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Have fun! Plan a scavenger hunt, or use the map for geocaching or letterboxing. For ideas, go to geocaching.com or letterboxing.org.
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Set achievable goals. 30 minutes a day of moderate to vigorous physical activity can be divided into 10- or 15minute segments.
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It builds stronger families. Walk with your children and their friends to school, or take a walk with your family after dinner. Families that walk together communicate better together.
Do your errands on foot, or park once and walk. Leave your car at home, or find a parking spot somewhere in between your destinations. Before you know it, you’ll have covered quite a distance without noticing it!
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A 3/4-mile loop that includes the downtown area, Assabet Park and several historic Victorian houses. Start at Main Street and School Street and head south on School. Turn right on Summer, right on South Street, and right again on Main Street.
It’s a part of all trips. Walking is a central component of our transportation system and part of virtually every trip, alone or combined with driving or cycling. It builds stronger communities. Pedestrian activity makes residential areas more neighborly and commercial areas more vibrant.
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It’s an easy and fun exercise. A walk can be a social activity – bring your spouse, your dog, a friend or a coworker along. A walk can help you clear your head S and reduce stress. It can be long or short; spontaneous or planned in advance.
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What to look for: 1 Edmund Hill Woods - Access these wooded trails preserved by the Northborough Conservation Commission from the intersection of Allen Street and Rice Avenue. Trail maps are available at northboroughtrails.org. 2 Memorial and Casey Fields - Features three baseball diamonds. 3 Town Offices - A former high school and junior high school, the building has been home to the town's administrative offices for the past three decades. 4 Knox Trail Marker - Colonel Henry Knox of the Continental Army passed through Northborough on his way to Boston with 59 pieces of heavy artillery from Fort Ticonderoga in New York. One of the 30 Knox Trail markers is located in front of the Town Offices. 5 Northborough Historical Society - Open to the public on Sundays in May, June and October, this community resource also offers a series of programs and events celebrating the town’s rich history.
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A two-mile loop that connects the area near Edmund Hill Woods and Memorial Field with Northborough’s central business district. Starting at Hudson Street and Main Street, head north on Hudson, turn right on Allen Street, then bear right on East Main Street. Continue on Main Street back to downtown.
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courts, a playground, a splash pad and picnic tables. 7 “Old” Town Hall - The building at 4 West Main Treetop Cir Street is a replica of Northborough’s original 1868 town Farmhouse hall. It was built in the late 1980s after the original Rd structure was destroyed by fire. 8 Northborough Free Library - Built in 1894, and CarruthDr expanded in 1975 and again in 2008, the original portion of the library retains its turn-of-the-century marble fireplaces and stained-glass windows. 9 Downtown Northborough - Northborough’s central Winter St business district has a variety of shops, services and Rice Ave eateries all within a short walk of one another.
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With its bucolic setting along the historic Boston Post Road, Northborough is a great community for walking. This walking map features a variety of parks, historic buildings and community resources in two different parts of town.
What to look for:
6 Assabet Park - This park features basketball
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Walking in Northborough
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Walk your way to health
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Walking is perhaps the simplest positive change you can make to improve your health, and it’s an exercise that’s easy to stick with. With the lowest dropout rate of any physical activity and requiring no expensive equipment, walking is hard to beat when it comes to keeping yourself healthy.
This two-mile loop covers a mostly residential area in the southern section of Northborough west of Route 135. The loop is flanked by Proctor Elementary School to the northwest and Ellsworth McAfee Park to the southeast. From Proctor, head east on Northgate and turn right on South Street. Turn right on Emerson, right again on Thoreau, left on Chesterfield, and right at Northgate. What to look for: - This K-5 school has two playgrounds and two playing fields that are open to the public year-round except during school hours. bl Literary Streets - Many of the streets in this neighborhood are named for famous Massachusetts authors such as Louisa May Alcott and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. See what other streets with literary names you can find! bm Ellsworth McAfee Park - This park has playing fields, a 1/3-mile walking loop, basketball, bocce and beach volleyball courts, a covered pavilion and a skate park.
Safety & walkability Residents and merchants can help make our town safer and more walkable every day. Here’s how:
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Keep sidewalks unobstructed. Place garbage receptacles and recycling bins awaiting pickup in a way that allows people to pass with ease. Also, keep tree branches and hedges trimmed, and don’t park on sidewalks. Clear snow and ice from sidewalks and crosswalks and help maintain traction by spreading salt, sand, cat litter, or a commercial ice-melting product.
Walking just 30 minutes a day can: • Reduce the risk of heart disease • Help prevent type-2 diabetes • Decrease risk of some cancers • Prevent or manage high blood pressure • Maintain a healthy weight • Increase muscle strength • Boost energy levels Research also suggests that walking may benefit your brain as well. Recent studies show that walking can help preserve mental sharpness, improve your mood, and even decrease the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.
About this map This Northborough map was developed and printed with funding from the Metrowest Health Foundation. It was produced through a partnership between WalkBoston, the Town of Northborough, and Building a Healthy Northborough, a community-wide collaboration to promote healthy eating and physical activity. WalkBoston makes walking safer and easier in Massachusetts and encourages people to walk more for better health, a cleaner environment and vibrant communities.
Pick up after your dog. It’s not just common courtesy; it’s also the law. Be an advocate. If something makes it difficult to walk around town, report it! Call the Department of Public Works at 508.393.5030 or report a problem at the town website: www.town.northborough.ma.us.
making massachusetts more walkable
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Text: Joe Cutrufo
Design: Garfinkle Design / ninagarfinkle.com
45 School Street | Boston MA 02108 | 617.367.9255 | www.walkboston.org