Magazine Beach

It’s a lovely winter’s day (in October!) at Magazine Beach. Talk a walk…

But also send a quick email. TODAY is last day to send comments about the rebuilding of the I-90 viaduct, the noisy elevated highway just across the river from the park. Magazine Beach Partners and the Cambridgeport Neighborhood Association, and so many others, are all advocating for the at-grade alternative for I-90—NOT rebuilding this eyesore. For more information, see:https://thecharles.org/.   Email: I-90Allston@state.ma.us.

We are so grateful to the Charles River Conservancy for their socially distanced cleanup of the park last Saturday. Among their finds were:

Cigarette butts- 787, Plastic pieces – 673, Food packaging – 402, Bottle caps – 353, Straws/stirrers – 147, Paper (bags, sheet, napkins, etc.) – 458, Foam pieces – 114, Glass pieces – 112. Total number of items removed – 4,278

We share our condolences with the Riverside Boat Club, whose beloved Simmons College rowing coach, Nikolay Kurmakov, died a few weeks ago. Last Saturday, Riverside’s rowers gathered to honor his passing and to christen the Kurmakov Bay in his honor. 

Thank you, Charles River Conservancy, for watering our young new trees at the park. With the drought, they wouldn’t have survived without you.

And thanks in advance for your Saturday, October 24 Magazine Beach Cleanup from 9-11am. Contact Sasha to sign up for a small group, socially distanced morning in the park at svallieres@thecharles.org.

Be sure to take a stroll at the park. The leaves are just beginning to turn and its is GORGEOUS!!!!!!!!

And we just have two more FREE Thursday evening yogas at the park–October 8 & 15. See you at 5:15pm in front of the Powder Magazine. Bring your mask and your matt! To savoring every minute of these last warmish days. Paradise: it’s just down the street.

UPDATE: FREE Yoga at the park this Thursday will be at 5:15pm (NOT 6pm). We’d forgotten how early it gets dark in the fall. We’re learning….

Last Monday the City Council voted to support Community Preservation Act (CPA) appropriation recommendations, including $150k towards the next phase of work for Magazine Beach Park—removing the sunken parking lot between the pool and the river.

Magazine Beach Partners is thrilled about this and that the City of Cambridge will plant some trees at the park (as per DCR’s instructions and Crosby Schlessinger Smallridge’s landscape plan) in late October or early November. Go, Cambridge!

Note: New Time: 5:15-6:15pm! We’re learning… It’s getting darker earlier.

FREE THURSDAY EVENING YOGA with Carol Faulkner–Thursdays, Sept. 10-Oct. 15, 5:15-6:15pm–NEW TIME!!!!! Bring your own yoga matt! Participants must wear masks and stand a minimum of 6 feet apart. Maximum: 50 participants. If raining, cancelled.

Thanks to DCR’s Veterans Memorial Swimming Pool Manager Justin Bryon and his lifeguards for a wonderful summer at Magazine Beach. Pool staff need to get back to school, so the pool and its bathhouse (and bathrooms!) will close. But swim while you can. Until Sunday at 6:45pm, the pool will be open from 11:15am-6:45pm daily.

The spraydeck will stay open through Sunday, Sept. 27.

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Magazine Beach remains a fabulous place to picnic, stroll, walk your dog, read a book or just hang out with friends. So come on down. If you’re picnicking, remember to bring trash bags. It’s a carry in and carry out park. And to be safe and stay healthy, wear masks and socially distance!

See articles about the opening up of the shoreline path and the Powder Magazine patio and terraces here and here! The park is looking so good. Check it out!

On Wednesday, Jean Devine of Meadowscaping for Biodiversity brought students in her Youth Environmental Entrepreneurship Program to Magazine Beach to check out the plants—wanted (wildflowers) and unwanted (invasives that take over).

Many plants are in bloom! Take a walk and discover the wildflowers, among them: bee balm, black-eyed susan, chicory, daisies, Joe Pye Weed & swamp milkweed.

And last Tuesday, more youth came to the park via Waypoint Adventure, who provide outdoor experiences for youth and adults with special needs.

Kudos to both groups, providing quality, safe programs, despite the pandemic!

At long last, DCR has removed the fence today. Enjoy the shoreline path and Powder Magazine patio and terraces. They look spectacular. But please tread lightly on the new grass.

You’ll see that some new plants are fenced off from the geese who ate many of the initial batch of plantings.

July 4th picnickers, bring trash bags. DCR has provided a dumpster, but not trashcans. The pool and spray deck will be open. If crowds come, there will be regulated pool access to keep bathers safe.

Have fun and enjoy this green oasis in the City. Stay cool and be well.

Update: The pool is still mostly empty and the spray deck is getting light use, so come down to Magazine Beach to get wet. The park will be open for July 4th. DCR has installed a big trash dumpster, just for the weekend, so enjoy. Please wear masks, socially distance and have fun! The fence along the shoreline is still up, but coming down soon, I’m told…

Yes, the pool is open and mostly empty, so head down to the park. It will be open daily, 11:15am-6:45pm, through August IF covid-19 allows and bathers are safe. Please bring your masks to wear in the bathhouse. If the pool becomes crowded, there will be controlled access. No swimming lessons this year.

Thanks to longtime pool director Justin Byron, asst. director Julian, and all of their staff! And thanks to all those folks at DCR who made this happen from behind the scenes…..

Julian and Justin, left to right, pool managers

Update: Sounds like the pool will open this weekend and will be open daily, 11:15am-6:45pm, all summer–if we can keep the virus under control and bathers safe. Expect limited and controlled access. More about this soon. The spray deck is open!

Today and tomorrow the Charles River Conservancy will assemble and launch a floating wetland from behind the swimming pool. Look for the assembly of the 20-piece wetland substructure, and 15 types of vegetation, including grasses, milkweed and other flowering plants.

On Tuesday they hope to tow the wetland to its final location—near the Broad Canal, just east of the Longfellow Bridge.

This two-year study project, to see how a wetland can inhibit cyanobacteria blooms in the river, was inspired by the CRC’s Charles River Swimming Initiative. While the river is swimmable much of the time now, occasional cyanobacteria algae blooms make swimming unsafe. In theory, the roots of the floating wetland will provide habitat for zooplankton which will eat the cyanobacteria. Northeastern Civil and Environmental Engineering Phd student Max Rome will monitor the project.

If you’re at the park, please observe from a distance. Look for the wetland down river later in the week.

Update: The exercise area has been reopened! DCR just did a mow and the park is almost ready for summer. 

Many are enjoying this spectacular week at the park, gathering in small groups to relax and be together in nature. Remember, if you’re picnicking at the park, to bring a bag for trash. It’s carry in and carry out. Also, no port-o-potties or lawn chairs at the park this summer, due to the virus. So plan ahead…