Fresh Pond Reservation Newsletter
November 2026
| | Stay in the know regarding all our events including walks, runs, educational activities, and other relevant Cambridge events. This newsletter is brought to you by the Cambridge Water Department's Rangers Amanda and Omar. | |
Mindful Mosey
Wednesday, Nov 18th
10:30am-12:00 noon
Ranger Station
250 Fresh Pond Pkwy
Come join Stefanie Haug, LICSW and local nature guide and Ranger Amanda Garms as we connect with the people and green spaces around Fresh Pond Reservation. Together we’ll breathe deeply, slow down, and notice the world around us, with quiet walking and moments of shared reflection. Suitable for everyone with accommodations always possible. Dress for the weather and bring a portable seat, if desired. This program meets at the Ranger Station at Fresh Pond Reservation. Sponsored by the Friends of Fresh Pond. Find out how to best support the Friends at friendsoffreshpond.org.
No registration required.
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Fresh Pond Biodiversity & Climate Citizen Scientist Volunteering with Earthwise Aware (EwA)
EwA invites volunteers to contribute to national research on how climate change is reshaping the life cycles of plants, insects, and other organisms. We provide training, and no prior experience is needed, only an interest in the natural world. Using a smartphone app, log phenology, insect surveys, and species interactions to document how species shift in response to a changing climate.
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Ongoing Volunteer Opportunity:
Garden Work Date
Tuesdays through Fall
10:00am-1:00pm
Meets at the Habitat Restoration Area off the perimeter road between the parkway community gardens and Lusitania Meadow.
250 Fresh Pond Pkwy
Come learn from expert naturalists how to restore our native communities by doing hands on work! Help transplant plants, weed invasives, mulch restoration areas, and learn about how a once invasive buckthorn forest has transformed into a native wildlife refuge in just over a decade. Started by the Friends of Fresh Pond in the late 2000's, the area has been transformed to a special hidden refuge and has been carefully curated ever since. Wear closed toed shoes & clothes ready to work in the garden! Drop by and stay for a bit or the whole time. This program will end for the season pending weather. No registration required.
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Volunteer Stewards
10:00am-12:00 noon
Thursdays through November
250 Fresh Pond Parkway
Meets at the Tool Trailer
This is a weekly, open opportunity to volunteer. We have the tools, we have the training, we just need the hands! Every week is a different target area and a different task depending on the natural calendar’s seasonal needs.
None of these hours work for you? Contact amywaltz@gmail.com to connect with volunteers on Sundays and throughout the week! If you have a group of 4 or more, contact agarms@cambridgema.gov to coordinate a volunteer day of service.
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Fresh Pond Nature Walk
Collins Branch Library
Wednesday, November 4th
10:15 to 11:30 am
Meets at the Ranger Station
250 Fresh Pond Pkwy
Join us for a short walk of Fresh Pond Reservation with Ranger Amanda Garms and Library Associate Michael Roberson. We will observe seasonal changes in our environment, enjoy the fresh air, and get some exercise in nature. This walk is not on a paved path. We will walk on uneven terrain, down hills, and over roots. The meeting location for this walk will be at the Fresh Pond Ranger Station at 250 Fresh Pond Parkway. Registration is required for this event.
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Walter J. Sullivan Water Purification Facility Tour
Monday, November 2nd
6:00-7:30pm
250 Fresh Pond Pkwy
Meets at the Water Treatment Plant Front Door
Join us for the last Water Treatment Plant of the year! Come learn how the Water Department purifies drinking water for your tap after it’s conveyed from nearby Fresh Pond into our facility. You’ll have the chance to speak with water treatment staff, see the equipment in action and check out our water quality lab! No registration required.
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Fascinating Fungi
A walk with Lawrence Millman
Sunday, November 15th
1:00-3:00pm
Ranger Station
250 Fresh Pond Pkwy
Join expert mycologist Lawrence Millman in a walk around Fresh Pond to identify mushrooms. In the last 20 years, he has documented 393 fungal species at Fresh Pond - perhaps we can make it all the way to 400! Meets at the ranger station under the clock tower. Registration is required and caps at 15. This walk is sponsored by the Friends of Fresh Pond Reservation. For more information on how to best support the Friends, visit friendsoffreshpond.org. Contact agarms@cambridgema.gov to register.
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Fall Guided Nature Walk with Jeff Adams
November 22nd
10:15am - 12:45pm
Ranger Station
250 Fresh Pond Pkwy
Please join Jeff Adams for a Guided Nature walk at Fresh Pond Reservation. Our focus will be Plant ID on a selection of native species with some non-natives too. We’ll identify by observing characteristics such as leaves, galls, branching patterns, overall shape and maybe smell and touch too. We’ll also discuss select natural history, folklore and science. Steady rain or stormy winds cancels.
Jeff is an avid outdoor enthusiast & naturalist who’s been enjoying the natural world for 50 years. He’s a member of the Friends of the Fells, The Trustees, Mass Audubon, Sudbury Valley Trustees, Acton Conservation Trust, Arlington Land Trust, Essex Greenbelt, Massachusetts Association of Conservation Commissions, The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Tufts University, Newton Conservators, Friends of Fresh Pond, Cape Ann Trail Stewards, Wells Reserve at Laudholm Farm and The Massachusetts Archaeological Society, Inc.
Registration is full for this walk. Contact Ranger Amanda at agarms@cambridgema.gov to get on the waitlist!
Dogs: While we love experiencing the outdoors with our dogs, this program is not suitable for dogs. We ask that you please leave your furry friends home while attending this program.
| | Please be prepared and bring a water bottle with you on your walks this winter! | |
Water Fountains Shut Off & Status Updates
- Wednesday, Nov 4 water fountains shut off around the reservation.
- Thursday, Nov 6 community garden water hookups and fountains shut off.
- The Ranger station water bottle filler is waiting on a part for repairs. The Water Department will have this fixed as soon as the part arrives. We are just as dissapointed and frustrated as you are that this new water bottle filler failed so soon after its installation! Thank you for your patience.
- The "Wave" water fountain repairs are being led by the Arts Council with CWD support. Diagnosing the issue has been more complicated than expected and has taken many staff hours. At this point, full repairs are unlikely before our seasonal water fountain shut offs, but the fountain will be fixed by spring turn on.
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Thank You to our Volunteers!
Our weekly Thursday volunteering program ends later this month, and we'd like to give a big thank you to all our volunteers this year! This program restarts in spring pending weather. Pictured from the right is Amy Waltz, Terri, Joanna, Basil, Leon, and Matthew. A special shout out goes to Basil, Leon and Amy who have come to work around the pond every week since this summer! This group (plus many others) spends time around the reservation on varying days of the week, focusing on pulling invasives and habitat restoration. If you'd like to join the crew or are interested in additional volunteer opportunities at Fresh Pond, please contact amyswaltz@gmail.com or agarms@cambridgema.gov.
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Lawn Care at Fresh Pond: Lime & Fertilizer
We use three products for turf grass quality and general soil quality maintenance that are completely organic and safe for you, your water supply, and your pet:
Humoxy Enhanced Gypsum (Limestone)
- Reduces soil acidity
- Increases nutrient availability (does not add nutrients, but helps to mobilize what is already in the soil and convert them into plant usable forms)
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Applied this month (once annually)
NatureSafe 18-0-2 (Fertilizer)
- Organic and Synthetic fertilizer blend
- Mostly nitrogen (18) some potassium (2)
- Applied 1-3x annually
Nutrite Professional Turf Fertilizer 0-0-22 (Fertilizer)
- Potassium supplement
- Not applied this year
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No Harvesting
With the holidays upon us, this is a gentle reminder that the greenery at Fresh Pond is for everyone to enjoy, not for visitors to harvest and cut for decorations. Some berries, like winterberries, are critical late season food sources for birds. They won't eat them when they first emerge because they are too tart - but later in the winter they soften up and will be eaten when there is not much else around.
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Neville Place Walk to Black's Nook
Below is Ranger Amanda pictured with folks from one of two programs this month in conjunction with Neville Place. We walked to Black's Nook to view the birds and frogs as well as interesting foliage this time of year including witch hazel, spicebush, winterberries, fragrant sumac, as well as an assortment of mushrooms!
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Takeda Volunteer Group
A group of Takeda Pharmaceutical employees came through the Huron Pine Grove to help re-mulch the paths to aid erosion in the area. This dedicated bunch spent two hours re-mulching paths as a part of their company's Volunteer Time Off initiative!
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Cub Scout Pack 56 Volunteers
A big Fresh Pond thank you to Cub Scout Pack 56 for their hard work pulling invasive buckthorn behind the Lusitania Meadow!
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No Dogs on the Golf Course!
Except this dog! Do you recognize this pup to the left? Her name is Meadow, and she is a City of Cambridge employee. Meadow is an Australian Shepard herding mix, and her job is to keep coyotes and geese off the golf course. If you see a dog on the course and wonder why she's allowed and yours isn't, it's because she's a salaried employee! Meadow replaced Callaway, a similar breed but lighter in color who is now retired.
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Clever Coyotes
November marks an uptick in coyote activity as males born last year spread out to find their own territories. We had two pups last year of unknown gender born to one of the two resident male coyotes here at Fresh Pond. Additionally, with the decreased vegetative cover and shortened day length, they will be more visible around dawn and dusk especially. They have not changed their schedules, we changed ours! We suggest keeping small dogs on leash starting now through their breeding season where coyote-pet interactions are most likely, espeically near their favorite stomping grounds: the golf course and woods between Lusitania and Neville. If you see a coyote, please haze it by making noise and making yourself bigger. Consider bringing a noise maker if visiting at dawn or dusk.
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Bird Sightings on the Pond
Fall Migration is picking up and we are seeing some Lesser Scaups, Ringneck Ducks Belted Kingfishers, Ruby Crowned Kinglets, and Carolina Wren's around the Pond. Raptors have also been very active putting on the pounds for winter, including sightings of juvenile Bald Eagles.
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Mushroom Mania
With a bit of rain, Fresh Pond has flourished with the fruiting bodies of mushrooms that have been patiently laying in wait underground all year. To the left is an Amanita spp. that someone placed a rouge golf ball on top of, and below is a Giant Puffball mushroom measuring 11 inches wide. Giant puffball mushrooms (Calvatia gigantea) are massive, spherical fungi that can grow as large as a soccer ball, watermelon, or even up to 8.6 feet wide. There are many puffballs and giant pufballs about the reservation if you keep your eyes peeled! Interested to learn more about fungi? Join our Nov 15 walk!
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Beaver Moon
The Beaver moon is so named because now is the time of year beavers finish building their lodges in preparation for the long winter ahead. During the fur trade in North America, this was also the best time to trap beavers as they had their full winter coats, but waterbodies hadn't frozen over, yet. Indigenous traditions also recognize this moon as the Digging (or Scratching) Moon, Deer Rutting Moon, Whitefish Moon, Frost Moon, Freezing Moon, and Snow Moon.
The best viewing of this full moon will be on Monday, November 23 and Tuesday, November 24th. The November Full Moon is a supermoon, the first in a series of three consecutive supermoons (November, December, January). A supermoon occurs when the Moon is at its closest point to Earth in its orbit, called perigee.
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Foliage Report
The fall colors have put on quite the show this year! Some trees around the pond are past peak foliage, but the colors continue to be astounding on many. Check out DCR's interactive foliage map here.
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Falling leaves remind us to release what no longer belongs - just as nature lets go with grace, we too can shed the habits, worries, or doubts that weigh us down.
@4logansrun
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