Charles River Reservation

Boston, Cambridge

The Charles River Reservation is 17 miles of linear park with endless recreational opportunities. Whether your interest is canoeing or ice skating, baseball or in-line skating, the Charles River is a beautiful resource. Since 1893, the Commonwealth has preserved the region's unique landscapes by acquiring and protecting park lands, river corridors and coastal areas; reclaiming and restoring abused and neglected sites, and setting aside areas of great scenic beauty for the recreation and health of the region's residents. Click here to see more information about specific activities within the Reservation.

Charles River Dam
The Charles River Dam controls the water level in the river basin. An earlier dam, located beneath the Museum of Science, was completed in 1910 with the purpose of creating a fresh water river basin and river front park in Boston. The newly landscaped banks of the river became known as the Charles River Esplanade. The later dam, completed in 1978, houses six pumps that provide flood control protection. The dam's lock system permits travel of recreational craft from the river to the harbor year round. A fish ladder allows for passage of anadromous fish (alewife herring, rainbow smelt and shad) during the migration season in late spring. Regularly scheduled tours are available. Call 617-727-1188 x445 for information.

Charles River Basin and Esplanade
Created ninety years ago from tidal marshes and mud flats, the Charles River Basin was designed to provide city dwellers access to outstanding river scenery and recreational opportunities on both water and land. Though entirely designed—and in that sense artificial—the Basin is also a wildlife habitat for hundreds of animal and plant species that play a role in the ecology of the region and enrich the experience of urban park users. Water quality in the once heavily polluted Basin has improved dramatically in recent years, creating better habitat for wildlife and attracting people back to the river.

The character of the Basin changes along this eight-and-one-half-mile stretch, forming three discernible zones: the Lower Basin, from the historic Charles River Dam to the Boston University Bridge; the Middle Basin, from the BU Bridge to Herter Park, and the Upper Basin, from Herter Park to the Watertown Dam. The Lower Basin is two and one-half miles long and up to two thousand feet wide. The panoramas in the Lower Basin define the image of Boston and Cambridge. Sweeping views of the skyline from the seawalls are captivating. The Longfellow Bridge is a powerful presence in the Lower Basin, as are the slope of Beacon Hill and the gold dome of the State House. Particular park sections within the Reservation, such as Magazine Beach and Herter Park, provide intensely used open space for the bordering urban neighborhoods.

The Middle Basin is a zone of transition from urban and formal to rural and natural. Parkways lining the Charles River Basin separate it from contiguous open spaces. The largest open space is between the Harvard University athletic fields on the south and Mt. Auburn and Cambridge cemeteries on the north. Together, these areas form a critical oasis for migrating birds.

The Esplanade went through a major expansion in 1928, widening and lengthening the park land. These improvements were aided by a one million dollar donation from Helen Osbourne Storrow, in memory of her husband James. It was during this expansion that the first lagoon was built, as well as the Music Oval, where a temporary bandshell was placed. The summer of 1929 was the first year Arthur Fiedler and the Boston Pops performed on the Esplanade. In 1941, the construction of the Hatch Memorial Shell gave the Pops, and a wide range of other artists and performers, a first class stage for popular summer events. Half a million people attend the Boston Pops concert and fireworks display held there every Independence Day. The Hatch Shell also hosts more than seventy free public concerts and movies, and special events—walkathons, races, and festivals such as Earth Day—draw hundreds of thousands of additional spectators each year.

Another major change to the Esplanade began in 1949, with the construction of Storrow Drive. To make up for park land lost to the new road, additional islands were built along the the Esplanade. In the 1960's, the Esplanade was linked to Herter Park in Brighton, and other upstream parks, with the construction of the Dr. Paul Dudley White Bike path. This 18-mile loop travels along the entire basin on both the North and South sides of the river, and makes it especially suitable for road races, walkathons, biking, inline skating, and running.

Frederick Law Olmsted's 1889 design for Charlesbank included the first outdoor gymnasium in the United States. Community Boating was the country's first, and remains among the best, public boating program. For a modest fee, thousands of people have learned to sail on the Charles River. For those who prefer rowing, Community Rowing, located at the Daly Rink on the Charles River in Brighton, offers instruction to the public. For information about tours of the Esplanade, please call 617-727-1188 x 445.

The newest addition to the Esplanade is Teddy Ebersol's Red Sox Fields at Lederman Park. Completely restored in 2006, the field complex includes fields for permitted youth soccer, youth baseball, t-ball and softball, with lights for night softball. The restoration is the result of a groundbreaking partnership between DCR, the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs and three non-profit partners-the Red Sox Foundation, Hill House, and the Esplanade Association.

John F. Kennedy Park
The John F. Kennedy Park located on Memorial Drive in Cambridge, is a memorial to the former President. This 5-acre site is landscaped with plants that bloom at the time of the President's May birthday and a memorial fountain. The park uses materials indigenous to New England including native trees, and the granite for the foundation and the entrance pillars which are inscribed with quotations from the President's speeches.