Public Swimming in Great Ponds
There are over 100 great ponds in Middlesex County. There are many bodies of water in Massachusetts and around the United States who are currently experiencing algae blooms which produce toxins harmful to wildlife and humans. These blooms are caused by a combination of human activities and global warming. To read more please read Lake Management and Toxic Algae.
A great pond is defined as any pond or lake that contained more than 10 acres in its natural state. Access to swimming in Great Ponds by the public is not required by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Here is a link to the law:
https://malegislature.gov/laws/generallaws/parti/titlexix/chapter131/section45
When public swimming is permitted, the management for these areas is the responsibility of the individual towns except in cases where there is state management such as Walden Pond and Lake Cochituate. Source: Steven Asen, Director of Lakes and Ponds, Commonweatlh of Massachusetts, 617-626-1353.
There is no public swimming allowed at White Pond.
For public swimming in Great Ponds, please visit:
Walden Pond
Open year-round for day use only. The daily parking fee is $8 resident, $10 non-resident per vehicle. Parking is only permitted in the main lot across from the pond. Hours vary though out the season. Visitors are welcome to swim, hike, fish, use canoes and boats (electric motors only), cross-country ski, snowshoe. Visitors are also welcome to picnic, however; picnic tables and pavilion facilities are not available.
Cochituate State Park
A popular regional day use park featuring water based recreational opportunities including boating, swimming, windsurfing, and fishing on its three large lakes. Picnicking, swimming, and boat launching are limited to the main area of the park on the middle lake and boaters can gain access to the other lakes through channels under roadways.
For a complete list of swimming areas in Massachusetts please visit: Massachusetts Fresh Water Beaches
or 12 Massachusetts Swimming Holes to Explore This Summer.
For additional recreational activities please visit Massachusetts Places To Go.
Towns that allow swimming in their Great Ponds manage swimming in a variety of ways:
1. They all have a designated swimming area managed by the town usually by the recreation department. Some offer swimming lessons, boat rentals.
2. All towns charge a usage fee for swimming. Many towns allow swimming for residents only.
3. All have a parking lot and a parking fee.
4. Resident and non-resident have to purchase a sticker or a pass to park.
5. Swimming areas have life guards, trash receptacles, rest rooms.
6. Most areas prohibit dogs, fires and flotation devices .
7. Most all areas prohibit gas powered boats.
8. Many towns rely on volunteers for clean up and stewardship of the pond.
The following list is a survey of several ponds in Middlesex County indicating how each town manages access and swimming.
Bare Hill Pond, Harvard
http://www.harvardparkandrec.org/Page.asp?n=117088&org=harvardparkandrec.org
Swimming for town residents only. Parking stickers required.
Life guards and rest rooms. Boat and trailer parking require either an annual parking sticker (residents only) or a daily fee of $25.
Out of town residents can buy a daily parking pass to access the boat launch for $10. Out of town residents do not have access to the town beach.
Forge Pond, Westford http://www.westfordyouth.com/Directory/Beaches_Lakes_Ponds.html
Westford residents only. $5 per person fee but there is no attendant on duty. No life guards. Restrooms and a small playground. Picnicking, boating, swimming for town residents.
Hart Pond Chelmsford
http://www.heartpond.org/
http://www.chelmsfordnow.com/index.aspx?NID=171
Swimming and motor boats allowed for residents and non-residents. Parking lot. Life guards. Restrooms. Motor boats allowed. Close to BFRT. Aquatic weed and algae control necessary.
Knopps/Lost Lake Groton
http://www.townofgroton.org/Community/SargissonBeach.aspx
Sargission Beach
The town Conservation Commission employs a part-time park ranger to help with regular maintenance. Parking restricted to Groton residents only. Swimming allowed at main beach only. Swimming at the “point” is not allowed. Swimming is restricted to hours when life guards are on duty (10 am-6 pm). Out of town guests allowed when accompanied by town residents. Rest rooms, trash dumpster. No pets, no boats, floats, fires, alcohol. This pond is currently experiencing an infestation of non-native invasive weeds. For further information, please watch this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dxByOOc750
Mirror Lake, Devens
http://www.magicmirrorlake.com/
Swimming allowed. Swim lessons. Beach season from the end of June to the end of August. No dogs. Daily parking fee for residents and non-residents. Lifeguards and rest rooms. Boat rentals, no power boats, no alcohol, no fires, no dogs allowed at any time, no recreational flotation devices.
Non residents buy season passes online for $35 single and $65 family.
Nuttings Pond, Billerica http://www.town.billerica.ma.us/DocumentCenter/Home/View
/2123
The town Recreation Department operates Micozzi Beach for residents only. They provide lifeguards and rest room facilities. Swimmers need a parking pass. Canoe and boat rentals no gas power boas, no alcohol, littering, dogs must be on a leash. Picnic area. Nuttings Lake Conservation Land is mostly comprised of undeveloped wetlands from Nuttings Lake. They are open to the public for nature study and passive recreation, such as picnics and walks.
Spectacle Pond, Lancaster http://www.telegram.com/article/20091216/NEWS/912160373/0
Limits public access to beach for residents only since 2000.
East Waushakum Pond, Sterling
http://www.sterling-ma.gov/Pages/SterlingMA_Recreation/beach
Offers swimming at Sholan Beach managed by town recreation department. All vehicles must have town resident sticker. Guest passes require 24 hours notice. No pets allowed- $25 fine.
Washakum Pond, Framingham
http://www.framingham.com/rec/
Swimming allowed. Town operates a recreational swim area and requires a beach tag for residents and non-residents. The pond was closed during the summer of 2014 due to a high bacteria count (7 times the normal level).
Lake Winthrop- Holliston http://www.hollistonreporter.com/article/5507/Summer-at-the-Lake.html
Swimming available at two beach areas- Stoddard Park and Pleasure Point. Life guards only at Stoddard Park.
Open to residents for a fee of $50 for the season. Non residents pay $100 for the season or they can purchase a day pass for $20. Boating allowed. N0 pets( $25 fine). No alcohol. Fires allowed in charcoal grills.
White Pond
There is no public swimming allowed at White Pond.
• White Pond Associates Beach. Private beach in operation for 70 years. Concord residents only. $325 seasonal fee. Parking lot, life guards, restrooms, trash receptacles, swimming lessons. There is an access road and a small parking lot for cars with boats.
• White Pond Reservation at Sachem's Cove: No Swimming allowed and enforced by rangers. Currently undergoing a slope restoration project for 2017. Limited parking for passive recreation on marked trails on conservation land.
Willis Pond Sudbury
https://sudbury.ma.us/pwc/wp-content/uploads/sites/333/2014/08/PWCMasterPlan030510.pdf
Public dock and beach. Access not well known or easy to find. Pond used for fishing, boating and ice skating. Reports of broken glass embedded into sandy beach. The entire north shore of the pond is unpopulated wetland bordering on the Assabet National Wildlife Refuge.
Wyman Pond, Westminster
http://wymanlakeassociation.org/About_the_Lake.html
Town controls a locked gate. They paid more than $300,000 over last five years to control trash left at site. There is no swimming since the lake is experiencing eutrophication. A private association of residents is trying to save the lake. They recently bought a weed harvester for $118,000. They are now controlling weeds with chemical weed control. Here is an excerpt from their website:
Our efforts to actively slow down the death of our lake must be on-going and never ending. Remember that humans cause the problem. We accelerate the eutrophication process from centuries in length to a decade or less. According to a feasibility study performed in the early 80’s over 700 tons of sediment enter our lake on an annual basis. We must do everything we can to retard this process. In view of this we must continue the spring shoreline raking project and discourage residents from adding sand or fill to their beachfronts. Nutrients causing excessive plant growth also come from overuse of lawn fertilizer, faulty septic systems and animal waste. We must continue an educational program on proper septic systems, yard care, pets, waterfowl, run-off & household products. We are also studying the possibility of a dredging system which if successful would actually start to reverse the eutrophication process.
A great pond is defined as any pond or lake that contained more than 10 acres in its natural state. Access to swimming in Great Ponds by the public is not required by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Here is a link to the law:
https://malegislature.gov/laws/generallaws/parti/titlexix/chapter131/section45
When public swimming is permitted, the management for these areas is the responsibility of the individual towns except in cases where there is state management such as Walden Pond and Lake Cochituate. Source: Steven Asen, Director of Lakes and Ponds, Commonweatlh of Massachusetts, 617-626-1353.
There is no public swimming allowed at White Pond.
For public swimming in Great Ponds, please visit:
Walden Pond
Open year-round for day use only. The daily parking fee is $8 resident, $10 non-resident per vehicle. Parking is only permitted in the main lot across from the pond. Hours vary though out the season. Visitors are welcome to swim, hike, fish, use canoes and boats (electric motors only), cross-country ski, snowshoe. Visitors are also welcome to picnic, however; picnic tables and pavilion facilities are not available.
Cochituate State Park
A popular regional day use park featuring water based recreational opportunities including boating, swimming, windsurfing, and fishing on its three large lakes. Picnicking, swimming, and boat launching are limited to the main area of the park on the middle lake and boaters can gain access to the other lakes through channels under roadways.
For a complete list of swimming areas in Massachusetts please visit: Massachusetts Fresh Water Beaches
or 12 Massachusetts Swimming Holes to Explore This Summer.
For additional recreational activities please visit Massachusetts Places To Go.
Towns that allow swimming in their Great Ponds manage swimming in a variety of ways:
1. They all have a designated swimming area managed by the town usually by the recreation department. Some offer swimming lessons, boat rentals.
2. All towns charge a usage fee for swimming. Many towns allow swimming for residents only.
3. All have a parking lot and a parking fee.
4. Resident and non-resident have to purchase a sticker or a pass to park.
5. Swimming areas have life guards, trash receptacles, rest rooms.
6. Most areas prohibit dogs, fires and flotation devices .
7. Most all areas prohibit gas powered boats.
8. Many towns rely on volunteers for clean up and stewardship of the pond.
The following list is a survey of several ponds in Middlesex County indicating how each town manages access and swimming.
Bare Hill Pond, Harvard
http://www.harvardparkandrec.org/Page.asp?n=117088&org=harvardparkandrec.org
Swimming for town residents only. Parking stickers required.
Life guards and rest rooms. Boat and trailer parking require either an annual parking sticker (residents only) or a daily fee of $25.
Out of town residents can buy a daily parking pass to access the boat launch for $10. Out of town residents do not have access to the town beach.
Forge Pond, Westford http://www.westfordyouth.com/Directory/Beaches_Lakes_Ponds.html
Westford residents only. $5 per person fee but there is no attendant on duty. No life guards. Restrooms and a small playground. Picnicking, boating, swimming for town residents.
Hart Pond Chelmsford
http://www.heartpond.org/
http://www.chelmsfordnow.com/index.aspx?NID=171
Swimming and motor boats allowed for residents and non-residents. Parking lot. Life guards. Restrooms. Motor boats allowed. Close to BFRT. Aquatic weed and algae control necessary.
Knopps/Lost Lake Groton
http://www.townofgroton.org/Community/SargissonBeach.aspx
Sargission Beach
The town Conservation Commission employs a part-time park ranger to help with regular maintenance. Parking restricted to Groton residents only. Swimming allowed at main beach only. Swimming at the “point” is not allowed. Swimming is restricted to hours when life guards are on duty (10 am-6 pm). Out of town guests allowed when accompanied by town residents. Rest rooms, trash dumpster. No pets, no boats, floats, fires, alcohol. This pond is currently experiencing an infestation of non-native invasive weeds. For further information, please watch this video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2dxByOOc750
Mirror Lake, Devens
http://www.magicmirrorlake.com/
Swimming allowed. Swim lessons. Beach season from the end of June to the end of August. No dogs. Daily parking fee for residents and non-residents. Lifeguards and rest rooms. Boat rentals, no power boats, no alcohol, no fires, no dogs allowed at any time, no recreational flotation devices.
Non residents buy season passes online for $35 single and $65 family.
Nuttings Pond, Billerica http://www.town.billerica.ma.us/DocumentCenter/Home/View
/2123
The town Recreation Department operates Micozzi Beach for residents only. They provide lifeguards and rest room facilities. Swimmers need a parking pass. Canoe and boat rentals no gas power boas, no alcohol, littering, dogs must be on a leash. Picnic area. Nuttings Lake Conservation Land is mostly comprised of undeveloped wetlands from Nuttings Lake. They are open to the public for nature study and passive recreation, such as picnics and walks.
Spectacle Pond, Lancaster http://www.telegram.com/article/20091216/NEWS/912160373/0
Limits public access to beach for residents only since 2000.
East Waushakum Pond, Sterling
http://www.sterling-ma.gov/Pages/SterlingMA_Recreation/beach
Offers swimming at Sholan Beach managed by town recreation department. All vehicles must have town resident sticker. Guest passes require 24 hours notice. No pets allowed- $25 fine.
Washakum Pond, Framingham
http://www.framingham.com/rec/
Swimming allowed. Town operates a recreational swim area and requires a beach tag for residents and non-residents. The pond was closed during the summer of 2014 due to a high bacteria count (7 times the normal level).
Lake Winthrop- Holliston http://www.hollistonreporter.com/article/5507/Summer-at-the-Lake.html
Swimming available at two beach areas- Stoddard Park and Pleasure Point. Life guards only at Stoddard Park.
Open to residents for a fee of $50 for the season. Non residents pay $100 for the season or they can purchase a day pass for $20. Boating allowed. N0 pets( $25 fine). No alcohol. Fires allowed in charcoal grills.
White Pond
There is no public swimming allowed at White Pond.
• White Pond Associates Beach. Private beach in operation for 70 years. Concord residents only. $325 seasonal fee. Parking lot, life guards, restrooms, trash receptacles, swimming lessons. There is an access road and a small parking lot for cars with boats.
• White Pond Reservation at Sachem's Cove: No Swimming allowed and enforced by rangers. Currently undergoing a slope restoration project for 2017. Limited parking for passive recreation on marked trails on conservation land.
Willis Pond Sudbury
https://sudbury.ma.us/pwc/wp-content/uploads/sites/333/2014/08/PWCMasterPlan030510.pdf
Public dock and beach. Access not well known or easy to find. Pond used for fishing, boating and ice skating. Reports of broken glass embedded into sandy beach. The entire north shore of the pond is unpopulated wetland bordering on the Assabet National Wildlife Refuge.
Wyman Pond, Westminster
http://wymanlakeassociation.org/About_the_Lake.html
Town controls a locked gate. They paid more than $300,000 over last five years to control trash left at site. There is no swimming since the lake is experiencing eutrophication. A private association of residents is trying to save the lake. They recently bought a weed harvester for $118,000. They are now controlling weeds with chemical weed control. Here is an excerpt from their website:
Our efforts to actively slow down the death of our lake must be on-going and never ending. Remember that humans cause the problem. We accelerate the eutrophication process from centuries in length to a decade or less. According to a feasibility study performed in the early 80’s over 700 tons of sediment enter our lake on an annual basis. We must do everything we can to retard this process. In view of this we must continue the spring shoreline raking project and discourage residents from adding sand or fill to their beachfronts. Nutrients causing excessive plant growth also come from overuse of lawn fertilizer, faulty septic systems and animal waste. We must continue an educational program on proper septic systems, yard care, pets, waterfowl, run-off & household products. We are also studying the possibility of a dredging system which if successful would actually start to reverse the eutrophication process.