The Allandale Woods is Boston's second largest woodland. Allandale Woods maintains a wildlife sanctuary right in Boston. Allandale Woods is on the Jamaica Plain West Roxbury line. There are marked trail entrances on Allandale Street, the VFW Parkway and Hackensack road. "The acquisition of a portion of the conservation land at Allandale Woods in 1975 represented the first step in creating the Charles-to-Charles Open Space Corridor, an 8-mile open space belt of existing parkland, private estates, and wetlands that stretches from the Fens and the Charles River Basin, along the Boston/Brookline boundary, and through the Sawmill marshes to the Charles River in West Roxbury." The wooded area houses many tree species primarily oaks, maples, and pines. The trails are well maintained by the city of Boston and run throughout the site leading to various areas of interest including a scenic Rock Pond, an extensive Depression-era stone boundary wall, a cattail marsh, intertwining streams that form the Bussey Brook headwaters, underground springs, an historic spring house, and a certified vernal pool.
As a an avid gardener, florist and neighbor of Allandale Woods in Boston, I frequent the trails often. In the spring and summer, the mallards along the streams outnumber the female ducks four to one. In the fall, the woods are filled with fallen leaves and the views are spectacular. The winter snow falls exhbits one of the more pristine and unvisited natural resources in Boston. You would think you were in the Maine woods.
The Allandale Woods often get overshadowed by their high profile neighbor, Arnold Arboretum. If you are looking for a more adveturous, smaller scale and less inhabited nature hike then the Allandale Woods beckons you. The city of Boston is diligent in maintaining this wildlife sanctuary where you will see deer, foxes, rabbits, ducks and multitude of birds. This wooded reserve is a photographer's dream.
The city of Boston has gone to great length in preserving this natural resource. They keep the trails clear and even tag the trees so that visitors know which trees are which. There are even discoveries like broken stone and bricks walls that lead to the mystery of the reserve.
If you like flowers, plants, animals or nature. This Boston sanctuary is a delight.
