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Borderland State Park

Video

Review

Borderland State Park is an interesting Massachusetts DCR property, because it encompasses a few different activity types. It is perhaps most well known for the Ames Mansion: a 1910-era stone mansion constructed by an inventor and politician. It is registered with the US National Parks Service and managed by Friends of Borderland, who offer guided tours of the building. It was also the filming location for many of the interior shots for the 2019 movie Knives Out featuring Daniel Craig and Ana de Armas. The mansion and its immediate surrounding grounds is a must-see for anyone interested in Massachusetts history. (Take a peek at Blanche Ames's life!) While I could not enter the building at the time of recording, there are several signs and placards providing information about the mansion.

Borderland State Park also boasts 18 separate named trails of varying difficulty (though the official trail map fails to mention that some of the easier trails require hiking on more difficult ones to access). The hiking trails at Borderland are superb. Several named and unnamed landmarks litter the property, lending the park to a wealth of photographic moments. Certain trails, particularly those that are less frequently traveled, are somewhat difficult to find and navigate if you don't have a map on-hand, but I found it simple enough to get where I was going. The trailblazes were sometimes a bit sparse. I used hiking/trekking poles on this hike, but they were not essential (though quite helpful when traversing icy sections of the trail). The trails were a little unmaintained, likely attributable to the winter season.

The trails near the trailhead and around Leach Pond tended to be more popular, but I had limited time to hike so I stuck to those trails. The hike was refreshing and I had a great time exploring the property and discovering several natural features. I hadn't gone for a hike in the winter in a long time and re-discovered a few interesting phenomena (notably needle ice, which I spend an inordinate amount of time raving about in my unedited footage).

Access to the park is easy enough, with a paid parking lot (formerly using dashboard tickets, now handled digitally by YODELpass) and readily accessible information/ranger's station just at the top of the trailhead. At the time of recording there didn't appear to be any rangers on-duty, but the building was accessible and had a wealth of information available about the trail and grounds.

Final thoughts

Borderland State Park was a great winter hike. It's popular for a reason, and the property has lots more to do outside of hiking. I personally prefer less popular parks, but its location and ease of access make it a good day hike.

  • Hikeability: 9/10
  • Accessibility: 8/10
  • Naturality: 5/10
  • Scenery: 8/10
  • Difficulty: 2/10

More information

You can read more about Borderland State Park on the Massachusetts DCR website.