Dracut has several large ponds, bogs and swamps and numerous brooks. Its early economy relied on fishing, lumbering and the milling of lumber, which led in turn to the 19th century industries of paper making and cotton textile manufacturing.
The 1,000-acre Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest is a popular attraction, with 180 acres of ponds, swamps, and wetlands. The forest has six miles of trails offering hiking, bicycling, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling. Hunting is permitted in season.