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@xris @darwin I don't know if you can easily drive out of town, but last time I was in the area I went hiking in the Mount Tom State Reservation, about 15 miles north of Springfield. There were some nice views on the ~4-mile loop hike we did, from near the visitor center to the Eyrie House Ruins and then back to the lookout tower on Goat Peak. But there are also a number of other hikes and places one can go. Here's the park's website: https://www.mass.gov/locations/mount-tom-state-reservation

@JMarkOckerbloom Thanks for the suggestion! I'll check it out.

I have a car and can get around to any place that has space to park, even if it's just roadside.

It looks like tomorrow, Friday, is the *only* good/non-rainy weather day. So I'll get out, one way or another.

@xris Good luck! I do notice on the website that they say the gates to the park close at 4pm. That might just be for entering cars (since the website also says the park is open sunrise to sunset) but it might be worth double-checking if you can.

There are various places to park inside the reservation. There's a fee to enter in the warmer months, but I don't think that will have gone into effect yet this year.

@xris The center has limited hours (it was closed when we went on our hike there), so you might want to call ahead to see if and when they'll be open, if you want to visit the center.

@xris They do have a number of interesting plants around the reservation (and we liked the rocks too).The species my group mostly liked to check out were the fungi (see e.g. https://mttomrange.org/fungi-abounds/ for an example of the fungi on trees; might also be a bunch on the ground if it's rained recently) and the birds (what you'll see or hear will depend on the weather and the season).