Fall in the Fens

Fall has arrived in earnest. The mornings are colder and the evenings darker; scarves and sweaters are donned as the leaves begin to fall in the crisp autumn air, and Bostonians stop where they did not stop before, to take note of the colorful world around them. Here are weekend photographs of the Fens, as I made my way to a coffeehouse this past Sunday morning. The weather was appropriately overcast, so that no clouds could compete with the splendor of the trees. The Back Bay Fens are a perfect place to pause and observe the magic of New England's favorite season.

Nearby: Purgatory Chasm

  This past weekend was a perfect opportunity to visit Purgatory Chasm State Reservation, located about an hour from Boston in nearby Sutton. It was an easy drive on a lovely morning with temperatures lingering in the 60s. The park is filled with numerous trails but the real gem is the chasm itself, a near mile long space both filled and cradled by high, granite rocks on either side. To pass through the chasm means to climb over some of these rocks and marvel at others-for this reason, proper footwear is necessary...if one isn't careful, a quick slip could mean a broken ankle. I spent a little more than an hour exploring the reservation, passing through the chasm from both ends and hiking a few of the nearby trails. Without a doubt, the park is one of the most unique settings I have seen in Massachusetts and I would happily return back for a hike and picnic on the rocks.

The August Garden, the August Common

September has arrived, but August was glorious. Here are late summer moments captured in the Public Garden or Common, all taken by the iphone, during my mornings before work. 

A Saturday Evening in Olmsted Park

Here are pictures from a recent Saturday evening stroll through Olmsted Park, a place I have enjoyed immensely this summer.  Now are the twilight days of the season,  before the arrival of autumn and all the wonder the fall months carry. The days are shortening and the sun retires earlier and earlier, but before it does, therein lies the magic hour, when shots like the ones above were taken, thanks to the iphone 5. Here's to embracing the last summer evenings of the year.

Sunday Reflections

This Sunday morning I walked from the apartment to Olmsted Park yet again. This time I walked all the way around Jamaica Pond, back through Olmsted to past Brookline Village and Coolidge Corner until I reached my stretch of Comm Ave. I have a feeling that this will be a new ritual to my weekends-forgive the repetition of posts, but the water that filled these parks was so lovely and fraught with the magic of reflections that I couldn't help but snap these photographs on my iphone and want to share them. So here they are. 

The Fenway Victory Gardens

In the midst of a several week apartment search (that has now, thankfully, come to a successful close), I learned of the existence of the Fenway Victory Gardens. As its name suggests, these gardens trace their origins to the days of WWII. In fact, these plots comprise what is the only continuously operating Victory Garden left. But what a joy to walk past plot after plot, observing the work of a hundred gardeners (some luckier than others). There are tracts of land that seem shockingly untamed for their city address and still other plots that are as trim and proper as the nearby brownstones. The diversity of the gardens and the sheer amount of them brought to mind the garden colonies of Berlin that endlessly fascinated me during my stay there-though in Berlin, each allotment possessed a small shed like structure which these of course lacked. Not to mention the gnomes and elves-
I lost hope that we could ever import something similar, but the Fenway Victory Gardens were a reminder that something similar has been here for a very long time. 

Nearby: Appleton Farms

My Ipswich excursion simply had to include a stop at Appleton Farms, one of the oldest operating farms in the country. The land is extensive and perfectly pastoral-dotted with trails and paths for visitors to walk alongside pastures home to grazing livestock.  I parked at the Appleton Farms Grass Rides entrance and slowly made my way towards the farmstead, perhaps a mile and a half away, where the Dairy Store and Visitor's Center are located. The walk was like a step back in time and I couldn't help but fancy myself a farm girl of the past (a remarkably clean one). I sat on this bench in the picture above and had a bit of a picnic, relishing the quiet that I knew would not last long. The Visitor's Center was closed (only open on weekends) but I bought wonderful goat cheese from the Dairy Store and made a point to talk to the cows (they had perfect names) before making my way back to the zipcar. I can't help but imagine that the farm is livelier on the weekends, but the calmness I experienced was decadent and sorely needed.

Charm of the Common

Though I have visited Boston Common many times before, I don't believe I had ever seen it as beautiful as I did the other day, when the winter sun shined during her brightest hour on a crisp December afternoon. In the past, I was ignorant of its long, remarkable history and took its presence for granted. Certainly I knew it occupied a special place in our colonial past, but I had no idea it was founded as early as 1634. It proudly bears the name of "America's oldest park," though it was the site of many a public hanging until the 19th century. The Common has played its part in both Revolutionary and Civil War history and continues to stage important rallies and events to this day. When I attended high school in neighboring Connecticut, I often visited Boston on school trips but never truly embraced what the city had to offer, despite what used to be a fervent obsession with colonial America. My interest mainly lied in colonial Virginia and most especially Williamsburg. Now, years later, it seems quite odd that I was so arbitrarily against what was near and available, but then the mind of a teenager is never easy to understand. So here I am, ready to embrace what lies before me and ready to absorb all the knowledge each inch of the city provides.