Borderland State Park in Easton, MA is a hidden gem. We decided to make the trek to visit the park on a nice spring day. We visited the outside of the mansion, the old, abandoned pool, and took a hike around the nearby lake and farmhouse.
The Ames Mansion
The park is mostly known for the former estate of Oakes and Blanche Ames. They built the mansion in 1910 and it stayed in the family for 65 years.
Then the family gave it to the Commonwealth. That was wicked nice of them! Now, it’s a park and the state can charge for parking. Seriously. They do. And the money collected pays the person who enforces the parking.
(Benny told me to not be sarcastic when writing, but I am from New England, and I haven’t been all that sarcastic yet in my posts…)
Benny wanted to make a claim to the mansion, and he started telling everyone that it was his.
“Hear ye, hear ye! This is mansion is mine!” He started crying out. I have no idea why he started speaking like that; that particular accent wasn’t era-appropriate at all. Most people nodded to him and just said, “Aaaaaaawwwww!”
Beware of the cute ones, for they will take over the Earth.
It didn’t help that he overheard someone saying that the inside of the mansion was used as a set for one of the Ghostbusters movies. Then he started singing, “Who you gonna call? Beeeennnnny!!!!!!” This just made even more people say, “Aaaaaaaaaaawwwwww.”
Then, he started passing out business cards! “Check out my blog!”
Wow, I thought. What a clever little bear…
After that embarrassing yet interesting episode, we checked out the nearby garden.
Note: Tours are available of the inside of the Ames Mansion. There were no tours on the day we visited, but we’d love to go back to see the inside! If you’ve been inside, please let us know what you think!
The Garden and Pool
The garden is right nearby. Thankfully, nobody else was around, so Benny wasn’t able to start any of his shenanigans, or so I thought.
The old pool is now overgrown. But in its heyday, it was really something else. The pool was built during the Great Depression, and the work it created helped out the local economy.
Of course, Benny thought that he could go swimming in the pool. The pool at Borderland State Park is no longer a real pool; as I mentioned above, it’s all overgrown. Benny tried jumping in, and I caught him midair.
I don’t know what had gotten into him today, but it was time that he had a time-out. I told him to sit on this old rock bench for a while. Honestly, I needed the peace and quiet.
Hiking Around the Old Farm
Bordeland State Park also offers miles of trails.
This one was my favorite. I told Benny that we had to be quiet because, well, that was part of the trail’s name. He looked at the sign inquisitively, but thankfully he didn’t make much noise.
There’s also an old farm that you can walk by.
This old farmhouse is part of the park. And, wouldn’t you know, there’s a chair on the front porch that you can enjoy! Benny and I sat on the chair and pretended that we were farmers taking a well-deserved break.
After our rest, we continued our hike. The trail loops back to headquarters. On the way, there were a few great spots to enjoy the scenery.
We had a good, relaxing time hiking and exploring around Borderland State Park. We highly recommend checking this place out! Also, if you’re in the area, why not check out the Natural Resources Trust of Easton?
For information on hours and directions for Borderland State Park, check out the state’s site.
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