Once home to the Nipmuc people, then cleared by settlers for open farmland, today Brooks Woodland Preserve is an undisturbed forest of towering red oaks, hemlocks, and white pine. The preserve is named for James Wilson Brooks, who set aside more than 2,000 acres of Petersham’s forest for conservation purposes, including Harvard Forest with its renowned research center.

Old stone walls remain as remnants of six early-19th-century farmsteads; much of the forested landscape seen today was formerly cleared for agriculture. Along parts of the Swift River, Moccasin Brook, and Roaring Brook, beavers have dammed the streams and created wetlands, and a cascade of glacial boulders near outcrops of granite ledge provides dens for porcupines.

Take advantage of hiking, mountain biking, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing on 13-plus miles of trails. The 1,500-plus-acre Rutland Brook Sanctuary of Mass Audubon is adjacent to the preserve.