HIKE REPORT
Wednesday, 27 December 2023, Waltham: Prospect Hill Park winter hike
Hike Leaders: Barbara Jacobs and Ted Nyder
4 miles, 10:00 am start from Waltham, MA
Hikers (18): Barbara, Ted, Annemarie Altman, Betty Salzberg, David Wean, Don Mannes, Janet Miller, Jeffrey Wallen, Judy Perrin, Lynn O'Riorden, Marie Keutmann, Melissa Norton, Mike Hanauer, Molly Schaeffer, Phyllis Evan, Susan Linz, Susan Sabin, and Zach Woods.
Our walk took us through Historic Prospect Hill Park in Waltham. As churches split, the land was divided through Dividend Land Grants. The park has many stone walls demarcating property boundaries that were established through land grants between 1636-1638. The properties were used as woodlots, providing timber for building homes in nearby neighborhoods and firewood for cooking and heating. There was very little farming because of the hilliness of the area.
Our first stop was at the lean-tos and stone fireplace built for the Boy Scouts in 1934 by the Emergency Relief Administration. We continued walking up the hill and came to two water towers built in 1974 by the city. These water towers contain eight million gallons of water, providing water pressure throughout the city. Then we checked out the trails of the old ski area (1948-1989) and the Summer House Shelter that was originally built in 1895 and provides views of the Cambridge Reservoir. Alongside the water towers we came to an old Radio Telescope used by the Air Force to look for sunspots and solar storms in the 1960s; it is now used by amateur radio clubs.
As we walked the Ridge Trail we came to Big Prospect, Little Prospect, and Boston Rock to see views of Boston and the surrounding area. We followed several trails to exit the park and take a short stroll on the Waltham section of the Mass Central Rail Trail, returning into the park through the trails of Berry Park, acquired by the city in 2016, where we saw the remains of a pump house.
Fifteen of us had lunch at the Craft Food Hall after the hike.
Here is a video of a member of the Waltham Historical Society talking about the history of Waltham and Prospect Hill Park (if anyone is interested): https://www.
The photo is of the group at the Big Prospect overlook.
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