South Cedar Swamp

fields

Photo Courtesy of Don Burn

Fields at St Lukes

South Cedar Swamp is best accessed from St. Luke's Cemetery. This provides one of the best access points for exploring Cedar Swamp.

While most people see just a cemetery as they proceed down Route 135, if you enter the cemetery and take the dirt road on your right, you are rewarded with an unexpected area of fields, forests, and swamp.

This is the home of an organic farm operation and a community garden. In 2001 the parish formally opened trails across their property. These trails explore the fields seen at the left and link to trails that lead in to surrounding Sudbury Valley Trustees (SVT) and Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) properties.

In the winter, the SVT trail provides access down a frozen stream to Cedar Swamp Pond , the headwaters of the Sudbury River.

trail

Photo Courtesy of Don Burn

Trail through the swamp

In May 2003, New England's premier wild edible plant expert, Russ Cohen, led a wild edible plant walk along the edges of the field and woodlands adjacent to St. Luke's Cemetery. Among the many wild plants with edible parts that he identified there were: autumn olive, choke cherry, day lily, early dandelions, dame's rocket, Japanese knotweed, pokeweed, sheep sorrel, lamb's quarters, arugula, crabapple, acorns, checkerberry, Indian cucumber root, charlock, hazelnut, wild grapes, wild carrot (better known as Queen Anne's Lace), wintercress, chickweed, field pennycress, partidgeberry, and Canada mayflower.

It is asked that you do not hike across the fields at times of bird nesting.

As in North Cedar Swamp, WCLT is hoping to build a boardwalk to allow access from downtown to the region described here.

pond

Photo Courtesy of Don Burn

Pond at St Lukes

Bird WatchingCross Country Skiing and SnowshoeingDog WalkingEasy Walking and Hiking

Trail map

Cedar Swamp Exploration Guide

Map to St. Lukes Entrance

North Cedar Swamp (previous segment of the Charm Bracelet)

No next segment of the Charm Bracelet at this time.


Westborough Community Land Trust, PO Box 838, Westborough , MA 01581
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