Western Massachusetts

Anyone who truly loves a New England winter knows that some of the best things about this unruly season involve going outside. This is the perfect year to discover some outdoor reasons to love winter in Western Massachusetts.

1. Outdoor Entertainment Abounds

The cold and snow certainly don’t stop us from having a great time outside. This year there are not one but three winter festivals in Hampshire County in Western Massachusetts. Look Park in Northampton hosts its annual Winter Wonderland lights festival each December. Winterfest Amherst packs the day with winter activities — you might find anything from a chili cookoff to the Cardboard Classic Sled Race. Easthampton’s WinterFest celebrates the city's seasonal beauty, cultural diversity, and Nashawannuck Pond's rich ice harvesting industry heritage. 

And as the weather gets colder, be sure to look for the Northampton Ice Art Festival to return to downtown Northampton, bringing with it world-renowned ice sculptors and local artists to create a shimmering holiday landscape up and down the historic Main Street.

Northampton Ice Art Festival | Photo by Lynne Graves

2. Nordic Skiing and Snowshoeing

Being located in the Connecticut River Valley, our wooded terrain with its slight uphills and downhills is ideal for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Many of our parks have been sanctioned winter-sport friendly. Hadley’s Mount Warner, the newest property maintained by the Trustees of Reservations for example, welcomes cross-country skiing on its newly groomed trails. At another one of its Western Massachusetts properties, Notchview, just minutes past Cummington, the Trustees offers equipment rentals as well. Check out the list of state properties where you can also cross-country ski here.

3. Ice Skating

If there’s one good thing about bitter cold days, it’s the promise of perfect ice skating conditions. Lake Bray at Mount Tom State Reservation is cleared for ice skating when the weather permits. While it doesn’t happen every winter, Smith College in Northampton will somtimes clear off the ice on Paradise Pond for students and the public to enjoy. And if you’d rather stay inside but still enjoy this classic winter activity, there are public skate times at the Mullins Center at UMass Amherst with rentals available.

Ice Skating in Western Massachusetts | Photo by Lynne Graves

4. Sledding

The best sledding hills are sometimes among the best kept secrets in a small town. Though in Western Massachusetts, there’s surely one hill everyone knows about and that’s Northampton’s “Hospital Hill,” located on the edge of the grounds of the former state hospital, just above Smith Colleges’ equestrian center. It’s hard to miss this towering hill when you’re travelling west on Route 66 from downtown Northampton. For other local sledding spots, check out this crowd-sourced list by our friends at Hilltown Families.

5. We're Close to the Best Skiing in New England

Okay, so maybe you want the thrill of downhill skiing. We admit, we don’t have the mountains for it but if you want to head west to the Berkshires or north to Vermont, we’re just a quick drive away. The closest ski destinations to us are Blanford Ski Area just a little ways west of Southampton and Berkshire East just about an hour northwest of our county line.

So bundle up if you’re going out, but don’t forget about all the great ways to warm up inside.