Massachusetts' Scenic State Park Is A Quick Boston City Break With Hiking, Fishing, And Paddling

On a calm day, the waters of Cleveland Pond can look like a mirror. Trees push right up against its edges and crisply reflect in the water. From certain parts of the shore, you can gaze across and not see a single sign of human life. The pond could be anywhere in New England, including rural Vermont or the wilds of Maine. You might pass an hour on a waterside rock and hear only crickets in summer or the honk of migrating geese in the fall. The absence of nearby hills makes the scene feel enclosed, as though the woods stretch on indefinitely. It's hard to believe this tranquil body of water is only about 7 miles south of the Boston suburb of Braintree, and it's less than 20 miles from the crowds and traffic of Downtown Boston.

Cleveland Pond is the centerpiece of Ames Nowell State Park, a roughly 600-acre public green space in the small town of Abington. Cleveland Pond takes up about 88 of those acres, making it just the right size for casual paddlers. The rest of the park is a mix of hiking trails, recreational facilities, wildlife habitats, and quiet places to cast a line. The park is open in all seasons and popular with locals, but it can feel much more remote than it is. While many visitors to Boston naturally gravitate toward the coast, Ames Nowell State Park is a freshwater escape of woods and wetlands — you could easily forget that the Atlantic Ocean is less than an hour away. Boston itself is considered one of the greenest cities in the world, but this state park truly feels like an escape from the urban jungle.

The easiest way to enjoy Ames Nowell State Park is to walk around; the park contains a network of trails, and you could spend hours mixing and matching them on foot. While this park can seem isolated and bucolic, you'll eventually pass a row of electrical towers strung with high voltage wires, as well as a baseball field, grilling stations, and a pavilion. There's a parking area on the east side of Ames Nowell, as well as public restrooms for visitors. The trails are also open to mountain biking, and equestrians can even use them as bridle paths.

Cleveland Pond is a great spot for canoes and kayaks. There's a small boat launch and dock in the southeast corner, and the pond features a handful of tiny islands. Note that motorboats aren't permitted on the pond, nor are any vehicles with an engine. Paddlers will have to bring their own watercraft; there's no convenient place to rent a canoe or kayak in the park. The road does lead directly to the boat launch, so you can either take your hard-shell vessel from the car and place it directly in the water, or you can pump air into an inflatable craft on the shore.

Fishing is also permitted on the pond with a valid Massachusetts license. The pond is best known for its largemouth bass, and you may also fish for chain pickerel and black crappie. Early mornings are the best time to set up shop on the shore, when the surface of the pond is still and broken only by the rising rings of feeding fish. Like Massachusetts' other artificial lake near Boston, this place is excellent for shore fishing and trails.

The park is open from sunrise to sunset, every day of the year, and is free to visit. The easiest way to visit Ames Nowell State Park is by car, which takes most drivers about 40 minutes from the busy streets of downtown Boston. That said, Boston does have America's most reliable public transportation subway, and if you felt so inclined, you could get to central Abington in about 35 minutes on the Kingston Line.

Ames Nowell State Park is best enjoyed as a day trip from Boston or as part of a longer drive, since there aren't any hotels in the immediate vicinity. There are a handful of accommodation options in nearby Brockton, and Plymouth County has some scattered attractions, although Ames Nowell State Park itself feels surprisingly secluded. There's a lot to love about this serenity, so bring your patience and prepare for peace. You might just find yourself leaving with a cooler full of perch and lungs full of fresh air.