier beach. 3.5 mi one-way through soft sand to the lighthouse, free on foot or by bike. Poucha Pond: 2.1 mi out-and-back through grasslands. All free. Full Chappy guide.
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Beyond the famous four, the Land Bank and Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation keep dozens of smaller preserves open dawn to dusk, free, with a trailhead sign and a bike rack and not much else. An old Appalachian Mountain Club guide to the island covers most of them, and its trail notes still hold; its dog rules do not, so the rules below are the current ones from each owner as of September 2026. Every one of these is on the free TrailsMV app.
A sandy path through the dune grass down to a stony beach. At Cedar Tree Neck the White Trail runs from the woods to a wild beach on the Sound, with the Elizabeth Islands across the water.
Two rules cover almost everything above: the Land Bank publishes a dog policy for every property (immediate control, leashed, or no dogs in the nesting months), and Sheriff’s Meadow asks that dogs stay on a leash at all times on its sanctuaries, though it can close a property to dogs, so check the trailhead sign. A printed map or the app is worth having; cell coverage in the middle of the island is thin, and the smaller trailheads have room for four or five cars at most.
A meadow path in winter, ice in the ruts and bare woods behind. Felix Neck has a hundred bird species and the island’s easiest wild mile; four dollars at the gate.
Sunset over a boulder beach, for anyone who times the walk down for the last light.
Know Before You Go
The free TrailsMV app works offline, and the Land Bank map lives at mvlandbank.com.
Varies by property: Land Bank mostly allows them, Sheriff’s Meadow requires a leash, the Trustees prohibit them at Long Point and Mytoi, and Felix Neck bans all pets.
Free at most trailheads, but the lots are small, so summer mornings are easiest.
October through December (not Sundays), when blaze orange is a good idea.
For getting around: car-free guide and VTA schedule. For beaches at trail's end: every beach ranked.
More outdoors: our guide to kayaking Martha's Vineyard, our mountain biking trails guide, and if you're planning an extended stay, our 3-day Martha's Vineyard itinerary.
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Menemsha Hills in Chilmark: 211 acres, about three miles of trails, Prospect Hill, the island's second-highest point, with views over Menemsha Harbor, the Elizabeth Islands and Gay Head Light, then down to a rocky beach past a 19th-century brick chimney. Free, dogs on leash, allow 90 minutes or more; it is the most strenuous hike on the island.
No. There are no mountains; the island’s highest point, Peaked Hill, is 311 feet, and no trail here is beyond a family or a beginner. There are 220-plus miles of trails on more than 100 properties, about 40 percent of the island is protected, and the free TrailsMV app maps them offline.
September and October are lovely: 65 to 74 degrees, fewer people, lower tick activity and fall color.
They are the main safety concern. Alpha-gal positive tests at the island hospital rose from 2 in 2020 to 742 in 2025. The routine is permethrin-treated clothing and DEET, a full tick check after every hike and 20 minutes for your clothes in a hot dryer.
Felix Neck ($4 adults, $3 children, no dogs) and Long Point, where parking is $25 for non-members in season with an advance pass from mid-June to the end of August; walking or biking in is free, and the libraries lend free passes. Cedar Tree Neck, Menemsha Hills, Peaked Hill and Waskosim’s Rock are free.
Keep Reading
Keep Reading
Island tip of the day Timing No. 58 of 79 New tip at midnight, island time
Oak Bluffs restaurants are packed 6–8 PM. Eat at 5 PM or after 8:30 PM: same food, half the wait, easier parking.
Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary in Edgartown: the four easy trails and what each passes, the ospreys, the butterfly garden, hours and admission, Mass Audubon's kayak tours and prices, accessibility, the Wampanoag and Smith-farm history, and when to go.
Guide to identifying and avoiding poison ivy on Martha's Vineyard. Recognition tips, treatment options, and safety measures for island trail visitors.
Updated for 2026: Martha's Vineyard tick safety. Four species now including the Asian longhorned tick, 2025 alpha-gal figures, the island's new tick clinics, prevention, removal, and the latest Lyme vaccine news.
Cedar Tree Neck Sanctuary: about 400 acres of bluffs, forest trails, and rocky shoreline in West Tisbury. Free admission, open year-round.
Long Point Wildlife Refuge: 632 acres of rare grassland, Atlantic beach, trails, kayaking, and seasonal access in West Tisbury.
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