Welcome to Big Deer State Park, located in the Groton State Forest Recreation Area close to the Groton Nature Center, Boulder Beach State Park and Stillwater State Park.

As early as 1704, Native Americans and the French were using routes through Groton to reach Canada and Massachusetts. Colonists settled this area of Vermont slightly earlier than the rest of the state due to the accessible network of waterways.

The rocky, tree-covered hillsides were originally cloaked with white pine, spruce, hemlock, beech, maple and birch. These were logged by local farmers for lumber, fuel and potash. The logging industry was large-scale for almost 100 years while the railroad was operating.

Today, logging is still a vital industry in the area, but has lost some of its dominance in favor of modern society’s leisure time movement - private cottages/seasonal homes and a variety of outdoor recreation activities.

Groton State Forest, with over 26,000 acres, is the second largest landholding administered by the Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation. It contains over 17 miles of hiking trails and over 20 miles of gravel roads and multi-use trails suitable for mountain biking and horseback riding.