EAST BOSTON GREENWAY:
EAST BOSTON,
MASSACHUSETTS
-BIKE IT OR HIKE IT-
Planted:
NO LETTERBOX PLANTED AT THIS TIME.
Length:
East Boston
Greenway; 1.1 miles currently (1.3 miles from
East
Boston
Piers
Park
).
East
Boston
Piers
Park
to
Constitution
Beach
; 2.4 miles
East
Boston
Piers
Park
to
Deer
Island
; 7 miles
East
Boston
Piers
Park
to Belle Isle Marsh Reservation; 4.7 miles
Belle Isle Marsh Reservation loop trail; ¾ miles
Difficulty:
Easy. Flat paved rail trail.
Directions:
From I-90, take the Ted Williams Tunnel
towards
Logan
Airport
. Turn onto
William F. McClellan Highway
. Take the
Bennington Street
exit and turn left at the end of the ramp (Note;
the first immediate left takes you back onto the highway, so take an elongated
left. Easy to mess up). Take your next left down
Bremen Street
. When you come to
Sumner Street
either continue straight down
South Bremen Street
to the start of the East
Boston Greenway or turn left along
Sumner Street
. Take the first right down
Orleans Street
to its end and turn left onto
Marginal Street
. The East
Boston Piers Park will be on the right.
This linear park connects
East Boston
's waterfront to the rest of
East Boston
and plans are for it to extend all the way to Belle Isle Marsh. Located
in the former Conrail Railroad Corridor
that was abandoned in the 1950's, the greenways design draws upon the areas of
industrial heritage. Fencing and columns with riveted steel cross members mark
the entrances. A refurbished "blue" caboose will serve as a snack bar
and/or ranger station. The trail consists of two paved paths. One for bikes and
one for pedestrians. Plans call for connecting the Harborwalk to both this
trail and East Boston Piers Park. For more information visit; HARBORWALK
or EAST
BOSTON GREENWAY . The "Blue" Line of the MBTA has
several stops along the Greenway, as well as other parts of
East Boston
. This would enable you to explore more of the area and then take the T
back to the Maverick Square Station which is only a block from the start
of the Greenway. You can also take the T under the harbor to downtown
Boston
. For more information on the subway, as well as the rules for taking your bike
on the subway visit; MBTA and
MBTA-BIKES .
Starting from
East
Boston
Piers
Park
; After checking out this brick lined
park (no bikes allowed) and its promenade jutting out into Boston Harbor
with views of the
Boston
skyline, exit the parking lot and turn left along
Marginal Street
. When
Marginal Street
ends, continue straight along the paved path. This will bring you to the
beginning of the East Boston Greenway after only a ¼ mile. The trail
heads right past the "blue" Conrail caboose. To your left is
East Boston
Pier #1. The greenway consists of two paved trails. One for bikes and
one for pedestrians. Black streetlights line the trail as it goes through a
below grade corridor. You pass through several tunnels with painted murals and
after ¾ miles you come to
Bremen
Street
Park
.
Note; The trail
continues straight through the black gates, however, you can take a quick loop
tour of 0.9 miles around the playing fields of East Boston
Memorial Stadium. Just turn right up the paved trail before the gate.
Back on the Greenway,
the trail travels through the park, past the YMCA building on your left,
picnic tables, outdoor amphitheatre, playgrounds, water park, community gardens
and restrooms. The Airport Station
of the T is located right off the trail at 1 mile. You pass through
another black gate and travel underneath the highway where you emerge at
Frankfort Street
after 1.3 miles. The trail currently ends here
as of July 2008.
Note;
You may continue your ride if you don't mind some on-road travel. Sidewalks are
available for older kids along the busier streets and I utilize residential
streets when possible. You can travel to
Constitution
Beach
, Belle
Isle
Marsh
and even to
Deer
Island
. We traveled all the way to
Deer
Island
, See; DEER
ISLAND HARBORWALK
, where you can bike its paved trails and enjoy the great views of Boston
Harbor and the
Boston
skyline.
Continuing on-road,
take a left along
Frankfort Street
and then you’re next left up
Neptune Road
. A quick right on
Vienna Street
brings you to
Bennington Street
. Head right, utilizing the extra wide sidewalks and you'll pass by the Wood
Island T Station. Take a right
down
Byron Street
and then a left on
Coleridge Street
(all residential). This will bring you to the entrance for
Constitution
Beach
at 2.4 miles . Hop on the paved trail (starts out narrow) and it will take you
around the skating rink and along the beach. This is part of
Boston
's Harborwalk. There are restrooms here as well as a playground. A blue
pedestrian bridge heads over the tracks to
Bennington Street
on your left. Great views of the planes taking off and landing across Boston
Harbor at
Logan
Airport
. When you reach the end of the beach after only 0.4 miles, head out the
gate onto
Barnes Ave.
and take an immediate right down
Thurston Street
. Again, this is all residential on-road. Bear left along
Bayswater Street
. This is a very scenic street that stretches along the harbor with wide open
views. Check out the many styles of houses. At the end of the street turn left
onto
Annavoy Street
. This will take you out to
Saratoga Street
(Route 145) after about 3 miles.
Note;
The proposed route of the greenway will head north and take you alongside and
then into the Belle Isle Marsh Reservation. To check out the Belle
Isle Marsh Reservation See the directions below.
Turn right along
Saratoga Street
to continue on towards Deer Island. When you cross over Belle Isle
Inlet,
Saratoga Street
becomes
Main Street
as you now enter
Winthrop
. There are places eat or get refreshments here. When you come to
Pleasant Street
(Route 145), after 3.8 miles, turn right to head towards Deer Island.
This is 3.2 miles on-road and not recommended for kids on bikes as there is no
bike lane and the sidewalks can be narrow and in poor shape.
Pleasant Street
eventually turns into
Washington Ave.
This is a very scenic ride with many views of the harbor and
Boston
's skyline. Turn right when you reach
Shirley Street
and follow it south. You'll need to turn left onto
Tafts Ave
, however, its end section is one-way so continue straight and then turn left on
Elliot Street
, then right along
Tafts Ave.
After crossing over the causeway, the parking lot for DEER ISLAND will
be on your left after 7 miles.
To
reach the Belle Isle Marsh
Reservation, turn left along
Saratoga Street
. The future trail will head right alongside the marsh, for now continue
straight along
Saratoga Street
until you come to a traffic light. Turn right down
St Edward Road
, a residential road, to get away from the traffic. Then take a left onto
Barnes Ave
and follow as it turns left again. This brings you back to
Saratoga Street
, where a quick right takes you over the T line to
Bennington Street
. Turn right and pass by the Orient Heights Station. Follow
Bennington Street
until you come to your first street on the right. A hard right is
Austin Ave.
You want to head straight along
Palermo Street
. This gravel street soon turns into pavement as it traverses the marsh. Look
for a "Belle Isle Marsh" sign on your right after 1.2 miles.
The greenway is supposed to connect from here back to
Saratoga Street
. You'll see a gray metal gate just past the sign.
Note;
You have the option of traveling a ¼ mile out along a narrow, grass trail to a
platform overlooking the marsh. I wouldn't recommend riding this trail after a
heavy rain, but you’ll be rewarded with a nice view and the sight of airplanes
flying directly overhead as they come in for a landing at Logan Airport.
Just follow the grass trail as it heads away from the picnic table and bench.
Continuing onward. Turn left when you reach
the end of
Palermo Street
onto
Leverett Ave
and then right along
Bennington Street
. This takes you past the Suffolk Downs Station, where you can hop the T
back to the Maverick Square Station or cross over the tracks and check
out the Suffolk Downs horse racing track about a ½ mile away. Continuing
along
Bennington Street
, the sidewalk is narrow and in rough shape, but soon you come to the main
entrance for the Belle Isle Marsh Reservation. Turn right to reach the
parking lot at 1.7 miles. A signboard is located here with a trail map. For more
information visit; Belle
Isle Marsh . A ¾ mile loop trail circles around the marsh. Just
follow the stone-dust trail to the right of the map board and it will take you
out to a boardwalk overlooking the marsh. Next comes a side trail over a bridge
and out to an observation tower overlooking the marsh. The trail turns to
pavement as it brings you back to the parking lot.
HH
CLICK HERE FOR MAP
BEFORE YOU SET OUT BE
SURE TO READ THE
WAIVER OF RESPONSIBILITY AND
DISCLAIMER
BIKE IT OR HIKE IT
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