Connection with Nature: Discovering Massachusetts
I lived in NYC for five years. There were many things I loved about the city, and there were many things I dealt with because that was just how city life was. One thing I missed was a connection with nature - there was nature in the city (i.e. parks), but it always involved a long commute because I was not in the correct neighborhoods. Additionally, camping and other ventures outside the city were limited to those who had cars.
After moving to Western Mass, my connection to nature was maximized. Anywhere I went I felt connected - the local nature preserve, driving through the hill towns of the Berkshires, driving the Mass Pike and seeing the lakes, bogs, and farmland, visiting the Cape Cod National Seashore, and of course visiting the countless state and national parks and historic monuments. T and I had moved to Mass during the summer of 2020 which limited the amount of exposure we had with most recreational activities in the state as they were all closed and slow to re-open. Now, as the vaccine is being distributed, we gave ourselves a little quest for the next three years: visit every single Massachusetts National and State Park.
In order to complete this self-imposed challenge, we plan to head to at least one park each week for the next ~180 weeks, or more as we are able. Between now and July we are trying to prioritize short day trips to limit exposure, and then toward the end of the year we will slowly look at full weekend-and-week trips (aka camping, hiking, etc). After visiting each park, I will share the trip planning deets, my favorites photographs and experiences, as well as any art that was inspired by our time there. <3
This will be a fun adventure for both of us as we originally connected over our love of nature and our shared history of camping, hiking, and general outdoor activities. T is originally from Mass, so he was excited to experience the parks and their history as an adult versus as a youngster on family camping trip or with boy scouts. Meanwhile, I have only been to the places that we have gone to together, so it seems like everything is new to me. T and I have already visited some locations on this list over the past couple years, however, we are starting from scratch as of March 2021.
Thanks for joining me and T on this journey!
xo,
Kerstin
Here is the list (will cross off as completed):
Alewife Brook Reservation, Cambridge
Ames Nowell State Park, Abington
Appalachian Trail, Lanesborough
Ashland State Park, Ashland
Ashuwillticook Rail Trail, Cheshire
Bash Bish Falls State Park, Mt. Washington
Beartown State Forest
Beaver Brook Reservation, Belmont
Belle Isle Marsh Reservation, East Boston
Blackstone River and Canal Heritage State Park, Uxbridge
Blue Hills Reservation, Milton
Borderland State Park, North Easton
Boston Harbor Islands, Boston
Bradley Palmer State Park, Topsfield
Breakheart Reservation, Saugus
Brimfield State Forest, Brimfield
Bristol Blake State Reservation, Norfolk
Brook Farm Historic Site, West Roxbury
C.M. Gardner State Park, Huntington
Callahan State Park, Framingham,
Camp Nihan Education Center, Saugus
Cape Cod Rail Trail, Brewster
Castle Island, Pleasure Bay, Street Beach and Carson Beach, Boston
Charles River Reservation, Boston
Chestnut Hill Reservation, Brighton
Chicopee Memorial State Park, Chicopee (March 19, 2021)
Clarksburg State Park, Natick
Connecticut River Greenway State Park, Northampton
Constitution Beach Park, Boston
Cutler Park Reservation, Needham
Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) State Forest, Goshen
Demarest Lloyd State Park, Dartmouth
Dighton Rock State Park, Berkley
Douglas State Forest, Douglas
Dunn State Park, Gardner
Ellisville Harbor State Park, Plymouth
Elm Bank Reservation, Wellsesley
Erving State Forest, Erving
F. Gilbert Hills State Forest, Foxborough
Fall River Heritage State Park, Fall River
Farnham-Connolly State Park, Canton
Federated Women's Club State Forest, Petersham
Fort Phoenix State Reservation, Fairhaven
Fort Revere Park, Hull
Francis D. Martini Memorial Shell Park and Moynihan Recreation Area, Boston
Franklin State Forest, Franklin
Freetown-Fall River State Forest, Assonet
Georgetown-Rowely State Forest, Georgetown
Granville State Forest, Granville
Great Brook Farm State Park, Carlisle
Great Falls Discovery Center, Turners Falls
Halibut Point State Park, Rockport
Hammond Pond Reservation, Newton
Harold Parker State Forest, North Andover
Hemlock Gorge Reservation, Newton
Holyoke Heritage State Park, Holyoke
Hopkinton State Park, Hopkinton
Horseneck Beach State Reservation, Westport
Houghton's Pond Recreation Area, Milton
Jug End State Reservation & Wildlife Management Area, Egremont
Kenneth Dubuque Memorial State Forest, Plainfield
Lake Dennison Recreation Area, Baldwinville
Lake Wyola State Park, Shutesbury
Lawrence Heritage State Park, Lawrence
Leo J Martin Memorial Golf Course, Weston
Leo J Martin Ski Track, Weston
Leominster State Forest, Westminster
Lowell Heritage State Park, Lowell
Lowell-Dracut-Tyngsboro State Forest, Lowell
Lower Neponset River Trail, Boston
Lynn Shore and Nahant Beach Reservation, Nahant
Manuel F. Correllus State Forest, Edgartown
Mary O'Malley State Park, Chelsea
Massasoit State Park, East Taunton
Maudslay State Park, Newburyport
Melnea A. Cass Recreational Complex, Roxbury
Middlesex Fells Reservation, Stoneham
Mohawk Trail State Forest, Charlemont
Monroe State Forest, Monroe
Moore State Park, Praxton
Mount Everett State Reservation, Mt. Washington
Mount Grace State Park, Warwick
Mount Greylock State Reservation, Lanesborough
Mount Holyoke Range State Park, Amherst
Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation, South Deerfield
Mount Tom State Reservation, Holyoke
Mount Washington State Forest, Mount Washington
Myles Standish Monument State Reservation, Duxbury
Myles Standish State Forest, Carver
Mystic Lakes State Park, Medford
Mystic River State Reservation, Medford
Nantasket Beach Reservation, Hull
Nashua River Rail Trail, Ayer
Nasketucket Bay State Reservation, Mattapoisett
National Monument to the Forefathers, Plymouth
Natural Bridge State Park, North Adams
Neponset River Reservation, Boston
Nickerson State Park, Brewster (March 5, 2021)
Norwottuck Rail Trail, Northampton
October Mountain State Forest, Lee
Otter River State Forest, Baldwinville
Pearl Hill State Park, West Townsend
Pilgrim Memorial State Park, Plymuth
Pittsfield State Forest, Pittsfield
Ponkapoag Golf Course, Canton
Pope John Paul II Park Reservation, Boston
Purgatory Chasm State Reservation, Sutton
Quabbin Reservoir, Belchertown
Quincy Quarries Reservation, Quincy
Quincy Shores Reservation, Quincy
Quinsigamond State Park, Worcester
Rehoboth State Forest, Rehoboth
Revere Beach Reservation, Revere
Robinson State Park, Feeding Hills
Roxbury Heritage State Park, Boston
Rumney Marsh Reservation, Saugus
Rutland State Park, Rutland
Salisbury Beach State Reservation, Salisbury
Sandisfield State Forest (York Lake), New Marlboro
Sandy Point State Reservation, Ipswich
Savoy Mountain State Forest, Florida
Scusset Beach State Reservation, Sagamore
Shawme-Crowell State Forest, Sandwich
Skinner State Park, Hadley
South Cape Beach State Park, Mashpee
Southern New England Trunkline, Douglas
Southwest Corridor Park, Boston
Spencer State Forest, Spencer
Squantum Piint Park, Quincy
Stodder's Neck & Abigail adams Park, Hingham
Stony Brook Reservation, Boston
Sudbury Reservoir, Southborough
Tolland State Forest, Eat Otis
Upton State Forest, Upton
Wachusett Mountain State Reservation, Princeton
Wachusett Reservoir, West Boylston
Wahconah Falls State Park, Dalton
Walden Pond State Reservation, Concord
Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research reserve, East Falmouth
Watson Pond State Park, Taunton
Webb Memorial State Park, North Weymouth
Wellfleet Hollow State Campground, Wellfleet
Wells State Park, Sturbridge
Wendell State Forest, Millers Falls
Western Gateway Heritage State Park, North Adams
Whitehall State Park, Hopkinton
Willard Brook State Forest, West Townsend
Willowdale State Forest, Topsfield
Wilson Mountain Reservation, Dedham
Windsor State Forest, Windsor
Winthrop Shore Reservation, Winthrop
Wompatuck State Park
Wrentham State Forest, Wrentham
* List derived from Mass.gov