Alewife Brook Reservation

IUCN Category V - Protected Landscape / Seascape

A small river flows through the reserve

The area Alewife Brook Reservation is a designated as a state park reserve in the area of the cities of Cambridge, Arlington and Somerville, Massachusetts in the United States. The park is managed by the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR ) and is part of the Metropolitan Park System of Greater Boston.

Description

The reserve covers 200 acres ( 0.8 km ²) urban wilderness. A large part of the park consists of wetlands ( including the Little River ), but there are also wooded upland and meadows. The reserve is a habitat for a variety of native and migratory birds. Frequently occurring species are ospreys, herons and Canada also snipe, whose unusual courtship ritual can be observed by visitors. The ponds Pond Little Pond and Blair are the nursery for herrings from the Atlantic over the Mystic River and Alewife Brook, which in turn drains the Little River, hiking in the spring.

The southern end of the protected area is located directly adjacent to the MBTA Alewife Station at the northern end of the Red Line in Cambridge. The Minuteman Bikeway ends on reserve, while the Fitchburg Cutoff Path and the Alewife Greenway lead by passing area. The Alewife Brook flows north through Cambridge, Arlington and Somerville to the Mystic River. Over a large part of the way the area is relatively narrow and only include the River, the Alewife Brook Parkway and some strip of land on both sides. North of Broadway This opens the area between the river and parkway and offers some sports and playgrounds. Along the river there are biking and hiking trails, which are continuously improved as part of the Alewife Greenway project and expanded.

History

In 1843 the main line of the Fitchburg Railroad was the first railroad line, which was led by the swamp area in western Cambridge. Today the range of Fitchburg Line for the transportation of commuter trains serving. As a branch of the Fitchburg Railroad in 1846, the Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad founded, whose tracks can be seen even today in part. 1851 was added at the Watertown Branch Railroad, which branched off from the Fitchburg and led past the eastern side of Alewife Brook Parkway.

The Boston and Lowell Railroad bought in 1870, the former Lexington and West Cambridge Railroad, which was at that time already Lexington and Arlington Railroad, and built a connection from Alewife to today's Davis Square Somerville to Junction. Most of this link is now covered by the Somerville Community Path and the Alewife Linear Park. A map from 1903, ie from the time before the designation as a protected area, in addition to the various railway lines in the area also shows the Alewife Brook, the further south drains the Fresh Pond.

The reserve was originally designed together with the Alewife Brook Parkway by landscape architect Charles Eliot, however, changed considerably over time. Thus, the river was straightened and channelized 1909-1912 next to the Parkway. 1916, the construction of the road was completed. The execution of landscape work was carried out by the Olmsted Brothers.

Wetlands

In 2011, the city of Cambridge began west of the Alewife station with the construction of a 3.4 acre ( 13,750 m²) large stormwater retention basin, which is designed as a wetland. The basin is designed to reduce the flow rate of water in the interaction with the plant located there and take him pollutants or nutrients before it reaches the Little River. Completion is scheduled for spring 2013. At this time, the connection of the bike paths is also as well as the construction of an amphitheater and the creation of signage and footpaths provided. Different habitats of the deep marsh up to the floodplain are also planned

The Alewife Brook Greenway

A project for the construction of a cycle path in the protection area received 4.5 million U.S. dollars from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The Alewife Brook Greenway or Minuteman Bike Path connector connects the Mystic River Bike Path with the Minuteman Bikeway and the Alewife station.

Recreation and leisure activities

The park has sports fields and playgrounds, otherwise you can still go hiking, running and bird watching.

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