The Berkshire Hills are in Berkshire County at the western end of Massachusetts. They are actually three separate mountain ranges, separated by the valleys of the Housatonic River in the south and the Hoosic River in the north. East of the valleys a hilly plateau rising as high as 2,600' extends eastward toward the Connecticut River. Beyond the limits of Berkshire County it is known as the Hilltowns and is covered in the Pioneer Valley region. West of the valleys the narrower Taconic Range rises along the New York state border. The third Berkshire range is Mount Greylock, at 3,487 ft (1,063 m) Massachusetts' high point, and its satellite peaks rising out of the valley between two upper branches of the Hoosac River.

Although the Berkshires were historically part of New England's traditions of intellectualism, idealism, subsistence farming, logging, and early industrialization, they are almost equidistant between New York and Boston. Because New York has grown considerably larger and wealthier, the Berkshires are increasingly drawn into its economic and cultural orbit.

Regions

Berkshire County is located at the western extreme of Massachusetts and borders Rensselaer and Columbia Counties in New York, Bennington County and Windham County in Southern Vermont, and the Litchfield Hills region of Connecticut.

Cities and towns

  • Adams - Birthplace of Susan B. Anthony.
  • Alford
  • Becket
  • Cheshire
  • Clarksburg - Clarksburg State forest offers recreation.
  • Dalton
  • Egremont
  • Florida - on the Mohawk Trail with entrance to Savoy Mountain State Forest.
  • Great Barrington including the village of Housatonic.
  • Hancock - Jiminy Peak ski area.
  • Hinsdale
  • Lanesborough - Gateway to Mt. Greylock and the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail.
  • Lee
  • Lenox - Home to Tanglewood Music Center.
  • Monterey
  • Mount Washington - Great place to hike and enjoy nature.
  • New Ashford
  • New Marlborough
  • North Adams - Two state parks: Western Gateway Heritage and Natural Bridge.
  • Otis
  • Peru
  • Pittsfield - The Berkshires' largest city (about 42,000).
  • Richmond
  • Sandisfield
  • Savoy
  • Sheffield
  • Stockbridge
  • Tyringham
  • Washington
  • West Stockbridge
  • Williamstown - Home of Williams College.
  • Windsor

Other destinations

Culture and History

  • Berkshire Visitors Bureau, 3 Hoosac Street, Adams, MA 01247, 800-237-5747, (Fax: 413-743-4500 bvb@berkshires.org), [1].

Talk

Travel to Berkshire Hills - Visa Requirements

By air

By car

  • Interstate 90, the "Massachusetts Turnpike" or "Mass Pike" runs through the southern portion of the Berkshires. I-90 goes west to Albany, NY and east to Springfield, Worcester, and Boston. Access to I-90 is at Exit 1 in West Stockbridge and Exit 2 in Lee. From Lee one can take Route 7 either north or south.
  • In the northern part of the region Route 2, also known as the Mohawk Trail, runs from the New York state border in the west at Williamstown to Interstate 91 at Greenfield.

Tours and Getting around Berkshire Hills

In this rural region a car is preferred.

Berkshire Hills tourist attractions and sightseeing

  • Tanglewood - Tanglewood in Lenox is the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. During the summer it is not unusual to see James Taylor perform at this venue, because he lives just outside of the town. The population of Lenox swells to nearly 30,000 for the show.
  • Stockbridge is the former home of Norman Rockwell and the location of the Norman Rockwell Museum, a museum he founded.
  • Shakespeare Theather Company, and Williams College in Williamstown.

Berkshire Hills city tours

Jiminy Peak Resort in Hancock offers a full slate of year-round mountain activities. Mountain biking is available there and at several state forests throughout the region. There are also extensive excellent hiking trails, including a portion of the Appalachian Trail. Mount Washington is home to some of the state's best trail scenery.

The Berkshires are a good place for walking and relaxing and perhaps taking in a summer play in the college town of Williamstown. In October this area shares in the colorful fall foliage show.

Charlemont-based Zoar Outdoor, Phone: 800-532-7483, [4] offers rafting and kayaking on portions of the Deerfield and Miller rivers, as well as other outdoor activities.

Berkshire Hills Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive

There are a number of fine eateries in Great Barrington and Lenox.

Berkshire Hills nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs

Stay safe

Get out

Southern Vermont offers similar rural attractions. For a change of pace, Greater Boston is a little over two hours away. If headed there, a stop at Sturbridge to see Sturbridge Village is worthwhile.

Destinations in Berkshire Hills:

This page was last edited by David. Based on work by David Mason, Stacy Hall, Jeff Logan and Jim Logan, Wikitravel user(s) Jelse and Huttite and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. - Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license

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