Did you know that you can walk from here: 
to here: 
on a route that is almost entirely through parkland? Read on for details.
This walk is about 6.5 miles long. It takes about 3 hours.
The trip starts and ends at an MBTA bus stop in Newton Center. An alternate approach involves leaving one car in Newton Center and driving to the start of the walk in a second car. |
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| By MBTA from Newton Center to Charles River Path |
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Begin the walk at the
MBTA bus stop on the southbound side of Centre Street, in front of the First Baptist Church.
Take the number 52 bus.
Be sure to check the bus schedule. There is no Sunday service, and the bus runs less than once an hour on Saturdays.
Alternately, you may want to leave one car in Newton Center, and drive in a second car to the start of the route. |
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Get off the bus at the corner of Wiswall Road and Walsh Road.
If you are driving, Wiswall Road is off Dedham Street, just past Brookline Street. map |
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| Turn left and walk to the end of Walsh Road. |
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| Charles River Path:
Wells Avenue |
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| Turn right on Saw Mill Brook Parkway, and walk just a few feet to where the road ends, at the entrance to the Charles River Path. |
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The walk starts with a side trip to the banks of the Charles, for one of the nicest views of the day. But if you prefer to skip that trip, you'll cut about a mile off of the hike. To skip ahead, click here.
Otherwise, walk straight ahead as you enter the park. Follow the path for a while, as it turns right and then approaches a soccer field. Turn left into the woods before you reach the soccer field. |
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| Continue straight through a "T" intersection. |
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| Keep right at a fork. |
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The path reaches the Charles River.
Retrace your steps to where you first entered the park. |
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Turn right to continue on the path.
If you skipped the excursion to the Charles River, you are starting the walk at this point. From Saw Mill Brook Parkway, enter the park and turn left onto the path. |
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| Brook Farm |
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| At a signpost, turn left towards Gethsemane Cemetery and Brook Farm. |
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| Bear left on the path as you near the cemetery. |
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| Turn left onto the road. |
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At the next gate, turn left onto a path.
This route includes a few feet of very poorly maintained trail. If you prefer to avoid a bit of bushwacking, just continue on the road. (We'll rejoin it soon.) But the path goes through a really nice woods. |
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| Continue through the woods. The cellar hole of one of the Brook Farm buildings is on your left. |
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| Here's where the bushwaking starts. The trail resumes about 50 feet ahead of you. |
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| Duck under this. |
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| Back on the trail. The road is just a few feet ahead. Turn left when you reach it. |
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| The road passes an old Brook Farm building. |
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| When you reach Dedham Street, turn right onto the sidewalk. |
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| St. Joseph's Cemetery |
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| Walk just a few feet on the Dedham Street sidewalk, then carefully cross the street and walk up this driveway into St. Joseph's Cemetery. |
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| Walk up the driveway a few feet, and turn left onto a cemetery road. |
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| Continue straight through three intersections, as the road gradually curves to the right. |
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| The road crosses a small bridge. Turn left just past the bridge. |
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| Another road joins from the right. |
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| Just past the road, turn left onto the grass. |
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| A circular marker on one of the trees indicates the start of the path into the woods. |
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| Saw Mill Brook Conservation Area |
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| Enter Saw Mill Brook Conservation Area. |
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| Follow the path to the right. |
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| The path skirts the edge of Kesseler Woods. Once the trail system of that newly aquired land is developed, we'll redo this route to go through Kesseler Woods. |
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| The trail ends at Vine Street. Turn left. |
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| Turn right on Botsford Road. |
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| Turn left on Pond Brook Road. |
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| Cross Brookline Street and continue on Pond Brook. |
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| Kennard Conservation Area |
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| Pond Brook Road ends at the entrance to Kennard Conservation Area. |
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| Walk down the steps, and turn right. |
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| You'll soon come to a fork. The right fork leaves the park. You'll take the left fork. |
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| In just a few steps, turn left at a trail intersection. Ahead on your trail is a tree marked with two red stripes. |
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| Go straight through a "T" intersection, passing a trail that goes off to your left. |
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| Lost Pond Reservation |
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| Pass through a gap in a stone fence, to enter Brookline's Lost Pond Reservation. |
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| The trail is marked with two red stripes. |
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| Turn left when the trail ends at a T intersection. |
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| Turn right at the next T intersection. Brown stripes mark both the trail that goes straight ahead (which you don't want) and the one that turns right (which you do). |
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| Turn right on the spur to Lost Pond. |
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| Enjoy Lost Pond, and then retrace your steps. Turn right on the main trail. |
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| Turn left at the next trail junction. (The map kiosk shown in this view is no longer there.) |
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| Leave the park and walk one block along Arlington Road. |
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| Turn right on Heath Street and walk one block to Hammond Pond Parkway. |
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| Cross the street, turn left and cross Heath Street, and walk along the sidewalk of Hammond Pond Parkway towards Route 9. |
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| Cross the Route 9 frontage road. |
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| Walk under the Route 9 bridge. |
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| Hammond Pond Reservation and Webster Conservation Area |
Continue past the Chestnut Hill Shopping Center parking lot, to the driveway marked by a sign for Hammond Pond Reservation.
Refreshments and rest rooms are available in the shopping center. |
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From the driveway, turn left into the first parking lot. At the end of the lot is a kiosk marking the trail.
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| Walk past the ledge used by local rock climbers. |
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| Herons can often be spotted in Hammond Pond. |
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| Turn left at the first fork. |
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| Cross Hammond Pond Parkway with care. Turn right and walk about 100 yards alongside the road. |
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Enter the woods just before a rock outcrop.
The trails in this area are not well marked. Your goal is to proceed in a westerly direction, straight through the park to the exit on Warren Street. |
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| The trail, marked by blue and red blazes, bears right around Cake Rock. |
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| Continue on the blue-blazed trail. |
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| The trail is now marked with orange and green blazes. |
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| Turn left at a fork, following an orange blaze. |
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| Turn right at a T; the signs are orange and green again. |
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| Turn right at another T, following green blazes. |
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| The green trail curves to the left; then go straight through a T. |
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| Go right at the next T, still following green blazes. |
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| As you approach a fenced property, bear right, still following green blazes. |
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| Turn left at the signs, and exit the conservation area. |
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| Walk straight ahead on Warren Street. |
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| Cross Glen Avenue and continue straight ahead. |
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| Turn right on Langley Road. Newton Center is two blocks ahead. |
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