F. Gilbert Hills State Forest

Marley and I had a really nice, laid-back walk here one afternoon.  We met some mountain bikers who were very nice, and we tried to stay out of their way while we used their paths.

The place was beautiful, and an easy escape from it's urban surroundings.  I found myself marveling at the idea that I was only 2 miles from Patriot Place while I enjoyed the scenery.

The park was extremely well marked.  There was never any question in my mind as to where I was when I looked at the map.

More Info:

F. Gilbert Hills State Forest: Mass.gov

Yelp: F. Gilbert Hills State Forest

Wikipedia: F. Gilbert Hills State Forest

 Upper Reservoir

Marley scouts for a place to jump in

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Ponkapoag Pond

I've been here a few times and I love this place.  Great trail that goes around the pond.  Tons of trails to explore, beautiful views, and a fantastic swimming hole for Marley.  The part of trail that borders the golf course is a bit strange.

More info:

Mass.gov Blue Hills Reservation

Yelp: Ponkapoag trails

Friends of the Blue Hills

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Cutler State Park

Marley enjoyed an abundance of swimming holes here today- a perk to this park which was lost on me on my first visit.  I should also note that the highway seems alarmingly close when you're on the West side of the pond.

Borderland State Park

I took a second trip to Borderland State Park and had a great time swimming with the dog.  Didn't see as much of the woods as the first time, but saw some great water views that I missed entirely the first time.

Wompatuck State Park

I need to go back to this place and visit the abandoned bomb plant, which I didn't realize was there until I got home and saw it on the internet.  I did see some great graffiti and train tracks in the woods.  The trails were nice but very poorly marked.  I found them disorienting and I got pretty lost for a little while.

Train tracks in the woods. 

 Graffiti - I gather from Google Image that the abandoned bomb plant is a gallery.

Marley finds a watering hole.  We had hoped to go swimming, but I got lost due to poor trail marking.

More Info:

Wikipedia Wompatuck State Park  

Wikipedia Hingham Naval Ammunition Depot Annex

Friends of Wompatuck

Mass DCR: Wompatuck State Park

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Millennium Park- West Roxbury, MA

 I have visited this park on a couple of different occasions, and I really like it. It has three different paved walking loops, measuring .5 miles, 1.1 miles, and 1.4 miles, so you can mix and match and create a longer walk. The park also has a playground, athletic fields, picnic facilities, a canoe launch, and bonus: restrooms.

Photo of park map

 My favorite aspect of this park is the ease at which you can leave it.  The Blue Heron hiking trail goes right through Millennium Park, so you can walk North up to Cutler Park and Nahanton Park. In addition, there is a trail leading to Brook Farm, and at the West end of Millennium Park is a short nature trail with some lovely views of the river and some interesting old stone carvings left behind from when the area must have been developed.

Old carved stone in the woods.

I thought at first that the hill that this park in built upon seemed unnatural, as as it turns out, it's built on an old landfill. From atop the former rubbish dump, there are some great views of the surrounding Blue Hills and Newton's Hills, as well as a glimpse of downtown Boston. It does get awfully windy there, though, so it seems like a good place to avoid on days when wind chill is a factor.

Dog walkers love this park. They are supposed to keep their pets leashed, but that rule seems to be widely ignored.

More Info:

Newton Conservators: Millennium Park

Millennium Park Yelp Review

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Borderland State Park

I visited this place yesterday, March 8, 2012, and I am definitely a fan.  It was a great place to escape to from the city for a quiet walk in the woods.  It took me less than an hour to get there from Boston in light traffic, and the parking fee is a mere $2.  There is a Visitor Center at the Main Parking lot which is stocked with maps and has restrooms.

Borderland State Park boasts over 20 miles of hiking trails, including a section of the Bay Circuit Trail.  There is a Heart Healthy Trail, which is a 1.5 mile section of the 3-mile long Pond Loop Trail.  This Pond Loop Trail is flat and easy, comprised mainly of old unpaved farm roads.  Off-shooting from this main trail is a larger network of trails, where I spent most of my 3 hours and 3 minutes in the woods.  I completed 5.3 miles of trails, pausing to have a sandwich on a rock overlooking a pond about a mile in to my walk, although there was plenty of picnic area available at the main parking area.  I also lingered quite a bit with my camera, and plan to return to the park at a later date after some green appears to get some better shots of the quarry and the Ridge Trail. I found all of the trails to be extremely well-maintained, and in places where they were not well-marked, they were well-loved enough that it wasn't a problem.  There was an emergency exit to nearby homes off of the Quarry Loop Trail.  The terrain was hilly and rocky but not difficult, and I felt as though I was constantly on the verge of discovering a vista which never actually presented itself.

It should be noted that this place is loved by mountain bikers, and at least one trail is a designated biking trail.  There's also a lot of other attractions at this park, like an old mansion, disc golf, and fishing.

More Info:

 Mass DCR: Borderland State Park

Friends of Borderland State Park

Yelp Review of Borderland State Park

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Cutler Park

 

Great walk today.  The photo has been instagrammed, but it captures the almost creepy aura of the day: it was so cloudy that I thought it could rain at any moment, but there was never a single drop.

It was my first visit to Cutler Park in Needham/ Dedham.  Started at the North end of the park on the Kendrick Pond Loop (a Healthy Heart Trail) and then at .7 miles in to the loop, I veered off to the Blue Heron Trail.  Took that out for about a mile and a half and then headed back to complete the Kendrick Pond Loop.

         Total Mileage: 4.33 miles/ 10,710 steps/ Duration: 1hr., 51 min./ Pace: 25:40 per mile.


Would love to go back and complete the Blue Heron Trail, which at times required some light, easy hiking.  I'm not entirely sure how long the trail actually is.


 The trails were not paved but extremely well-maintained.  The Heart Healthy Trail is the Kendrick Pond Loop at the North End of the Park. 1.25 miles. Easy. Lots of workers from nearby business parks around. The Blue Heron Trail was also very nice and well-maintained. Well-marked. There was still enough local foot traffic to feel not alone, but there was some great quality escape from everything time.

The downloadable map from the DCR website: sort of helpful in orienting myself, but the number markers for path intersections seemed to be off or wrong or inaccurate.   The iPhone gave me an accurate pinspot of my location, and the Blue Heron trail was marked on the Google Map.  It should also be noted that there is a description on the park in Appalachian Mountain Club's book Massachusetts Trail Guide.


More info:

Mass.gov Department of Conservation and Recreation: Cutler Park

Newton Conservators: Cutler Park

View Massachusetts Heart Healthy Trails in a larger map