Blue Hills 125-Mile Club
Challenge yourself — explore the Blue Hills — hike every mile of every trail!What is the
125-Mile Club?
It’s the ultimate Blue Hills challenge. Hike, bike or run every trail — all 125 miles, at your own pace, on your own timeline — within the Blue Hills Reservation. (Of course you can only bike on the trails permissible for biking — you can then choose how you’d like to explore the other trails!) Join a community of Blue Hills enthusiasts just like you! Share your tips, your stories, and your memories. Complete the Skyline Trail for your first patch. Complete the whole challenge for your second patch. Do it all over again for your third patch. (Each patch is unique!) And now you can even purchase a special 125-Mile Club t-shirt!
Click the Button above to sign up.
A free Blue Hills guide will be emailed to you when you join!
Keep track of your hike on your favorite trail app, or by marking your hike on your map!
Click the button above to share your progress!
This new shirt is a wonderful reminder to celebrate what you’ve achieved… to achieve even more… and to embrace who you are and what you believe — that it’s important to make time for what you love! (Hiking in the Blue Hills, of course!)
Get Suggested Trail Routes
Need help with route planning? Click above to see route suggestions for every part of the Blue Hills.
Guided Hikes
Want some company while you explore the Blue Hills? Click the button above to join us for a guided hike!
Talk about it!
Please help promote the 125-Mile Club. (More members, more joy!)
Share hike photos on social media and tag them with #BlueHills125Club or #BHSkyliner.
Join our Facebook group, follow us on Instagram, or scroll down for the 125-Mile Club posts section below.
Incentives
Blue Hills Skyliner Commemorative Patch
Hike the Skyline Trail – end to end – and get your special Blue Hills Skyliner patch!
(Finished this already? Click here to record your accomplishment and get your patch!)
125-Mile Club Commemorative Patch
Hike all 125 miles of trails and get your Blue Hills 125-Mile Club patch!
(Finished this already? Click here to record your accomplishment and get your patch!)
125-Mile Club Second-Time Commemorative Patch
Already finished the challenge? Excellent! Why not do it again? Start all over… and earn a new, different patch just for those who complete the challenge a second time. Plus: get double the satisfaction by finishing again!
(Finished this already? Click here to record your accomplishment and get your patch!)
Shout Out!
Be recognized in monthly Shout-Outs — on social media and in the space below.
Shout-Outs celebrate folks who have reached their 25, 50, 75, 100, and 125 mile milestones! Make sure we know what you’ve accomplished! Record your milestones below.
Details
Please use one map for the entire challenge. Don’t worry about any other maps (for example, if they show the trails slightly differently). You don’t have to do any trails that may have been added after you bought your map. Likewise, if the DCR is scheduled to remove any trails, you don’t need to rush to complete them. If a trail is marked closed, you should not do that trail. Simply indicate on your map that it was closed.
Only trails completed after you sign up for the 125-Mile Club count toward the challenge. All trails you hike, bike, or run after signing up count. If you say you’ve done a trail, then you’ve done that trail!
Once you’ve completed the 125-Mile Club challenge, you should have a well-worn and marked map showing all the progress you made. Record your accomplishment, and it will be listed below!
Sign-up for the Blue Hills 125-Mile Club
The 125-Mile Club is free to join! However, we’ll need some of your info to send you goodies… like patches! Please consider donating to the Friends to help defray the cost of the patch. Even better, become a member of the Friends to help care for the park you love — and to keep the trails clear and the park thriving!
Support the Blue Hills 125-Mile Club and the Blue Hills Trails!
While joining the 125-Mile Club is free, there are costs associated with patches and caring for the trails.
Consider making a $10 donation to cover the cost of your patches. Or donate to cover the cost of patches for others.
Better yet, consider becoming a Friends of the Blue Hills member! With your membership, you will receive a free Blue Hills map and you will be helping to ensure the trails are clear and passable all year long!
By the Numbers
Did you know that the Blue Hills spans 5 towns, 7,000-acres, and nearly 125-miles of trails?
Congratulations, finishers!
Everyone who completes all 125 miles of trails or the Skyline trail are recognized below. If you’ve reached a milestone, let us know!
125 Mile Club Finishers
February
Brandon Comstock
Ann Hargleroad
Jeff Larson
Barbara Lightizer
Debbie Reynolds
John A. Schepis
January
Andrew Forde
Barbara Lightizer
Peter Parkes
Loraine Sumner
December
Jay Theriault
November
Richard Cushing
Emily Kosinski
Robert J Siris
Sarah C. Titus
October
Stephanie Cavallaro
Katie Riddell
Stephanie Woolbert
Loraine Sumner
September
Ken Cohen
August
David Jones
James Donovan
William J. Doherty
July
Karen Foley
Joanne Newton
June
William Belben, Brewster
Edward A. Broms, Milton
Thea McElwaine, Canton
John W. Walsh, Dedham
May
Patrick Browne, Kingston
Lorna Jane Norris, Milton
Bob Ryan, Milton
Bob Vogel, North Easton
Blue Hills Skyliner Finishers
March
Peter Marotta
Lisa Procaccini
February
Ryan Shields
Tim Johnson
January
Barbara Lightizer
December
Andrew Forde
Emily Kosinski
Meg McMillen
Demos Skipitaris
November
Katie Riddell
Joanne Newton
Jeff Larson
Rue Wilson
Joanne Newton
Jay Theriault
Sarah C. Titus
October
Ben Elgart
Allison Reynolds
Brian Powers
Gurol Tuncman
Dale Higgins
Pamela Green
John Robertson
August
David Jones
John A. Schepis
Robert J Siris
William J. Doherty
Andy Efstathiou
Caitlin Sweeney
July
Rich Dean
Charlotte Poppe
Debbie McElwaine
June
Andrew Hanold, Jamaica Plain
Eric Hansen, Jamaica Plain
Ilana Rothkopf, Jamaica Plain
Shawn Torrey, Marshfield
May
Will Alfano, Easton
Leesha Boylan, Milton
Patrick Browne, Kingston
Stephanie Cavallaro, Braintree
Josh Grieves, Quincy
Margot Iverson, Cambridge
Debbie Nickless, Bridgewater
Mike Paglia, Dedham
Melissa Pinnetti, Canton
Bob Ryan, Milton
Ryan Smith, Mansfield
Matthew Thomas, Roslindale
Bob Vogel, North Easton
April
Ed Broms, Milton
Zuzana Kline Novakova, Quincy
Barbara Livingston, Needham
Lorna Norris, Milton
Jamie Robertson, Needham
John Wilcox, Hyde Park
Keep Us Posted!
Finished all
125-Miles?
Hit a milestone?
Let us know!
Use the form to the right 👉🏼 to report your Milestones and Accomplishments that you completed after you signed up for the 125 Mile Club!
Section Maps
The Blue Hills is comprised of six sections, Blue Hill, Houghton’s Pond, Chickatawbut, Quincy Quarries, Ponkapoag Pond, and Fowl Meadow. By participating in the 125 Mile Club, you’ll explore them all! You can also view and download the entire Blue Hills trail map.
Feels great to complete them all! Have been enjoying the Blue Hills for many years and this gave me a new perspective and goal on my continuous journey. Limited to 3-4 miles at a time for me at the moment, I had to get creative to get to every section and overlapped quite a bit. It took approximately 160 miles of hiking for me to reach all 125 miles with this method. Enjoyed every second!
That’s amazing! Congratulations on a job well done — and a patch well-earned!
Almost one year in, approaching 70 miles hiked with my faithful canine hiking buddy! Covered the quarries area last weekend – for the first time found the connecting trail in the area behind the “graffiti rocks” down to historic granite rail site. Not the most pristine area of BH, but definitely unique and historic!
So glad you’re continuing your journey. Thanks so much for the update!
Run #11 for 125, 2022:
at 53 miles so far…
Hawk Hill and environs
I’m slowly whittling my way through and enjoying every chance I can get out! I’ve done most of the trails but never documented them before. Yesterday, 4/2/2022, I did the green-dot loop around Ponkapoag which was new for me. Previously I’ve only done the Boardwalk, something I can still twist my twin sons’ arms to do! To keep track, I’m tediously highlighting a pdf of the map by hand and would love to know how others keep track.
Joel – I, too, had printed copies of the 6 maps, that I carried on the trail, and would highlight hikes after I did them. I actually liked doing that! I also highlighted the large BHR folded map and kept that at home as my master copy. Beyond that, I used the free version of the AllTrails app to track mileage and hours – that info I recorded on a spreadsheet. Anyway, good luck and have fun! Hope to see you out there!
125 #2! 125.22
First 4 miles in the books yesterday 3.18. Plan to finish by June 21, 2022.
See you on the trails!
Woohoo! You go, Ed!
Finished! Completed the 125-mile Challenge! 36 separate hikes totaling just over 166 miles; 60 hours of hiking.
Saved the Skyline South for last (seemed appropriate) and finished at BHR Headquarters. Should have popped in for my patch, but getting it in the mail will be fun, too!
Full details later on Twitter #BlueHills125Club.
Most excellent work! Congratulations.
Finished the Quincy Quarries map yesterday. I’ve done more hiking in December than in October and November combined!
All that’s left in the quest for 125 is half the GBH map. Thought I might finish it in 2021, but that’s not going to happen.
I’m up to about 150 miles total due to the necessary backtracks and retraces — it’ll be interesting to break down the mileage when all is done.
Still documenting on Twitter #BlueHills125Club. Hope everyone is still hiking; it’s beautiful out there!
Jeff — Go you! So awesome that you’ve been hiking so much — and seeing so much of the Blue Hills!
We’ll look for your tweets!
Any plan to update the milestones and finishers lists?
Ouch! Thanks for the reminder!
Took the first step on the 125-Mile Club this afternoon. 3.6 miles. Museum to Wolcott Path to HQ and up the Skyline to big Blue and home again. What a day. Can’t wait for the next 121!
YAH! So glad you started. And this is definitely about the journey… glad you’re off to an amazing start!
Some of us are still hiking! Passed 100 miles this past weekend (but that includes backtracks and retraces). Finished Fowl Meadow, Ponkapoag Pond, Houghton’s Pond, and Chickatawbut maps. Hoping to finally do the Skyline in one shot on Friday. Started documenting on Twitter #BlueHills125Club
Yah! So glad you’re still hiking… it’s still great weather for it. Thanks so much for the update! We’ll look for your Tweets!
Completed the skyline trail over the weekend, from the skating rink to the abandoned road by 95. Beautiful trails! Well worth it. How do I get a patch for completion?
Woohoo! Congratulations!
Just finished my 3rd time through the Blue Hills, the first since signing up for the challenge! It was great to have this motivation to go through all the trails again – I loved it. Time in the Blue Hills has been such an important respite as I have cared for my wife during her chemo/radiation treatments and parented our three kids through the pandemic. Thanks for this wonderful gem in our backyard!
Wow. What an amazing story. Thank you so much for sharing it. It’s wonderful that you have gotten so much from the Blue Hills!
Are you okay if we share your story with others? (Especially the Facebook group for the 125-Mile Club… I think they would love to hear it!)
Miles 23 to 31 in the books!!
Houghton’s Pond was mobbed because of the heat, but I had the rest of the reservation almost all to myself!!
A good tip! It’s great to explore all of the Blue Hills!
Bob Ryan and dog, Bunker, both completed the Skyliner and 125-Mile Club Challenge
SO EXCITING! Whohooo!