Massachusett's Most Underutilized Attractions (Boston, Springfield: rentals, live, restaurants)

[lrfox]

Goyguy, Great post. I love Rockport and was hoping someone familiar with it would post little-known info on it. I've never heard of the paper house, but it sounds fascinating.

I have some quiet, secret spots too, but very few people know about them, and I'll never tell. The bigger destinations, however, I'll gladly share. thanks for sharing.

[missionhill]

Fruitlands in Harvard. Or the Harvard Forest in Petersham with exhibits on how the landscape has changed since European settlement. One very sweeping change is the creation of Quabbin Reservoir, which is a beautiful place to visit with lots of more and less developed public areas. Northampton is a great place to visit, hang out, etc. How about bucolic Shelburne Falls with its shops, crafts places, and Bridge of Flowers over the Deerfield River? Or Old Deerfield with its 17th century houses and exquisite Connecticut Valley setting? You can drive from Deerfield up to Buckland on Route 116 and 112, a really beautiful drive, though no more beautiful than Route 2, the Mohawk Trail, from Greenfield through North Adams to Williamstown. There's Mass MOCA in N Adams and the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Museum in Wmstown. In Hancock there's the Hancock Shaker Village. Elsewhere in the Berkshires lots of well known summertime attractions, but this thread is supposed to be about less well-known ones. In September West Springfield has a great agricultural fair, the Eastern States Exposition.

[goyguy]

One of my favorite spots in western Mass. is Bash Bish Falls. It's literally in the southwest corner of the state, just a hop skip and jump from both New York and Connecticut within the hamlet of Mt Washington. Niagara it isn't, but the water descends enough to have formed a pond at the base. The mist makes for excellent natural cooling on hot summer days along with the forested surroundings.

[lrfox]

I love Sprinfield's Big E. I do need to get out to the Berkshires more though. I rarely head out to Western Mass. and when I do, It's to the Springfield area. It's a shame as there's a lot to do out there.

I know it's certainly not lesser known, but Tanglewood is such an experience and I'd suggest everyone get out there at some point this summer. I also love leisure time in October Mountain State Forest (October Mountain State Forest). It's simply stunning in the fall, but no less beautiful in the summer.

October Mountain State Forest (from mass.gov):


I'm going to add Fall River's Heritage State Park/ The Battleship Cove Marine Park to the thread (photo of Heritage SP with U.S.S. Massachusetts of Battleship Cove in the background):


These two attractions are right next to each other on Fall River's waterfront. (Just off of I-195). Fall River Heritage State Park ( Fall River Heritage State Park ) is a free park which has a small museum, a nice boardwalk along the water, and a large, historic carousel overlooking the mouth of the Taunton River and the entrance to Mt. Hope Bay as well as the Braga Bridge.

Heritage State Park Museum:



Heritage State Park Carousel with Braga Bridge and Battleship Cove in Background (Marcfoto's picture from flickr.com):


Battleship Cove is the "world's largest naval ship exhibit." according to their website ( Battleship Cove, the world's largest historic naval ship exhibit. (http://www.battleshipcove.org/index.htm - broken link) ). The museum allows you to walk aboard and explore the interior and exterior of the Battleship Massachusetts, the U.S.S. Lionfish Submarine, The U.S.S. Joseph Kennedy Jr., and a Soviet Missile ship. These ships are afloat and you can board and walk around almost every room, play with the guns, honk the horn, and even get lunch in the mess hall.

Aside from the 4 large floating ships, Battleship Cove has a large number of aircraft to explore as well. There is a marine museum on site with exhibits of models and full scale replica ships as well (including a full size replica of JFK's PT Boat that you can explore). This complex is right next to the State Pier and Heritage State Park (in fact, they share a parking lot).

Battleship Cove:






The Narrows Center for the Arts ( Narrows Center for the Arts, Fall River, MA )is located in the same complex as the Battleship and Heritage SP. You can usually catch a good show here or just look at the art for sale in the gallery. The Water Street Cafe ( Welcome To Waterstreet Cafe ) out front has some excellent food and good live bands outdoors on summer nights.

Finally, Fall River is most famous for Lizzie Borden, the 19th century wealthy Fall River girl accused (but never convicted) of killing her mother and father with an axe. Her home is not only a museum, but also a bed and breakfast that has been named by the travel channel as one of the top 10 creepiest places in the world. Check out the Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast: Welcome To The Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast

[cartgy]

Yes the Big E is fun. But theres also the Basketball hall of fame, Bright Nights in Forest Park, and the Dr. Suess museum in Springfield (its not that great though).

Theres a huge Yankee Candle store in Deerfield.

In Ludlow they have the Lupa Zoo, its huge. They take unwanted animals.

The Quabbin Reservoir is fun to visit if you like fishing and hiking.

In East Longmeadow they have a rotary thats in the Guiness book of world records.

[lrfox]

Originally Posted by moonshadow

Seeing as the subject of ponds has come up, can anyone tell me of any ponds that have outdoor ice skating in the Winter?

I'm aware of Frog Pond at Boston Common but most of the other places for skating seem to be indoors. Or public areas that don't cater to tourists.

I'm looking for somewhere that's pretty and where you could maybe go skating at night with twinkly lights, it would need to have skate hire and a really good cup of hot chocolate being available wouldn't go astray either!

Sorry for the delay in response... I just forgot to answer this one. Kendall Square, across the Charles River from Boston in Cambridge ("Kendall" stop on the MBTA's Red Line subway) offers outdoor ice skating as well.

[goyguy]

Originally Posted by lrfox

Sorry for the delay in response... I just forgot to answer this one. Kendall Square, across the Charles River from Boston in Cambridge ("Kendall" stop on the MBTA's Red Line subway) offers outdoor ice skating as well.

Fumble recovery on my part too: There's a rink constructed every winter on the brick plaza outside the Charles Hotel in Harvard Square (corner of Bennet and Eliot Streets.) Hardly anyone uses it, so you could glide all over without feeling like you're in the roller derby.

[goyguy]

October Mountain - excellent call! The one day I was there was a Sunday in July, but during the whole time I was hiking through I didn't see any other humans. It doesn't boast of any sweeping vistas or endangered-species havens, but I got that back-to-nature feeling within minutes of watching the last houses on the boundary fade from sight. Helping that was the landing of a large hawk which heralded its arrival with loud calls and raised wings.

New motels and an outlet mall haven't done much to diminish the charm of Lee, one of the towns bordering the forest. I'm not talking "charm" in the sense of cutely restored houses and blocks of antique shops - that's manufactured. To me there's something appealing about strolling through a place that calls its main street Main St. Lee is where people greet acquaintances and strangers alike when on foot, or with a friendly beep of the horn. Until not too long ago, the bus depot was in a drug store. Joe's Diner (its real name) still anchors the east end of downtown; whether it's still open around the clock but never on Sunday is something another reader hopefully can answer. Nearly a century's gone by since Sinclair Lewis' "Main Street" ripped the facade away from "friendly small towns." That book goes a long way toward explaining to the uninitiated why so many Americans foresake their birthplaces in favor of urban areas. But as a visitor to Lee, you can enjoy that facade. Also to be enjoyed - especially during fall foliage time - is Laurel Lake, just north of downtown on the main road. There's also a seasonal excursion train to neighboring Stockbridge that departs from the old train station.

[BillyPilgrim]

The Christian Science Church in Boston houses the world's only maparium, a stained glass globe of unbelievable acoustics that you walk inside of.

[madaly320]

thanks for the info. I live next to New Bedford and usually try to avoid it at all costs, but I do often forget that there are many interesting things to see.