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Massachusetts > Greater Boston and Cambridge >
Outdoor Activities >
State and Local Parks
Massachusetts - State and Local Parks in Greater Boston and Cambridge
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Boston Common Frog Pond
Boston Common
Boston, MA
Phone: 617-635-2120
The Frog Pond was originally one of three natural mud ponds in the
area that became Boston Common, the nation's first public park established
in 1634. As other natural ponds were filled in to accommodate the growing
city, the Frog Pond became a popular oasis for Bostonians both young and
old. Favorite activities included sailing model boats, wading, and ice
skating. The renovated Frog Pond features a 16,000-square-foot ice skating
surface operable in temperatures up to 55 degrees. In warm weather the Frog
Pond features a 70-foot-high spray fountain and wading. During spring and
fall it is used as a shallow reflecting pool.
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Boston Harbor Islands National Park Area
Boston, MA
Phone: 617-223-8666
See Map
Boston Harbor Islands National Park Area offers a quiet place to relax, explore, camp, swim, fish or picnic. Tours to Boston Light ("The ultimate Lighthouse experience," according to the Boston Globe) operate Thursday-Sunday from June to October. Ranger narrated Discovery Cruises and Sunset Cruises are offered on a frequent basis in the summer. Ranger-led activities and special events are offered on many islands for a variety of audiences. Not only are these islands a source of natural beauty and wonder--they're also rich in history and legends, with tales of pirates, shipwrecks, wars, abandoned prisons, and even ghosts! It's all right in Boston Harbor and accessible by boat or public ferry from Long Wharf downtown or the South Shore... so near, and yet so far away!
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Callahan State Park
Edmands Street
Framingham, MA
Phone: 508-653-9641
See Map
Callahan has seven miles of marked trails and is used for activities including fishing, hiking, horseback riding (horses not provided) and cross-country skiing. Within the park are nearly 100 acres of open fields. Recreational activities include mountain biking, hiking, horseback riding, cross-country skiing, and walking.
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Castle Island, Pleasure Bay, M Street Beach and Carson Beach
William J. Day Boulevard
South Boston, MA
Phone: 617-727-5290
See Map
Fort Independence, built between 1834 and 1851, is the dominating feature of this historic site, surrounded by a small park with fishing and swimming areas, and bike trails.
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Cochituate State Park
Route 30
Natick, MA
Phone: 508-653-9641
See Map
Cochituate State Park is a popular regional day use park featuring water-based recreational opportunities including boating, swimming, windsurfing, and fishing on its three large lakes. Picnicking, swimming, and boat launching are limited to the main area of the park on the middle lake and boaters can gain access to the other lakes through channels under roadways. Jet skis are not allowed on the lake.
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Hopkinton State Park
268 Cedar Street
Hopkinton, MA
Phone: 508-435-4303
See Map
Hopkinton State Park offers a year-round recreation, including two guarded swimming beaches, stocked fishing, a group picnic site, 12 shaded picnic areas, 10 miles of marked trails, open field space, a boat launching ramp for non-motorized watercraft, and seasonal boat rentals. The swimming areas are supervised by lifeguards from late May through Labor Day. The waterfront has a handicapped accessible ramp. Hours: Summer, 8 a.m.-8 p.m.; rest of the year, 8 a.m.-sunset. Pets on leash are welcome. Trail system is multi-use. Hikers, mountain bikers, equestrians, cross country skiers are welcome. Snowmobiles are permitted when snow cover is at least four inches deep.
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Mystic River Reservation -- Mystic Lakes -- Sandy Beach
Off Mystic Valley Parkway
Medford, Somerville, Everett, MA
Phone: 617-727-5380
Open year round, dawn to dusk. The banks of the Mystic River are almost entirely publicly owned from the Amelia Earhart Dam at the mouth of the Mystic Lakes. The property includes:
Mary O'Malley Park.
The park has striking views of the harbor and the Tobin Bridge over the Mystic River. A boat landing and shelter are located on an historic granite pier and a wind sculpture by William Wainwright enlivens the waterfront. Tennis courts and a large open lawn area for concerts and picnics are also available.
Torbert Macdonald Park. Macdonald Park has an award-winning landscape design of the meandering paths, trees and open lawns provides space for rest and enjoyment as well as bicycling, jogging, walking and informal games in a riverside setting.
Draw Seven Park. The Draw Number Seven Railroad Bridge, which once crossed the Mystic River, gave this park its name. This park provides field game space for Somerville and adjacent communities. Draw Seven Park offers nine acres of parkland including two soccer fields, a bikeway/walkway, a picnic area with shelter and beautiful landscaping.
Mystic Lakes. Today the Mystic Lakes are popular for freshwater swimming at Sandy Beach. Special sailing programs are available at the Tufts University Boathouse. The Upper Mystic Lake is for non-powered boats only. The Lower Mystic Lake is for power boats with no wake. Information about Shannon Beach: 617-727-5380.
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Revere Beach
Revere Beach Blvd.
Revere, MA
Phone: 781-289-3020
See Map
Lifeguards are on duty from late June to early September. Revere Beach boasts miles of shoreline which welcomes throngs of visitors every summer. Along the boulevard there is a bandstand for summer concerts, a bathhouse and many shade shelters. Revere Beach is very accessible by public transportation which makes it a popular spot for people from all around metro Boston. Open year round, dawn to dusk.
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“The Guardsman” – Stockbridge Now through July 31, 2010 |
Circus Smirkus – Wilbraham, MA July 30, 2010 to July 31, 2010 |
Comedian Chelsea Handler -- Hyannis July 31, 2010 |
Paquito D'Rivera and Synchronicity – Rockport July 31, 2010 |
Black Sea Salsa -- Hingham, MA July 31, 2010 |
Aretha Franklin and her Orchestra -- Cohasset August 1, 2010 |
Chamber music and dinner at the Clark – Williamstown, MA August 3, 2010 |
Tanglewood on Parade -- Lenox, MA August 3, 2010 |
Talking Hands Theatre Puppet Show -- Springfield, MA August 3, 2010 |
George Thorogood and The Destroyers -- Cohasset August 5, 2010 |
"Snow White" with Kaleidoscope Children’s Theatre -- Cohasset, MA August 5, 2010 |
Lisa Lampenelli -- Hyannis, MA August 5, 2010 |
Gloucester Sidewalk Days -- Gloucester, MA August 5, 2010 to August 7, 2010 |
Suzanne Vega and Patty Larkin at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 6, 2010 |
School of Rock Presents: Live Aid Remade -- Arlington, MA August 6, 2010 |
Ronan Tynan -- Hyannis August 6, 2010 |
Kiddie Rock Concert: Princess Katie & Racer Steve -- Amherst, MA August 7, 2010 |
Herbie Hancock at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 7, 2010 |
Bharata Natyam with Jaan R. Freeman -- Arlington, MA August 7, 2010 |
Crane Beach Sandblast -- Ipswich, MA August 7, 2010 |
Onset Blues Festival -- Onset, MA
August 7, 2010 |
Massachusetts Marketplace Festival -- Wellesley, MA August 7, 2010 |
The Beach Boys -- Hyannis August 7, 2010 |
The Beach Boys -- Cohasset, MA August 8, 2010 |
Cellist Yo-Yo Ma and his Silk Road Ensemble -- Lenox August 8, 2010 |
Circus Smirkus – Revere, MA August 8, 2010 to August 9, 2010 |
Herbie Hancock – Lenox, MA August 9, 2010 |
Taste of Park Plaza – Boston, MA August 10, 2010 |
Peter Frampton -- Hyannis, MA August 10, 2010 |
Gabriel Iglesias -- Hyannis August 11, 2010 |
"Goldilocks and The Three Bears" with Kaleidoscope Children’s Theatre -- Cohasset, MA August 12, 2010 |
Entrain! – Sandwich, MA August 12, 2010 |
Lyle Lovett and His Large Band at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 13, 2010 |
Provincetown Jazz Festival -- Provincetown, MA August 13, 2010 to August 14, 2010 |
Hookers Ball -- Chatham, MA August 14, 2010 |
Hookers Ball -- Chatham, MA August 14, 2010 |
Adega Coop De Borba Wine Tasting -- Attleboro, MA August 14, 2010 |
Tony Bennett -- Cohasset, MA August 14, 2010 |
Jonathan Edwards and Aztec Two-Step at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 14, 2010 |
Film Night at Tanglewood – Lenox August 14, 2010 |
Gloucester Waterfront Festival -- Gloucester, MA August 14, 2010 to August 15, 2010 |
Iron Bridge Dinner -- Shelburne Falls, MA August 15, 2010 |
Little Red Riding Hood..The Musical -- Saugus, MA August 15, 2010 |
Boston's Children's Festival -- Boston, MA August 17, 2010 |
Walker Bros. Circus -- Pepperell, MA August 17, 2010 |
Grand Illumination at the Tabernacle -- Martha’s Vineyard, MA August 18, 2010 |
"Jack and The Beanstalk" with Kaleidoscope Children’s Theatre -- Cohasset, MA August 19, 2010 |
The B-52s at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 20, 2010 |
Fireworks at Ocean Park By The Sea -- Martha’s Vineyard, MA August 20, 2010 |
Comedian Lewis Black -- Cohasset August 21, 2010 |
CraftFest -- Cotuit August 21, 2010 to August 22, 2010 |
James Montgomery Blues Band at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 21, 2010 |
Sandcastle and Sculpture Day -- Nantucket, MA August 21, 2010 |
All-Chopin concert -- Lenox August 24, 2010 to August 26, 2010 |
Marcia Ball at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 27, 2010 |
Natalie MacMaster at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 28, 2010 |
Shakespeare's “Twelfth Night” at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA August 29, 2010 |
Summer Chef Series -- North Andover, MA August 30, 2010 |
Summer Chef Series -- North Andover, MA August 30, 2010 |
Crosby, Stills, & Nash – Lenox September 1, 2010 |
Gandalf Murphy and the Slambovian Circus of Dreams at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA September 3, 2010 |
Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA September 4, 2010 |
Robert Randolph and the Family Band at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA September 10, 2010 |
Banjo and Fiddle Contests at the Lowell Summer Music Series – Lowell, MA September 11, 2010 |
Dave Matthews Tribute Band -- Salisbury September 16, 2010 |
Halfway to St Patrick’s Day Irish Music Weekend -- Salisbury September 17, 2010 to September 19, 2010 |
The Magic of Storytime with Cinderella and Snow White -- Saugus, MA September 19, 2010 |
North American Sea Glass Festival -- Hyannis, MA October 9, 2010 to October 10, 2010 |
Wellfleet OysterFest -- Wellfleet, MA October 16, 2010 to October 17, 2010 |
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