People enjoy the slimmed-down beach at Walden Pond. Photo: Chaiel Schaffel/WBZ NewsRadio
CONCORD, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — When the state’s Department of Conservation and Recreation said to come see how Henry David Thoreau lived at Walden Pond, they probably weren’t asking people to do a partial impersonation. And yet:
“We’ll see folks bring really large, almost pop-up tent type things, tables, hammocks, folks try to bring in grills,” said Lisa Little, park supervisor at Walden Pond.
But she said the space is especially dear this year, because of just how full the pond is. An extraordinarily rainy summer last year means water is lapping against the stone wall that would normally be the end of yards of beach. Because Walden is a kettle pond, all that water doesn’t drain to other places. It needs to evaporate, and that can take a long time.
The main beach space at Walden this year was perhaps sixty feet long by fifteen wide — in August.
“So naturally, with less beach space, people are trying to find anywhere that they can sit,” Little said.
The lack of space has led to misbehavior on the part of some beachgoers, who have taken matters into their own hands by cutting or bending through the fencing around the pond and bushwhacking their way to their own forbidden slice of shoreline. That’s caused environmental damage to the conservation area around the pond that is easily visible even to the untrained eye, past clear signage that warns visitors not to pass the fences.
“Even the trees that are around, you’ll see branches snapped off, where people have tried to stabilize themselves so they don’t slip,” she said.
Little said part of the problem is a lack of education. Many of the people cutting through the fences are first-time visitors who don’t know the meaning of the place.
A sign warns people not to stray off the path at Walden Pond.Photo: Chaiel Schaffel/WBZ NewsRadio
“Some people come here and it’s just a swimming hole to them. They don’t realize the significant history,” she said. Little believes many of the visitors only found out about Walden Pond last year, when heavy rain closed off many of the local ponds and rivers because of high bacterial counts. That led them to Walden.
As it became clear that the pond would have less beachfront space this year, officials there tried to limit the damage ahead of time, with varying degrees of success. One of the site's parking lots is closed off this year, along with some of the paths. That means less access, which Little said was necessary this season, with the pond full to the brim and beyond. Still, Little said the park staff is used to big crowds; they’re just more intense than normal this year.
“I’m not gonna lie, it’s a beautiful place, it’s a lovely place to enjoy. But we can’t all be here at the same time,” Little said.
Over the course of the summer, the floodwaters have retreated somewhat. Red Cross Beach on the north side of the pond, once entirely underwater, is now a sliver of sand about a yard wide. Little hopes next year will see the beaches return to full strength.
WBZ's Chaiel Schaffel (@CSchaffelWBZ) reports:
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