Most towns have a main street. Andover has a rail line that stopped running trains decades ago and quietly took the job. If you live here, you already know the Hop River trail as the place you walk the dog or push a stroller after dinner. What is easier to miss is how much of the town's late-summer schedule is arranged along it, within a short walk of a single gravel path.
That is the argument for planning an August or September weekend here by geography rather than by calendar. The farmers' market, the lake loop, the two nature preserves, the museum, the new depot, and even the drive to a burger afterward all sit on or near the same line. Chain them and the town feels bigger than its roughly 3,600 residents would suggest.
The trail is doing more work than it looks
Hop River State Park, a former railroad line, is now a trail that winds 24.8 miles through the towns of Manchester, Vernon, Bolton, Coventry, Andover, Columbia, and Windham. In Andover, the town's own summary calls it a 6-mile gravel and compact-earth section that is part of the 3,000 mile East Coast Greenway, connects the Bolton portion of the trail system with the Columbia portion at the town lines, and passes through Andover along Route 6, providing residents with opportunities for walking, bicycling and equestrian uses.
The reason it functions as a main street is that Andover's other assets cluster against it. Access points and parking are located throughout town including on Lake Road and behind the Museum of Andover History on Monument Lane off of Route 6, next to the covered bridge. The Percy Cook Trail entrances sit behind the Town Hall at 17 School Road and on the Rails to Trails as you walk east, with a steep incline going up from the Rails to Trails to the Town Hall and flatter ground closest to the Town Hall; all trails are marked with yellow and orange tree markers. That is not a coincidence of geography so much as a design choice residents can use.
A quick map of what sits along or beside the Andover section:
| Landmark | Where it meets the trail |
|---|---|
| Museum of Andover History | Monument Lane off Route 6, next to the covered bridge |
| Percy Cook Trail | Trail junction east of Town Hall, then up to 17 School Road |
| First Congregational Church | 359 Route 6, directly across the trail |
| Andover Public Library | Across Route 6, opposite the trail |
| Veterans Memorial Field | Long Hill Road, one lot off the trail corridor |
| Monarch Way Station and new Andover Depot | Directly off the trail near Center Street |
Wednesday, 4 to 7
The single most useful thing to know about late-summer Andover is that the farmers' market is not weekly. It runs the first Wednesday of the month from July to November, from 4:00pm to 7:00pm, at the Historic Meeting House Field at the First Congregational Church of Andover at 359 Route 6, across from the Rails to Trails and Public Library. That timing is worth putting on the fridge, because if you miss a first Wednesday you are waiting a full month for the next one.
The 2026 dates residents still have on the calendar:
- Wednesday, August 5
- Wednesday, September 2
- Wednesday, October 7
- Wednesday, November 4
Parking is available on Long Hill Road at the church or at the Veterans Memorial Field parking lot. The market itself is more than a produce stand. It brings together local farmers plus live music and food trucks, and 10% of food trucks' proceeds are donated to the Andover Food Pantry. That last detail matters if you are choosing between grabbing dinner at the market or driving into Manchester. The pantry share turns a food-truck taco into a small civic act.
Because the church sits directly across from the trail, the market is the easiest thing in Andover to reach on foot or by bike. Park at Veterans Memorial Field, cut onto the trail, and you are at the vendors in under ten minutes.
The loop residents actually walk
If you want more than a market run, the trail feeds two very different loops in the same afternoon. To the southeast, Andover Lake sits behind the trail corridor. Andover Lake is a 155-acre private lake in the southeast corner that provides recreational opportunities to its members. The public route around it, on AllTrails, is a 2.7-mile loop with an elevation gain of 150 ft, taking about 1 to 1.5 hours to complete. It is not a wilderness experience. Reviewers there note honestly that you are mostly walking on paved road through neighborhood, not right along the lake, but you get some nice views and the neighborhood is very peaceful. Treat it as a stretched leg after the trail rather than a destination on its own.
To the north and west of Route 6, the town gets quieter fast. Several small rivers and streams flow through the town including the Hop River, Burnap Brook, Staddle Brook, and the Skungamaug River. The Bear Swamp Brook runs through the Nathan Hale State Forest located in the northeast corner of town. The State owned Bishop's Conservation Area is located in the southwest corner of the town and includes the 53-acre Bishop Swamp (Jurovaty) Pond. Andover Lake is a 155-acre private lake in the southeast corner that provides recreational opportunities to its members. The Doris Chamberlain Nature preserve with small pond and walking trails is located on Route 316 near School Road.
For a resident planning a Saturday, the practical read is this. The Doris Chamberlain preserve is the closest to town center and the market side of Route 6. Nathan Hale State Forest is the bigger, quieter option in the northeast if you want a real walk. Bishop Swamp sits opposite in the southwest. None of them require driving out of town, and all three sit within a few minutes of the trail's access points.
What is new along the corridor
The trail itself has been getting small upgrades that a first-time visitor would miss but a resident notices. Andover now has a Monarch Way Station located directly off the East Coast Greenway rail trail near Center Street, and the town has held a ribbon cutting for the new Andover Depot on the same stretch. If you have not walked that section of trail since the spring, that is a reason to.
Off the trail, the recreation infrastructure has also moved. The town's site links out to a video of the playground and pickleball court grand opening, both of which sit within walking distance of the trail corridor and give the market side of Route 6 a genuine before-market or after-market option for families.
One current advisory is worth knowing before you drive rather than walk:
For all those affected by the Long Hill Rd. detour: Due to extended emergency response times while the road is closed, please provide dispatchers with all pertinent information when calling 911. This includes any relevant medical details and situational information. Providing accurate and complete information will help ensure the appropriate level of response urgency.
Long Hill Road is also the parking street for the church market, so if you have been planning a first-Wednesday visit and have not checked the detour recently, do that before you leave the driveway. The Veterans Memorial Field lot is the backup.
Ending the ride at the burger counter
If you follow the trail west out of Andover instead of walking east, it eventually spills you toward Manchester. That is worth knowing because the western end of the trail sits close to one of the region's actual food landmarks. Shady Glen, officially Shady Glen Dairy Stores, is a restaurant in Manchester, Connecticut, opened by John and Bernice Rieg near the Manchester/Bolton town line in 1948. Shady Glen is locally famous for its homemade-style ice cream, signature Bernice Original "winged" cheeseburger, and vintage 1950s style diner and service; in 2012 it was recognized by the James Beard Foundation as an "American Classic".
You do not need this framed as a food recommendation, because if you live here you have already been. The point for a weekend plan is that a resident who treats the trail as the spine can string together a preserve walk, the market, and a Shady Glen stop on a single afternoon without ever driving more than about fifteen minutes total. In a town of about 3,600 people that keeps its main asset gravel-surfaced and half-hidden in the trees, that is closer to how Andover actually rewards attention than any list of separate outings would suggest.
When you are ready to talk about the house on the other side of that trail
Living here for a few seasons tends to change what you want out of a house. Maybe the yard now feels bigger than what you need, or the extra bedroom has become an office you would rather have downstairs, or the trail access you liked from a rental is something you want tied to a deed. When any of that gets close to a real question, Cindy Muska is the person to call for a calm, straightforward read on what your home is worth today and what your next one might look like. Get a Free Home Valuation and start the conversation on your own timeline.
