Middleton Rail Trail with your dog: leashed from Essex Street to Danvers

The Alliance's home page carries one reminder in plain terms: the Town of Middleton and the Middleton Rail Trail require that dogs be kept on a leash at all times when off the owner's property. Its posted rules add that pets stay on a short leash and that droppings are removed. Its FAQ explains the reasoning: the trail runs through wetlands where wildlife needs protecting, past neighbors whose yards have no fences, and among users who are not comfortable around dogs.

When the rule is broken, the Alliance points walkers to Middleton Animal Control rather than to its own volunteers. The town's Animal Control page lists a line answered from 9 AM to 5 PM, 339-206-0785, and an emergency number for nights, weekends and holidays, 978-774-4424. For an emergency on the trail itself, the posted rules say to dial 911, and the litter rule is carry in, carry out, bags included.

The Alliance's parking page names four options: a public lot at the northern end of Central Street, near Howe-Manning School; parking at 210 Maple Street on Route 62; Mortalo's Canoe Landing on Maple Street, between Kenney Road and the Ipswich River bridge; and roadside spaces on Maple Street and Gregory Street near where they meet East Street. The FAQ adds that the No Parking signs along the route apply to residents' guests as much as to anyone else, and that more spots are being looked at.

The Alliance's description of the route gives the finished section its landmarks. Heading east, the trail passes the recreational fields at Howe-Manning School and the site of the old Central Street train station, then passes near the Old Town Hall and the Tramp House and behind the Congregational Church on Webb Street on its way to Maple Street. Past the river it crosses Gregory Street behind the former Howes train station, with farm fields on the right as it nears Danvers.

A wet morning on crushed stone leaves grey paste between the toes and along the belly. Our bath and brush at 210 Eastern Ave in Gloucester washes it out with a warm bath, blow-dry and brush-out, from $55 for a dog of 25 pounds or less to $95 for an extra-large long coat, and nail clipping adds $16. Grooming is booked online or in the Dogtown app without an evaluation, and booking the next appointment at pick-up takes $5 off it.

Middleton is not one of the four Pup Van towns, so ask us about pick-up; Route 62 or Route 114 to Route 128 brings you to Gloucester. The Danvers Rail Trail, which the new extension now joins, has its own page with Danvers's physical-leash bylaw, and the Methuen Rail Trail is another leashed rail trail with a page here. For a dog that needs to run rather than walk, daycare is $42 a full day after a free evaluation.