Community Forums

micalo · 05-23-2015, 09:05 AM

Planning a 1 week trip to Boston.
I have located the Minuteman campground in Littleton.
Am wondering if there is public transport from campground to Boston.
Or would you have any other suggestion for campground with full hookups with public transport to Boston.
2 adults only
Thanks
Mike

demoon · 05-23-2015, 11:49 AM

As far as I know, having lived in the area for 30+ years, there is no campground that provides transportation to Boston. Minuteman is 4 miles to a public transportation (MBTA) stop. There is RV parking at Riverside stop, which is about 10 minutes away. The folks in the Minuteman office are wonderful about helping with ideas on how to visit the city.
Circle CG Farm Campground in Bellingham is 3 miles from a MBTA stop.
Normandy Farms in Foxboro is another option, with a train stop about 5 miles away. I think they also have a "deal" with a local taxi company that will get you to public transportation.
You might want to call both places to chat with them about this issue. They deal with it all the time and can be much more precise than I can. You will also get some comments from folks who may have experienced this themselves. Living right in the area, even though we have weekended at both campgrounds, we have never wanted to make the city trip from them.
Our choice of campgrounds is Minuteman.

JFXG · 05-23-2015, 07:12 PM

Yup, Minuteman is the place. Better positioned than the other two for either rail or road access to Boston. We lived in the next town for 15 years, and there's a lot of interesting history in that area, too. The campground owners are friendly and helpful, the train station is only 4 miles, and the train is slightly less than an hour into downtown Boston. Enroute on the same train you can visit Cambridge, with Harvard, MIT, and other points- historical and otherwise. The campground is also convenient to Concord, Lexington, and other historically noteworthy areas.

And finally, while there drive over to Westford (my former home) to visit Kimball Farm for some of the finest ice cream you'll find anywhere.

Enjoy!

Fulltiming since '12
2002 DSDP 40, FL, Cat 3126

Ramets · 05-24-2015, 08:39 AM

Here's another vote for Minuteman.

micalo · 05-24-2015, 10:28 AM

Well well well....
Seems like a pretty easy decision..
So we are booked from July 18 to July 27 at Minuteman campground.
Thank you all for your advise, very appreciated.

Now a lots of reading ahead to find everything there is to see and try not to miss on any of the best one.
If you have any suggestion, please feel free to post them and will look at them.
Thanks again for your input.
Mike

AttilaKara72 · 05-24-2015, 11:06 AM

Fanuel Hall is a must see along with Aquarium which is across the street. Definatly have to go to "Cheers". Also go to the Prudentual Building and on Huntington Ave you can take a Duck Tour. The same duck boats they used for the sports championship parades. They are a great time. Enjoy!!

plasma800 · 05-24-2015, 11:26 AM

minute man camprground all the way!

plasma800 · 05-24-2015, 11:29 AM

BTW, when you stay at Minute Man, talk a walk... if you go all the way to the back side of the campground (say you came out of the office, turned towards the campground and kept walking straight) back there are a bunch of long trailers cut through the forest, and you run up on some pretty interesting, very old, stone walls.. and I wonder how long they've been there... great place.

JFXG · 05-24-2015, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plasma800

..... you run up on some pretty interesting, very old, stone walls.. and I wonder how long they've been there....

There were units of Militia from both Littleton and Westford assembled and fighting in Concord on 19 April 1775. Those stone walls might well have been piled by the self-same farmers. A fitting remembrance on this particular weekend.

Fulltiming since '12
2002 DSDP 40, FL, Cat 3126

JFXG · 05-24-2015, 09:26 PM

You could spend several days in downtown Boston! Of course, history is the most plentiful product, but I'm sure you're no stranger to history in your area of Canada.

Walk the Freedom Trail, tour Fenway Park, top of the Prudential for stellar views of the area. The Common- the oldest public park in the US. Residents could graze their cows there up until about 1830. Perhaps catch a concert on the Esplanade. Seafood is everywhere, great seafood is common. Legal Seafood still has decent food, but has become a stereotype tourist attraction. James Hook has been around forever, without the big hype or fanfare. For great food and history combined try the Union Oyster House (since 1826- longest continuously operating restaurant in the US) or right next door, The Bell in Hand (America's oldest tavern- opened 1795). Both are on Union St, in the Quincy Market area near Faneuil Hall-- which, by the way, is properly pronounced "Fannel", although in truth most people have fallen into the easy and accepted bastardization "Fan-yu-el".

The so-called Cheers Bar is interesting if you were a fan of the TV show, but the only thing recognizable is the exterior shot. The interior is all different from the TV set. I used to frequent the Bull & Finch (its real name) back in the late '70s, which was really a great bar. Then it was discovered by TV fans around '83. End of story. There was also a fabulous piano bar upstairs in the Hampshire House at that time. That may still be there. I don't know.

Fulltiming since '12
2002 DSDP 40, FL, Cat 3126gky

demoon · 05-24-2015, 09:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by plasma800

BTW, when you stay at Minute Man, talk a walk... if you go all the way to the back side of the campground (say you came out of the office, turned towards the campground and kept walking straight) back there are a bunch of long trailers cut through the forest, and you run up on some pretty interesting, very old, stone walls.. and I wonder how long they've been there... great place.

The majority of New England stone walls were created by farmers clearing them from fields they were planning to plow, or at the very least, use for pasture. They sometimes might represent a property boundary, but that was not their original purpose. They also were not fencing - note their height - they would not stop anything. And something that I had never considered until I went to work at Old Sturbridge Village - nobody built stonewalls in the woods. So, at one time, one side, or both sides of that wall was a field. And one added tidbit - by the early 19th century most of New England was devoid of trees. They had been used in various aspects of building, and were cleared to open up more fields and pasture. Hard to believe, but today, New England is roughly 1/3 open land and 2/3 trees,(take a look at a Google map) and in early 19th century it was roughly the other way around.

CurtisSheets · 05-26-2015, 05:43 PM

Not sure if you have made your reservations or not but we have 3 rigs heading to New England in Sept/Oct. Minuteman was not able to accommodate us due to site limitations and sizes of motor homes. We have researched and are quite excited about reservations that we made in Winter Island Campground in Salem. Some reviews are not too great but the person working has said that they have cleaned things up there. It is not your typical RV park (it is an old Coast Guard station) but we felt it gave us an opportunity to include Salem as part of our trip and they do have a Ferry close by to take you into Boston plus our sites are right on the water. Hopefully someone else that has tried here can chime in with some more info. Here is their URL: Salem Massachusetts - Winter Island Attractions. Good luck.

JFXG · 05-26-2015, 05:55 PM

Been to Winter Island many times for picnics, etc. when I lived in the area years ago. Usually arrived in my boat. I'm familiar with the way the RV sites used to be laid out, and there wasn't much space to keep all the day boaters and random visitors from milling around your site. Last time I checked into it for RV use (couple of years ago) I thought it was a non-starter. 30Amp only, no sewer. I hope they've invested in many improvements!! If Winter Island has been well upgraded, it will be a stellar location, and being camped right there on Salem Harbor in Sep-Oct will be dynamite!

Fulltiming since '12
2002 DSDP 40, FL, Cat 3126

**JohnRR** · 05-26-2015, 06:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CurtisSheets

Not sure if you have made your reservations or not but we have 3 rigs heading to New England in Sept/Oct. Minuteman was not able to accommodate us due to site limitations and sizes of motor homes. We have researched and are quite excited about reservations that we made in Winter Island Campground in Salem. Some reviews are not too great but the person working has said that they have cleaned things up there. It is not your typical RV park (it is an old Coast Guard station) but we felt it gave us an opportunity to include Salem as part of our trip and they do have a Ferry close by to take you into Boston plus our sites are right on the water. Hopefully someone else that has tried here can chime in with some more info. Here is their URL: Salem Massachusetts - Winter Island Attractions. Good luck.