Houghton's Pond, Bunt Hill, Boyce Hill Trail, Tucker Hill Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Houghton's Pond, Bunt Hill, Boyce Hill Trail, Tucker Hill Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Loop

Distance: 4.35 miles

Elevation: 341 feet

Time: 1 hours, 39 minutes
Hiking Challenges: Blue Hills Grid, Trail Trace the Blue Hills, 52 Hike Challenge

The Hike

Time for the first after-school hike of the school year! I planned to go yesterday, but ended up almost falling asleep on I-95, so I decided home was the right move (it was). I didn't have much of a plan besides galavant around the Houghton's Pond Area, mostly hitting trails I haven't hiked for my "Trail Trace the Blue Hills" map. Temperatures were in the upper 70s with bright, warm sunshine, but feeling cool in the shade. 

I meandered around the pond, hitting some segments I ususally don't get to until I'm finishing a map. There was a BEAUTIFUL fall breeze coming over the pond, which was just lovely. My legs were VERY sore from leg day - the first one in a WHILE (I always giggle when I write things like that, implying I'm some hard core "gym rat" - I'm really just lazy and desperately trying to adhere to a morning routing!). 

I got both trails that connect to Old Route 128 and realized I don't think I've ever walked the western stretch of Old Route 128 outside of winter before, which was fun! My legs continued to feel stiff as boards, and I was a bit nervous thinking forward to the upcoming weekend - Gen's "Bachelorette Party" is actually just an Airbnb in Bartlett and a hike up Adams/Madison (god willing) - hopefully my legs will be in decent shape before then!

I continued my wander into the woods towards the Andover/Burnt Hill Paths. The woods were a bit buggy - mostly just gnats, and SUPER dry. It was peacefully quiet back here, but I did start suffering when heading up Burnt Hill on my stone legs. I ended up wiggling to the "true" "summit" of Burnt Hill, truly covering myself in spider webs.

I crossed the "Peeper Swamp" on the Winthrop Path, which was also full dried up. Continuing onto the Boyce Hill Trail, I decided I simply did not want to go to the tops of either Boyces, so I didn't! There was some horse poop on trail, and more excitingly, some early fall colors! The birch trees were beginning to slowly turn yellow!

I hiked past the swamps on the Quincy Trail, which were also dried up. I wonder how the Ponkapoag Boardwalk is? I've never seen this area so dry before, maybe it's passable? Anyway, I continued on, now on the Tucker Hill Path, and almost got MURDERED by a mountain biker (they flew around a corner and nearly hit me), and then hiked the rest of the Tucker Hill Path, which did land me feeling a bit bored after a bit.

I continued onto the red-dotted path back to the pond and then followed the boardwalk behind the visitor center back to the car. That swamp was also mostly dried up, with many ducks feasting on it! I definitely need to do some reconaissance work on the boardwalk, maybe that'll be a project for next week?

Back at the car, I noticed the stop-sign line was still super slow and long. I hoped to go to Cotsco afterwards, and parked in the Houghton lot to avoid traffic, but that did not work as planned. I ended up going straight home to eat some food I had and to watch more of The Circle on Netflix!

Step-By-Step

- Start hike Houghton's Pond playground.

- Follow path to porta potties at Houghton's Pond visitor center.

- Follow path to circle, take counter-clockwise.

- Turn right onto yellow-dotted path.

- Follow yellow dots to south side of Houghton's Pond.

- Take first trail on right to Old Route 128.

- Turn left onto Old Route 128.

- Turn left onto next trail.

- Turn right onto yellow-dotted path.

- At big view of Houghton's Pond/Great Blue Hill, turn around and follow trails to the middle jct. with  Andover Path.

- At jct., turn right onto Andover Path.

- At terminus, turn left onto Burnt Hill Path.

- At 2111, turn left onto Bugbee Path.

- At next jct., turn right onto Winthrop Path.

- At terminus, turn right onto red-dotted path.

- At next jct., turn left onto Boyce Hill Trail.

- At 2130, turn left onto Barre Trail.

- At next jct. before road, turn left onto Quincy Path.

- At terminus, continue left onto Headquarters Path.

- At jct., turn left onto White Pine Path.

- At terminus, continue straight/left onto Tucker Hill Path.

- At 2071, turn right onto red-dotted path. 

- Follow red dots to the boardwalk behind Houghton's Pond Visitor Center.

- Follow boardwalk behind Houghton's Pond Visitor Center.

- Return to car.

Blue Hills Reservation Map

Photo Album

North Boyce, Burnt, and Buck Hills (Blue Hills Reservation)

North Boyce, Burnt, and Buck Hills (Blue Hills Reservation)

Hike Type: Loop w/ Spur

Distance: 4.60 miles

Elevation: 633 feet

Time: 1 hours, 39 minutes
Hiking Challenges: Blue Hills Grid, Blue Hills Winter Trace (2x)

The Hike

Not gonna lie, I'm writing this 15 days late... better late than never! It's been a very busy fall between school, skiing, the Massachusetts Music Educators Conference, and overall trying to be a person. Also very interesting finding a balance between skiing and hiking... I think it's okay that I've hiked less so I can ski more (it's definitely okay, but I just wish I was partially retired so I could do both!). ANYWAY....

It was a 55-degree summer-like day, I was in shorts and a t-shirt, and my only goals were to hit Boyce and Burnt Hills with no other plans. There were a decent amount of people out due to the aformentioned beautiful day, but thankfully I would only be on the busy Skyline Trial for a short bit from Bugbee to North Boyce. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, and apparently ski conditions were fabulous up north, I was still happy to be out in the woods. 

I skirted around Tucker Hill, far too lazy to deal with the steep section, which brought me past the swamp I've dubbed "Peeper Swamp," which lived up to its name today becuase ITS FROG SEASON!!!! I love hiking the Blue Hills in March for one reason and one reason only - to hear the majestic call of hundreds of Peepers. I hit the Mattapan Path (which I proudly know how to correctly follow now), hiked past a confusing, new bird feeder, and landed back on the Skyline Trail to finish the climb up North Boyce Hill, where I followed a man in tight black jeans and Doc Marten boots... to each their own!

Now making my way over towards Burnt Hill, I hurdled over a decently-sized blowdown and hiked on the wet, but not muddy, Doe Hollow Path, and made my way to the illusion of a deer path to the summit of Burnt Hill. As I continued along, I was reflecting on how much I hate Daylight Savings Time, only for the reason of the week-long jet lag, but I LOVE hiking at 4:00pm and not having the sun actively setting. I eventually wiggled my way to one of my favorite trails, the Fern Spring Foot Path, which truly has never disappointed. It's off the beaten path, has a view part-way up, and traverses some unique terrain. Is it redundant to mention how much I also love Buck Hill? Probably, but I do not care, the views were beautiful of the surrounding Blue Hills, Boston, and of course, Mts. Wachusett and Monadnock.

I was starting to admittedly get a little chilly up on Buck, so it was time for the descent and ultimate return trip. I went down AMC Footpath to Buck Hill Path to Headquarters Path. Quincy Path was flooded, as usual, the NEMBA bridge was fun, as usual, and made my way back to the car, just in time to wait in the stop sign line at Hillside Street!

Step-By-Step

- Park across from State Police Barracks/Park HQ

- Turn left onto Headquarters Path.

- At junction, turn left onto Bugbee Path/Skyline Trail. 

- At 2054, turn left on Skyline Trail.

- At second junction, turn right onto Ayer Trail.

- At 2094, veer left toward Mattapan Trail.

- Turn left onto Mattapan Trail.

- At terminus, turn right onto Skyline Trail.

- After 2165, turn left onto AMC Footpath.

- At 2182, turn left Buck Hill Path.

- At 2164, turn left onto Headquarters Path.

- At 2153, turn left to continue on Headquarters Path. 

- At Chickatawbut Road, continue on Quincy Path.

- At 2112, follow white triangles along Chickatawbut Road.

- Rejoin Headquarters Path.

- Follow Headquarters Path back to car.

Blue Hills Reservation Map

Photo Album

Old Route 128, Burnt Hill, Monatiquot Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Old Route 128, Burnt Hill, Monatiquot Path (Blue Hills Reservation)

Distance: 6.44 miles
Elevation: 472 feet

Time: 2 hours, 4 minutes
Hike Type: Spaghetti Loop
Hiking Challenges: Blue Hills Winter Trace; Blue Hills Grid

The Hike

Now that I'm officially complete with the 125-Mile Challenge, I'm back working on the Winter Trace full-time. I had a quick drive from one trailhead to the other - landing at the main parking area for Houghton's Pond. It was in the upper 30s now, the parking area was decently busy, I swapped my shoes from my winter ones to my normal trail shoes, I didn't have much of a plan, but off I headed!

I decided I would keep on-theme and focus with the Old Route 128 area without much more of a plan than that! I skirted past all of the people going on leisurely walks around the pond, and made my way toward the Andover Path/128 area. The ice that was left on the pond looked beautifully soft. Trails were in great shape! 99% dry with very VERY slight traces of snow left. 

I meandered my way onto the Burnt Hill Path, where there were a couple decent blowdowns, and at one point the sun was fully shining. I had to stop hiking and just sprawl my arms out Titanic-style to absorb as much Vitamin D as possible! The only complaint I had was that I forgot my buff and inhaler, but I would survive.

I followed the horrifically faint deer path to the summit of Burnt Hill, and then continued on toward 2111, where there were a few larger patches of light snow. I continued my wiggle onto the Bugbee, Doe Hollow, and Beech Hollow Paths. I noticed the further away I went into the park, the fewer people I saw, which was lovely. Also the classic irony that the more "remote" you are in this park, the closer you are to a highway. Almost counter-intuitive, but I'll take it!

I was getting tired by the time I hit the far corner of the area, but I knew I would be proud of myself and relieved if I sucked it up and got all these trails done. It was a very low-brain hike at this point - I just had my map open and kept moving until I hit them all! There was an impressive recent blowdown on  Monatiquot Path, but everything else was smooth sailing. Soon enough I was on my return trip down the Pipe Line and back onto Old Route 128.

I did take one detour on my return trip. At intersection 2085, there's an old trail on the left (highway side) that is unmapped. I decided I might as well check it out! It led to a culver over the Blue Hill River and terminated at a large boulder. Pretty unexciting, but fun to explore something new! It seemed decently traveled up until the very end, even without being on a map.

My last bit of excitement was on my final return to the car - I group of 8ish teenage girls, who I assume were out on their first hike, were engaging in a wildly loud footrace across the field. They were shocked at how winded they were, and noted that they had to ration their one water bottle. I hope they had a lovely day! Once back at my car I zoomed home, had lunch, showered, and submitted my 125-Miler form to get my patch!

Step-By-Step

- Park at Houghton's Pond main parking area.

- Start hike by walking past Houghton's Pond Visitor Center, Bathhouse, and then to trail between Andover Path and Old Route 128.

- Hike trails between Andover Path and Old Route 128, landing on Andover Path.

- Turn right onto Andover Path.

- At terminus, turn left onto Burnt Hill Path.

- Summit Burnt Hill, continue on Burnt Hill Path.

- At 2111, turn right onto Bugbee Path.

- At 2129, turn right onto Doe Hollow Path.

- At 2132, turn right onto Beech Hollow Path.

- At junction, hike out-and-back to 2123.

- Back at junction, turn right to hike to 2146.

- At 2146, continue onto Oblique Path.

- At 2163, turn right onto Sullivan Trail.

- At 2176, turn left onto Pipe Line.

- At 2189, turn left onto trail.

- At 2190, turn left onto Bugbee Path.

- At Fern Spring Foot Path (jct. after 2155), turn around.

- At next junction (2155), turn right onto Oblique Path.

- At 2150, turn left onto Old Route 128.

- At terminus, continue onto Monatiquot Path.

- Hike spur to MA-28, then continue on Monatiquot Path.

- At next junction, turn right hike Pipe Line spur to MA-28, then turn around.

- At same junction, turn right to hike last bit of Monatiquot Path, then turn around.

- At same junction, turn right onto Pipe Line.

- At terminus, turn right onto Old Route 128.

- At 2085, turn left to hike unnammed, unmapped path to Blue Hill River, then turn around.

- Turn left back onto Old Route 128, then hike back to car.

Blue Hills Reservation Map

Photo Album

Boyce, Burnt, and Buck Hills (Blue Hills Reservation)

Boyce, Burnt, and Buck Hills (Blue Hills Reservation)

Distance: 3.65 miles
Elevation: 518 feet

Time: 1 hour, 24 minutes
Hike Type: Loop
Hiking Challenges: 125-Mile Club (2x) 

The Hike

This hike is brought to you by the impending doom that is Daylight Savings Time - I was truly NOT feeling a long drive to a hike after work on this day, but I knew it would likely be my last chance for an after school hike in the Blue Hills for a while, so I suffered through. It was a chilly afternoon at 47 degrees and to my dismay I forgot my hiking socks, so my stinky normal socks were in! I started my hike on the Buck Hill Path and then began to wiggle my way to the Boyces via Headquarters Path, Doe Hollow Path, and Skyline Trail.

The summit of North Boyce is super easy to get to - a clear high point just off trail in easy, open woods. The summit of South Boyce is dreadful to get to - there is kind of maybe a treadway just north of the height of land along the Boyce Hill Trail that you can kind of follow for a bit sometimes? I think I found the summit at a tree and rock and then followed a different treadway... away from it. I could stop thinking about how awful this would be in tick season. The treadway begins to dissolve near a steep drop off, so I went fully rogue and made my way back to the trail.

Something that I do love about this time of the year is the extended golden hour, or at least what feels like one. I'm also happy and proud of myself for being more active in this early fall - this one hike already puts me over last November's stats.

I continued my wiggle along the Winthrop Path, past what I have called the "peeper swamp" due to how loud it gets in springtime, and then made my way to the height of land along the Burnt Hill Path and kind of found a similar treadway to the summit area - another tough one, but nowhere near as bad as South Boyce. I also realized as of now I have summited all of the Blue Hills! South Boyce is definitely the worst in my opinion - at least Great Dome has an old trail to follow.

I then made my way onto one of my favorite trails in the reservation - the Fern Spring Foot Path. I spent some time enjoying the setting sun at the first ledgy view and actually passed my first person in over an hour. The approach to Buck Hill is just stunning, and the view towards the sun and Big Blue were an absolute joy to see. I was too early for sunset, but that was truly okay, as I've been fighting to get a good amount of sleep recently. 

My descent was via the AMC Footpath, which was a little confusing to get to and follow with the unmapped mountain biking trails. I then landed on the Buck Hill Path and eventually back to my car. Unfortunately, the traffic from the light at Chickatawbut/MA-28 was backed up all the way to my car, which made for a slow drive home. 

Step-By-Step

- Park at Buck Hill Path trailhead off of Chickatawbut Road.

- Start hike on Buck Hill Path.

- At 2164, turn right onto Headquarters Path.

- At 2153, continue straight onto Doe Hollow Path.

- At 2141, turn right onto Skyline Trail.

- At height-of-land, hike off trail to the summit of North Boyce Hill.

- Continue on Skyline Trail.

- At 2117, turn left onto Boyce Hill Trail. 

- Just below height-of-land, turn right into the thick underbrush and do your best to find the summit of South Boyce Hill.

- Return to trail.

- At terminus, turn right onto Massachuseuck Trail.

- At next junction, turn left onto Wintrop Path.

- At terminus, turn left onto Bugbee Path.

- At 2111, turn right onto Burnt Hill Path.

- At height-of-land, hike off-trail on left to high point of Burnt Hill.

- Return to trail, contineu along Burnt Hill Path.

- At 2092, turn left onto Angle Path.

- At next junction, turn left onto Bolton Foot Path.

- At terminus, turn right onto Doe Hollow Path.

- At 2132, turn left onto Beech Hollow Path.

- At 2135, turn right onto Bugbee Path.

- At second junction, turn left onto Fern Spring Foot Path.

- Follow Fern Spring Foot Path to summit of Buck Hill.

- From summit, travel East on Skyline Trail.

- Near 2165, turn left onto AMC Footpath.

- At 2182, turn left onto Buck Hill Path, return to car.

Blue Hills Reservation Map

Photo Album