Discover the Blue Hills Blue Hills Reservation Guide and Maps Friends of the Blue Hills PO Box 416 Milton, MA 02186 [email protected] Original edition produced by David Hodgdon and Thomas Palmer www.FriendsoftheBlueHills.org Friends of the Blue Hills 1 www.FriendsoftheBlueHills.org Introduction Whether you are a frequent sojourner in the Blue Hills, or a new glimpse of the unusual mating dance of the American woodcock. visitor, there is always something new to be explored in this inspiring You can spend your summers swimming at Houghton’s Pond, a landscape. Among the 7,000 plus acres there are opportunities to hike, kettle pond formation, gift of the glacial age, or pack your rod for some bike, ski, swim, climb and contemplate the simple beauty of nature. One fishing at Ponkapoag Pond. In the warmer months, try launching your can take a serpentine drive through the reservation, stopping to admire canoe on the Neponset River at Fowl Meadow. When the precipitation views along the way, or accept the challenge of hiking the Skyline Trail turns to snow, revisit Fowl Meadow for flat, easy cross-country skiing from beginning to end. or, alternatively, speed down the slopes at the Blue Hill Ski Area. For adventurous souls, there’s the challenge of biking Great Blue Hill or rock climbing on the vertical walls at Quincy Quarries in the northernmost part of the park. Those seeking a workout can hike the Skyline Trail from Quincy to Canton, a hike offering much elevation change and wonderful views. Even if you don’t consider yourself a serious hiker, you’ll still find easy rambles on trails that take you around Houghton’s Pond. Any time of year is a good time to take the children to the Blue Hills Trailside Museum to see the creatures that live in the park and learn about the Reservation’s rich history. The Blue Hills Reservation exists to provide recreation and enjoyment for all people and to preserve and protect this precious habitat for all living things that call it home. The Friends of the Blue Hills is a 1,000-member non-profit organization devoted to preserving and protecting the Blue Hills Reservation’s natural beauty, diverse natural habitats and many recreational opportunities. We invite you With this guide, you can explore each of the sections of the park. to join us in this mission by practicing good stewardship while in the As you explore the Reservation throughout the year you will find new reservation and by becoming a member. Enjoy this special place. delights as each season transforms the landscape. In the spring, bring your binoculars and head to Fowl Meadow in the 000s, where you are likely to spot a pileated woodpecker and other colorful birds or catch a Friends of the Blue Hills 2 www.FriendsoftheBlueHills.org About the Blue Hills Reservation The Blue Hills Reservation encompasses approximately 7,000 to charm each of them. Though it would take a lifetime to explore acres of woods, ponds, wetlands and elevated rock set aside by the thoroughly, much of it is right next to Boston, and it lies open on all Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1893 for its citizens to use and sides. Legally speaking, it belongs to everyone, and it offers a standing enjoy. It is centered on the Blue Hills themselves, a long sweep of invitation to stretch steep, stony ridges rising seven miles from Quincy’s historic granite your legs and walk quarries in the east to the massive dome of Blue Hill in Canton and over the earth as if you Milton in the west. Although none of the peaks is so much as a owned it. thousand feet high, they stand well above the surrounding lowlands, The Reservation and dominate the landscape in all directions. is managed for the The Reservation was conceived by landscape architect Charles Commonwealth by Eliot, as a contrast and counterpoint to metropolitan Boston’s then- the Department of existing parks, such as Boston Common and Jamaica Pond, in that Conservation and Nature, and not Art, would be its dominant theme. Instead of wide Recreation and is open lawns and manicured groves, it would feature deep forests, shaggy from dawn to dusk cliffs, and free-running water. He was convinced that no city should daily throughout the be without spacious tracts of dramatic natural scenery open to all, and year. Now more than since this kind of scenery was rapidly vanishing around Boston’s turn- 100 years old, it is the of-the-century metropolis, he chose one of the richest remaining lodes, largest component of the Blue Hills, as the site for his largest park. Other properties acquired Boston’s peripheral under his direction include Nantasket Beach and the Charles River park system, and it Esplanade. has become even more precious as the region’s population has grow significantly and modern Today his vision is largely intact, and the oasis he created in the development has reached out to Rt. 495 and beyond. Thanks to the Blue Blue Hills continues to draw thousands into its delightfully hilly Hills, there is no need to drive to the Berkshires or New Hampshire to woods for an hour or a day. Containing portions of Boston, Dedham, get a sizable helping of the New England outdoors in its natural state. Westwood, Canton, Milton, Randolph, Quincy and Braintree, the Reservation is vast enough to absorb multitudes and intimate enough Friends of the Blue Hills 3 www.FriendsoftheBlueHills.org ATHLETIC 4227 BLUE HILLS RESERVATION FIELDS 4011 4235 LANE 4014 4133 4223 4124 ATHLETIC FIELD 4086 4085 4234 4082 4102 Dollar 4049 Lane 4166 4096 Hemenway Pond 4134 3171 Hemlock 4053 Dr 4013 3131 1214 4052 3104 Squamaug Notch Path 3174 1165 1166 3094 3024 1182 1046 3065 1217 1121 1033 1154 1122 1208 1206 3051 3085 1023 1150 1170 1210 1209 1172 1051 3040 3155 2181 1010 Closed in winter in Closed 1186 1002 2072 1045 6670 6877 1050 3090 6650 6900 2071 6880 1030 6896 6891 1001 1003 5610 5620 CONCESSION Accord Path 5600 6600 STAND 5611 1077 1057 1079 LEGEND Intersection Marker: The four digit ATHLETIC FIELDS numbers seen on the map designate DESTINATION TRAILS are marked with rectangles and are designed trail intersections. Look for the for much longer and more strenuous day hikes. These are not loop trails corresponding white wooden signs so plan transportation back to your starting point. with black numbers on trees or posts along the trails. 5320 RULES AND REGULATIONS Blue rectangles mark the popular Skyline which traverses the entire 5322 Park open dawn to dusk. Blue Hills Range with many fantastic views. Note the north and south For the protection and enjoyment of the Blue Hills, branches in the western part of the reservation. Reservation Headquarters the following are prohibited: Length: 9 miles Hiking Time: 4 to 7 hours Littering 5218 Parking LOOP TRAILS are marked with dots. Loop trails begin and end at the Open fires 5380 same point at designated parking areas as marked on the map. Canoe Launch Metal detectors Alcoholic beverages Green dots mark several woodland loops which allow you to enjoy Restrooms (seasonal only) Pets, except on a leash the natural beauty of the reservation. 5370 5383 Observation Towers Hunting or trapping Length: 2.4 to 4 miles Hiking Time: 2 to 2.25 hours Posting or distributing leaflets Structure Red dots mark rugged, rocky loops over hilly terrain providing a Camping except at AMC Camp with permit more challenging hike. Narrow Trail Motorized vehicles, except on public roads 5413 Length: 1 to 3 miles Hiking Time: 1 to 2.25 hours Wide Trail Disruptive conduct, including public nudity Yellow dots mark short loops which enable you to enjoy parts of the Group use of 25 or more, except with a DCR permit Paved Road Destruction or removal of vegetation, animals, reservation in a small amount of time. structures, artifacts or other State property 5360 Length: 0.5 to 1 mile Hiking Time: 1 hour Railroad Off trail use without a permit DIRECTIONAL LOOP TRAILS are marked with triangles and both loops Town Boundary In addition, the following activities are allowed 5216 begin and end at the Houghton’s Pond main parking lot. These are designed Wetlands in designated areas only: 5355 as rolling routes for a fun mountain bike ride or long woodland hike. The trails Parking Pond 5420 are marked in one direction only and are to be followed counter-clockwise. Sporting activities White triangles mark the Forest Path loop in the Houghton’s Pond Brook, River Mountain bicycling section. This rambling 6-mile loop creates a long woodland hike Charcoal grills or fuel stoves Contour Lines or novice to intermediate mountain bike ride. 6 meter (19.7 ft) interval Non-motorized boating at Ponkapoag Pond Length: 6 miles Swimming at Houghton’s Pond 0 1⁄8 1⁄4 1⁄2 with lifeguard supervision Yellow triangles mark the Breakneck Ledge loop in the Great Blue ATHLETIC FIELD Hill section. This 4.5 mile loop provides a rocky, rugged and hilly All visitors must follow directions of Park personnel SCALE IN MILES experience for the advanced mountain biker or avid hiker. or Police. Any violations of these regulations may result Length: 4.5 miles MAP PRINTED WITH SOY INK AND ON RECYCLED PAPER. in arrest and/or fine per order of 302 Commonwealth of COLORS MAY CHANGE IN BRIGHT LIGHT. Massachusetts Regulations 12.00 STAY ON DCR DESIGNATED TRAILS FOR SAFETY AND RESOURCE PROTECTION DCR official map printed April 2016 Blue Hill The Blue Hill section is centered on Blue Hill itself, a 460-million- crosses a small gully, honors the Reservation’s creator, Charles Eliot.