The Mile-Around Woods is a private preserve dedicated to conservation and agricultural uses. It is open to the public for walking during daylight hours.

The Fund for North Bennington, Inc. has established a network of walking trails that connects The Mile-Around Woods to adjoining woodlands and to Park Street. A hike on The Short Aldrich Trail circles much of the small valley of Paran Creek.

The agricultural fields adjoining The Mile-Around Woods were part of a working dairy farm until the early 1990s. Known today as the Kohler/McCullough fields, they are maintained in crop rotation by Landview Farms, LLC in support of its nearby dairy farm. The lower pastures are maintained by David Lively, of Bennington. His American Cream horses are often grazing in these fields during warmer months. Selected areas are managed to protect critical habitat for ground-nesting birds.

The Mile-Around Woods was donated in 1994 to The Fund by Ethel McCullough Scott and her husband Bill Scott. The property had been in Mrs. Scott’s family for more than 200 years. The Woods feature-rich stands of old timber and a circular carriage road laid out after the Civil War by Trenor Park, the builder of the nearby Park-McCullough House.

The TrailFinder website has a description and map of a hike at The Mile Around Woods.