Chestnut Hill Reservation

Overview

A popular 1.5-mile circular path with pleasant vistas of Back Bay skyscrapers, the Reservation was designed by Frederick Law Olmsted’s son and constructed in the late 1860s to give Boston clean drinking water and a rural park.

Still largely intact, the waterworks with its three gatehouses at water’s edge and three majestic pump houses on Beacon Street is considered a masterpiece of 19th century engineering and landscape design. Both Cochituate and Sudbury Aqueducts are still connected to the Reservoir, but the system has been disabled.

Today the paths around the Reservoir and through the woods are open for public use, where local birders have found good vantage points for the somewhat frequent viewing of rarities in migration. The DCR recreation center offers seasonal swimming and ice skating.

Size: 120 acres including 88-acre reservoir and surrounding parkland Longest Walk: 1.5 miles Acquired: 1867

Maps

Scan this code using the camera or QR code app on your smartphone for quick access to maps and other information on the property.

Located in the Brighton neighborhood of Boston

Get here by MBTA:

A 0.3 mile walk from Reservoir Green Line station

Other maps and aerial photos:

Bing Maps bird’s-eye view

Trail Map

Click map for larger image

GPS Enabled Trail Map

Access City of Newton GIS Map

To see your location, press the location icon while viewing the map on your smartphone. If the blue location dot doesn’t appear when you open the map, come back to this page and click here.