
Fort Pond Brook
Location and Description
Fort Pond Brook is located behind 80-90 Central Street in Boxborough, with a trailhead off the parking lot during non-business hours. Frontage and two other trailheads can be found on Littlefield Road (but off-street parking is not available). This parcel is commercial private property with a conservation restriction that allows public access. It is mainly wooded and sometimes wet and contains a two-acre pond on the Acton-Boxborough town line. Hikers will find two loop trails, each a little under a mile long.
History
In 1999, 3COM Corporation granted Boxborough a conservation restriction on a 55-acre parcel of upland pine forest, red maple swamp, and wet meadow. In 2001, BPFTechCentral, LLC, granted a conservation restriction on a 5-acre abutting parcel.
Nearby Attraction: Heron Rookery
Bird lovers may want to take a side trip (by car) to visit a heron rookery farther down Littlefield Road. Boxborough Wildlife Management Area is managed by Mass Wildlife. Past Rolling Meadows on your left, follow Littlefield Road until it becomes Depot Road; there is a trailhead with parking for one or two cars on the right. Follow the trail to the pond's edge for views of nesting great blue herons, ospreys, double-crested cormorants, and wood ducks during spring and summer. Waterfowl hunting is allowed in season, so check Mass Wildlife's website for timing and wear blaze orange during hunting season.