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Walden Pond State Reservation, Concord

4.5

#3 of 79 in Nature in Massachusetts

State Park Historic Site

The scenic Walden Pond State Reservation is a popular site for reflecting on nature and learning about conservation history. Writer and philosopher Henry David Thoreau lived here from 1845 to 1848, inspiring his book "Walden," which helped garner respect for the environment in the United States. The legacy of Thoreau and his book enabled the pond to achieve National Historic Landmark status, and it is credited as the conservation movement's birthplace. You can visit a replica of where Thoreau lived and follow a hiking trail to the site of the original cabin. Explore the surrounding forest, and, if weather permits, enjoy a dip in the clean pond water. In keeping with conservation efforts, the number of daily visitors is limited. It couldn't be easier to arrange your visit to Walden Pond State Reservation and many more Concord attractions: make an itinerary online using Inspirock's Concord travel itinerary maker.

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493 reviews

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4.7

Nirupama K

It was nice to visit what was perhaps the inspiration and the starting point of Thoreau's conservationist efforts. A walk around the lake takes about an hour and is time well spent. more »
AmandaB8

...If he knew the tourist trap, over regulated charade his beloved pond has become! We drove 2 hours in Boston traffic to see the sacred location and it was CLOSED because it was too full! If you do e... more »
S. H

The pond, that we would call a lake is so nice and tranquil. You can swim here so I would think it would be busy on the weekends. more »

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Brandon Nelsen

After moving to Concord last fall, I can see why you would want to visit Walden Pond from anywhere the in the world. Soak in its majesty. Explore its mystery. Calm yourself by its shore. This place is majestic, and I have spent many days walking its shoreline, meeting new people, and playing in its cool water. People are swimming, reading, relaxing, playing a pick-up game of something, and loving all that the pond has to offer. I hope to see you there, soon!

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Nathan Cragun

This was one of my favorite places that we visited in the Boston area. There are a bunch of trails around the pond which you can hike. There were patches of mud from time to time in the forest, so wear shoes that can get a little dirty. We went in the winter, so I can't speak to the swimming, but the beauty of nature here was so relaxing and inspiring. The visitor center was brand new when we were here (Jan 2017), so it was clean and had some nice explanatory exhibits. The ranger there was very helpful. This is worth a visit if you like peaceful outdoors locations.

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Rated by Hanna

This place is currently undergoing a "green renovation" and none of the bathrooms were open on Sunday! There were only porta-potties available so -1 star for the restroom situation until the new place is completed! Other than the extremely inconvenient bathroom situation this is a lovely place to visit to get away from the city and walk on the trails or along the beach. They also have the interesting model Thoreau log cabin and a statue of him. It looks like they also do tours occasionally my friends and I discreetly joined in on a tour to learn some more information about the park. I haven't been here for swimming but the water looks lovely! It's $8 per car to get into the park for the day, but if you live near by you can just bike/walk here and get in for free.

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Ginger Redhead

The weather was mixed when I visited. It is a nice calm lake with seemingly clear water. Good place to relax.

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Forest Universe

This is a very inspiring and magical place to contemplate the book that Thoreau wrote and all the issues with modern society but I don't like how the state runs it and how they've turned it into everything that Thoreau would oppose

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