Nature reserve · Massachusetts
Hancock Woods
Hancock Woods is a nature reserve in Massachusetts, at a modelled elevation of 47 m. Great Blue Hill stands 193 m to the south-southeast, 6.4 miles off. The nearest named place is Brucewood St Park, a park 0.4 miles away. Revolutionary Heritage Byway passes 1.8 miles off.
What the record says
- Built
- 1996
What to expect
- Access
- Yes
How to reach it
Coordinates42.29685, -71.16173
- 1.8 mi off the Revolutionary Heritage Byway, National
- 7.8 mi off the Battle Road Scenic Byway, National
Overlooks nearby
- Skywalk Observatory · 5 mi
- Sunset Ledge · 18 mi
- Lookout Point · 22 mi
Named places within 25 miles
Parks
- Brucewood St Park: 0.4 mi
- Hynes Field: 0.4 mi
- Hynes Playground: 0.5 mi
- West Roxbury Parkway: 0.8 mi
- West Roxbury Parkway: 0.9 mi
Nature reserves
- D. Blakeley Hoar Sanctuary: 0.5 mi
- Kesseler Woods Conservation Area: 0.5 mi
- Kesseler Woods Conservation Area: 0.7 mi
- Baldpate Meadow Conservation Area: 0.8 mi
- Lost Pond Sanctuary: 1.3 mi
Peaks
- Walnut Hill: 0.6 mi
- Peaked Hill: 1.0 mi
- Bald Pate Hill: 1.0 mi
- Oak Hill: 1.3 mi
- Weld Hill: 1.4 mi
Historic sites
- Historic Springhouse: 1.5 mi
- Parkman Memorial: 2.4 mi
- Ghost Bike for Joseph Lee Alan Pielmeier: 2.4 mi
- Soldier's Monument: 2.5 mi
- The Castle: 2.8 mi
Museums
- Larz Anderson Auto Museum: 1.7 mi
- Bay State Model Railroad Museum: 1.8 mi
- Longyear Museum: 1.9 mi
- Metropolitan Waterworks Museum: 2.4 mi
- Mary Baker Eddy Historic House: 2.5 mi
Gardens
- Bradley Rosaceous Collection: 2.2 mi
- Leland Street Cooperative Garden: 2.5 mi
- Leland Street Cooperative Garden: 2.5 mi
- Jamaica Pond Park Rain Garden: 2.6 mi
- Jamaica Pond Park Rain Garden: 2.6 mi
Artworks
- Saint Ignatius Loyola: 2.7 mi
- Drift by Mary Bonina: 2.9 mi
- Taino Mural: 3.1 mi
- Beauty Master Mural: 3.2 mi
- Pimentel Market Mural: 3.3 mi
Attractions
- Jamaica Pond Bench: 2.7 mi
- Piccadilly Square Chair: 2.8 mi
- Heartbreak Hill (Top/End): 2.8 mi
- Heartbreak Hill (Bottom/Start): 3.0 mi
- Sam Adams Boston Brewery Tour: 3.2 mi
Beaches
- Crystal Lake Beach: 2.8 mi
- North Beach: 5.7 mi
- South Beach: 6.0 mi
- Tenean Beach: 6.1 mi
- Powissett Beach: 6.1 mi
Cliffs: 46
- The Alcove: 1.9 mi
- Upper Cliff: 1.9 mi
- Lower Cliff: 2.0 mi
- Temple Overhangs: 2.2 mi
- Pusherman Wall: 2.2 mi
Picnic sites: 41
- Oak Lea: 3.7 mi
- Pine Knoll: 3.8 mi
- Nature's Pavilion: 3.8 mi
- Picnic Site 11: 7.7 mi
- Picnic Site 10: 7.7 mi
Rest areas: 6
- Westwood Rest Area: 5.5 mi
- Commissioners Landing: 6.2 mi
- Interstate 95 Rest Area: 20.7 mi
- Rest Area I-95 (South Bound): 21.4 mi
- State Route 3 Parking Area Southbound: 23.1 mi
Lighthouses: 6
- Boathouse: 14.0 mi
- Keeper's Dwelling: 14.0 mi
- Oil Shed: 14.0 mi
- Boston Light: 14.0 mi
- Rainshed: 14.0 mi
Springs: 3
- Pakomet Spring: 7.8 mi
- Quarry Spring: 10.0 mi
- Mystery Spring: 23.3 mi
Waterfalls: 3
- Rock Falls: 10.5 mi
- Cascade Falls: 11.1 mi
- Wamesit Falls: 24.0 mi
Ghost towns: 1
- Haywardville: 12.1 mi
Summits around it
The highest named summits within 6.4 miles of Hancock Woods. Elevation from each summit’s own record; bearing measured between the two coordinates.
| Summit | Bearing | Elevation | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Great Blue Hill | SSE 157° | 193 m | 6.4 mi |
| Hemenway Hill | SSE 150° | 140 m | 6.3 mi |
| Wolcott Hill | SSE 154° | 132 m | 6.3 mi |
| Strawberry Hill | SW 228° | 114 m | 6.4 mi |
| High Rock | SW 218° | 104 m | 5.8 mi |
| Maugus Hill | W 280° | 101 m | 5.6 mi |
| Single Tree Hill | NNE 15° | 100 m | 1.9 mi |
| Waban Hill | NNW 348° | 98 m | 3.0 mi |
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 06:49 | 18:20 | 18:57 |
| June solstice | 05:09 | 19:43 | 20:25 |
| September equinox | 06:33 | 18:07 | 18:44 |
| December solstice | 07:11 | 15:30 | 16:16 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: May–Oct.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 28 | 30 | 38 | 49 | 59 | 68 | 74 | 73 | 65 | 53 | 43 | 34 |
| Precip in | 3.9 | 3.6 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.5 | 3.7 | 4.0 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 5.1 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — Jamaica Plain, 2 mi away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapOpenStreetMap element way/29829981
Day trips start here
- Boston/Outer Neighborhoods · 1 mi
- Eastern Massachusetts · 2 mi
- Boston/Jamaica Plain-Mission Hill · 3 mi
- Brookline · 3 mi
- Boston/Allston-Brighton · 4 mi
- Boston/Fenway-Kenmore · 4 mi
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