Two Famous Swing-Era Ballrooms, plus lots more! - December 18, 2024

 HIKE REPORT

Wednesday, 18 December 2024,, Two Famous Swing-Era Ballrooms, plus lots more!

Hike Leaders:  Zach Woods & Judy Perrin

5.8 miles (~4 hours including lunch), 10:00 am start from Auburndale, MA

Hikers (21):  Judy, Zach, Aiko Pinkoski, Barbara Jacobs, David Goldberg, David Wean, Gerry Sheetoo, Jim Whinfield, Joanne Samuels, Kristina Leclaire, Marc Webb, Marie Keutmann, Mike Hanauer, Patrick Ward, Phyllis Evan, Renee Rees, Steven Venizelos, Susan Amsel, Susan Sabin, Ted Nyder, and Todd Palmer.

 

The weather was almost too warm and sunny, but our large group enjoyed exploring along the Charles River starting in Auburndale, moving east to Waltham, and then crossing the river to head back west to Weston and, eventually, east into Auburndale.  Along with enjoying the scenery and chatting along the way, we stopped to talk about recreation, industry, and history.

 

At about the halfway point, lunch was enjoyed at the South Street Cafe in Waltham.  There were some good laughs along the way as we passed by the Norumbega Tower that was built in an effort to reinforce the inaccurate claim that Vikings had settled along the Charles River in the early 1000s, and as we passed the Boston Marriott which is no longer owned by Marriott and is located in Auburndale, not Boston.

 

There was also a lot of interest in the life and significant first in history achievements of early woman architect, Ida Annah Ryan.  We even discovered, as we walked by different locations, that folks among our number were famously connected to those locations as follows:  one plays Pickleball at The Cove; one attended a college visible along the way; one grew up in a neighborhood we passed; another’s childhood home was visible across the Charles River from our route; one member of the group had attended their high school prom in the Totem Pole Ballroom in Norumbega Park (before it burned down)!

 

Report by Zach Woods.

 

Photos:

     The group admiring the Norumbega Tower and the view from the top of the Tower (photos by David Wean).

     View of the Waltham Watch Factory across the Charles River from the Mt. Feake Cemetery (photo by Kristina Leclaire).