Established: October 18, 2003
Clue difficulty: Easy
Terrain: Easy; some parts of the trail are rocky and muddy. This circular hike takes 30-45 minutes.

Driving directions: Locate Route 202, directly west of the Quabbin Reservoir, in western Massachusetts. Take Route 202, from either Route 9 in Belchertown or Route 2 in New Salem, to Packardville Road. Packardville Road is directly across from Quabbin Reservoir Gate 8 (large sign, can’t miss it). Turn west (away from the Quabbin) onto Packardville Road. Very soon you’ll pass a cemetery on your left, which is the home of the Oyster Tombstone Letterbox (visit www.letterboxing.org for the clue). Continue west; you’ll pass Gulf Road on your left; stay right.  Watch for a red gate on your right, moments after you pass the Pelham town line. This red gate is kitty-corner across the road from a mailbox numbered 137. Do not park in front of the gate; there’s parking a few feet farther down the road. Walk around the gate and pick up a trail map from the box on your left. 

Clue: You’re on a cinder road called Tower Road.  When it turns right, you’ll see other trails, but stay on the cinder road and continue all the way up to the fire tower. Check out the fire tower, then look for the Metacomet-Monadnock (M-M) Trail behind it.  A double-trunked oak tree marks the path.  Follow the M-M trail, which is marked with frequent white blazes on trees.  It proceeds downhill for quite a while, at first rocky and wet, later more level and less rocky.

Be on the lookout for the remains of a stone wall, perpendicular to the trail, on both sides.  When you come to the stone wall, stop and walk left, off the trail and along the stone wall, for 16-18 steps, to where two fallen logs lie atop the wall, crossing each other. The Oak Leaf lies under these two logs, protected by several stones.

After stamping in, continue onward on the M-M trail.  In a few minutes you’ll be back at Packardville Road.  Turn right and walk along the road back to your car.

Don’t forget to search for the Oyster Tombstone Letterbox before or after you find the Oak Leaf!
 

Letterboxing, like any outdoor sport, carries the risk of unforeseen hazards. Letterboxing North America supports a policy of not knowingly placing letterboxes in areas that will create undue risk to the letterbox hunter.  However, as conditions may  vary, it is the responsibility of the letterbox searcher to become thoroughly familiar with the conditions in the area to be searched, to adequately prepare for those conditions, and to conduct oneself safely and responsibly with respect to those conditions and with respect to his or her personal abilities and limitations.  "Letterboxing North America" and the individual letterbox sponsors assume no liability for events which may occur related directly or indirectly to one's searching for a letterbox. 

Do not let children hunt for letterboxes unsupervised. 

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