Westfield River - Middle Branch
- Moderate
- difficulty
- Jun–Oct
- best months
Westfield River - Middle Branch is a river fishing spot in western Massachusetts, about half a mile from the town of Russell. The land is managed by MassWildlife and the USFS, and the route is rated moderate. For comfortable weather, aim for late spring through early fall. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Westfield show June highs around 78°F and September highs around 75°F, with July the warmest month at about 84°F. That station sits roughly 770 feet lower than the river, so temperatures along the Middle Branch run cooler. Shatterack path (white) is about half a mile away, and the Border Trail and Pitcher Brook Trail are both within about 3.5 miles. Paddlers can head to the Little River, about 4.4 miles off.
- Shatterack path (white)Hiking0.5 mi
- Border TrailHiking3.4 mi
- Pitcher Brook TrailHiking3.5 mi
- Charcoal Kiln TrailHiking4.3 mi
- Little RiverCanoeing4.4 mi
- Peebles BrookCanoeing6 mi
Manhan RiverCanoeingPhoto: John Phelan, CC BY 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)6.1 mi- Lyman Brook LoopHiking7.3 mi
Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)
- Connecticut RiverRiver fishing · ~20 min drive
- Cochran PondLake fishing · ~6 min drive
- Beaver PondLake fishing · ~12 min drive
- Long PondLake fishing · ~13 min drive
- Big PondLake fishing · ~15 min drive
- Big PondLake fishing · ~16 min drive
- Ashley PondLake fishing · ~17 min drive
- Becket Historic QuarryLake fishing · ~17 min drive
- Wright PondLake fishing · ~17 min drive
- Connor ReservoirLake fishing · ~18 min drive
Also worth it near here
- Moses Scout ReservationCamping · ~3 min drive
- Manhan RiverCanoeing · ~10 min drivePhoto: John Phelan, CC BY 4.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
- Bearhole Reservoir RoadMountain biking · ~16 min drive
Provin MountainSummit · ~18 min drivePhoto: 5ju989nfhs50 at English Wikipedia, CC BY 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
Best time to visit Westfield River - Middle Branch
Best months: June–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.
Jan
33° / 16°
10 wet
Feb
37° / 17°
10 wet
Mar
45° / 25°
10 wet
Apr
58° / 35°
13 wet
May
70° / 46°
14 wet
Jun
78° / 56°
12 wet
Jul
84° / 61°
11 wet
Aug
82° / 59°
11 wet
Sep
75° / 52°
9 wet
Oct
62° / 40°
11 wet
Nov
49° / 31°
11 wet
Dec
38° / 22°
11 wet
Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Westfield 3 Sw, MA, 6.8 mi away at 430 ft. The station sits about 800 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.
