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Turtle Trail 3

Come and follow the Turtle Trail to learn about the history and nature of Martins Pond.

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• Wildlife around the pond include: Mammals (Otter, Raccoon, Muskrat, Fox, Woodchuck and Skunk); Reptiles (Snapping and Painted Turtles, Leopard Frogs, Black Water Snakes, and Spotted Salamanders); Birds (Green and Great Blue Heron, Kingbird, Mallard and Wood Duck); and, of course, Fish (Perch, Bluegill, Bass, Catfish, Eel, and Mussels)
• Many birds visit Martins Pond during their migration south. Common Loons, Comerants and Osprey have been sighted.
• The pond used to be nearly overgrown with water lilies and floating moss beds. The Hurricane of 1938 greatly changed the pond, throwing the floating moss beds onto dry land. Motor boats have since helped to keep water lilies to the edges. Turtle island is actually a "Quaking Bog," or floating land. The Indians called the Ipswich River "Agawam" meaning "Land beneath water."
• In the 1950's there was a revival of social activity around the pond. The Pond Club, at the corner of Lakeside Blvd. and Burroughs Rd. in the Southwest corner of the pond and hosted activities. The Pine Tree Inn at Sandy Beach on Burroughs Road had picnics and swimming and boating parties. On the West side the Community Club held dances, as did Don's Café (formerly MacIntire's). These clubs fizzled out in the 60's.
• Bedrock is the rock that lies beneath the topsoil, sand, and gravel left behind by the glaciers. Bedrock is often split or fractured. These fractures can contain large amounts of water. Wells are drilled deep into the soil to collect this water for us to drink. Aerial photography and satellite imagery are used to locate bedrock fractures and potential water sources. North Reading has piped water to residents since1936. Water was purchased from Wilmington until 1954 when the Central Street wellfield was developed. In 1956 the1st Lakeside Boulevard well was drilled. A 2nd was drilled in 1959, a 3rd in 1979, and a 4th in 1984. Wells 2, 3 and 4 are still in operation and are 45, 38, and 59 feet deep. The Lakeside wells can produce 900,000 gallons of water per day, about half of the entire Town's potential water production of 1.9 million gallons per day. A fifth well at Lakeside may be in the works. The Lakeside Blvd. Treatment Plant treats the water from these and the Route 125 well.

Major funding for the Turtle Trail project was provided by the Martins Pond Association. Special thanks to the North Reading Business Association and the North Reading Park and Recreation Department. This project was made possible in part by a grant from the Lake and Pond Grant Program administered by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Management.