Lincoln, Massachusetts
The Battle Road
Photo: John Phelan, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Five miles of the 1775 Battle Road, Meriam's Corner to Lexington, past stone walls and the tavern the British marched by twice in one day.
Written for ages 4–12.
Researched from this park's own sources. Nobody's walked it yet.
Read this bit out
One April morning in 1775, about 700 British soldiers marched along this road to Concord. That afternoon they marched back the same way, and by then men from the farms and towns all around were waiting for them, hiding behind boulders, stone walls and trees. The fighting kept going for sixteen miles, all the way back toward Boston. Much of the path we are on is what is left of the real road they marched down.
One of your three free places, or the Explorer Pass. What that costs
Before you go
- Time there
- Plan on about 2 hours at the park.
- Parking
- The Minute Man Visitor Center is at 210 North Great Road, Lincoln. Free; no entrance fee. More lots along Route 2A and Lexington Road. The park warns GPS can be wrong, so follow the brown signs. Lot gates close at sunset.
- Underfoot
- A five-mile trail from Meriam's Corner in Concord to Lexington, much of it on the original road and the rest across fields, wetland and forest. Packed sand and clay, mostly level, with a few short hills. Walk as much or as little as you like.
- Stroller
- A stroller is fine here.
- Bathrooms
- Bathrooms, but only in season.
- Food
- Nothing for sale along the trail, and there are no trash cans anywhere in the park, so bring snacks and carry everything home.
21 challenges written for this place
A game deals seven to fifteen of them, so no two visits are alike.
4 things to climb, cross or balance on, 4 things to work out and 3 things to spot.
Every game includes this one
The Travelers' Stop
Find the old tavern where travelers on the Bay Road stopped, and count its chimneys.
A few of the others
Feather Or Fur
Find a feather, or a tuft of fur an animal left behind.
Two Kinds Of Bark
Find two trees whose bark feels completely different.
How Many Birds?
Everybody shut their eyes and count how many different birds you can hear.
Behind You
Without turning around, say what's behind you. Then turn around and check.
Ten Steps Backward
Find a quiet stretch off to the side, away from bikes and roads. Walk ten steps backward while somebody else watches behind you.
Slowest Race
Pick something you can both see, then race to it. Slowest one to touch it wins.
The rest are a surprise — that's the whole point.
Also around Lincoln
Drumlin Farm
Lincoln
A working farm with pigs, sheep, goats and cows, owls and a red fox that can't go back to the wild, and an easy climb to the top of the drumlin.
deCordova Sculpture Park
Lincoln
New England's largest sculpture park: 30 acres of lawns, woods and gardens beside Flint's Pond, with more than 50 sculptures out in the open.
Play this at The Battle Road
Free. Works with no signal once you're there.