The Charles River

The Charles river so I’ve heard, is a man made long river that stretches across the city. I’ve heard many scary things from a Boston native friend about people finding dead bodies here and killers roaming around the river at night finding men in particular. I was afraid to visit here at night but ended up here with friends somehow despite being so afraid. Hehe After all, I wouldn’t know for sure any way if it was true ;(
I’m glad I decided to go because it is so beautiful at night. We walked through the park across to the river and ended up chilling on a wooden deck above the water. People were sitting and chilling with their friends while looking at stars and the moon. It was beautiful indeed! The tall buildings reflected against the water and it was truly a romantic sight! We probably laid on the deck for hours just looking at the stars. Pictures are not enough, you have to be there to actually get a sense of how peaceful it is.

What a beautiful scenic route. I went running here the day before the Boston marathon. It has a nice running and biking path along the river. It’s very accessible as there are several connecting bridges to the path.
It is clean and also has some exercise stops.
Great place to enjoy a nice walk or run. Close to MIT, BU, etc.
You can also see BU sail team practicing while sitting on the grass.

If your looking for extra baby diapers, and getting a fungal infection, then the Charles river is the place to go kayaking in…

The perfect spot to catch the sunset, have a picnic, read a book, ride a bike, etc.
It can get busy during the summer months, especially if there are any concerts.
If you have some spare time and would like to enjoy a beautiful view of the city, this is the place to go!

What a beautiful river! Don’t miss walking along the esplanade.
The Charles River is now the cleanest urban river so don’t be shy; make sure to go kayaking and take a duck tour!

Another beautiful spot to be in the city. Walk along the bank of the Charles River and over the Mass Ave bridge. There’s a million things to see and do. If you’re into rowing, join in or just watch. Get a hotel right on the water, you won’t be disappointed.

The Charles river was still filthy and smelled of dead fish and was full of old shopping carts around 1995 (and was worse in 1985 and 1975), but today (late 2014) it is now clean and full of small invertebrate animals, with no bad smell whatsoever, thanks to the hard work of the Charles River Watershed Association. The sludge at the central bottom or the river still needs to be expensively dredged to finally get rid of the last of the industrial heavy metals and industrial waste chemicals still down there, but they do not seem to affect the water near the shore, which teams with small creatures which can feed fish. See
for more important information or to volunteer to help out with monitoring and maintenance.

My 100^th Unilocal review has to be something near and dear to my heart. Having worked in Back Bay for over 4 years, I can honestly say that this is my favorite part of working in the area. The Charles made training for the Boston Marathon not-​so-​bad during one of the most dreadful winters. I have logged many miles along the Charles. Running past the Citgo sign on opening day, the blooming flowers in the spring, the sail boats in the summer and autumn leaves. If visiting the area, I would definitely recommend packing your walking (or running) shoes and enjoying this little slice of heaven in the heart of the city.

Most relaxing place in Boston in my opinion. Can go there to read, run, watch the water or even rent a kayak! Best part is that going there is free of charge and you get a value that most people in other places can only dream of. We are blessed to have the river here and going there almost every day is very positive for my life.

Plenty of grass, paths, and benches along the river to kick back and relax in the middle of the city.

Pedal boats, kayaks, and sails! This is such an awesome river! I always make it a point to visit Charles River when I visit Boston.

Just walking on the esplanade from science park to Massachusetts avenue and MiT bridge (or even more) is the best way to understand how amazing boston is (and its people are)

The beautiful Charles River is a
centerpiece in the heart of Boston.
It’s perfect for walking, running or rolling
With your music, dog, children or bike.
The deal: there is a paved path for
walking, jogging, biking… and whatever else.
(if the city. There’s a lot of whatever else!)

Safe, beautiful and incredibly relaxing during the spring and fall. Definitely a nice place to spend an afternoon.

This place is awesome! The esplanade is great for a beautiful day or a walk along the river at night. Between people watching, the different views along the way, and the docks are a great swim spot on a hot summer day!
Definitely worth a visit if you are planning on traveling to Boston.

Why are so many people standing around looking at water? There are, like, thousands of folks just hanging around listening to some dude named Keith play classical music way too loudly.
And now sky graffiti. Great.
…
*\i/​* Happy Fourth of July! *\i/*

Charles River has always been one of my favorite places. It’s vibrant with activities both on water and in the surrounding areas, but at the same time serene and peaceful. The dividing point between Boston and Cambridge, Charles river bridges the historical city with its academic counterpart. In the summer, sailing boats and crew teams are regulars on the river. Bikers and joggers alike adheres to the paths built for their morning exercises. On July 4^th, people from all over the city gathers around the esplanade to listen to the Boston Pops concert and watch the fireworks.

one of the best things about boston

As a rower and kayaker on the Charles you know that it has character. It can be fairly calm or a bit temperamental, it’s color is questionable, but for those rowers, myself included, having been thrown in after a race or fallen in during a particularly brutal practice, the Charles can be both a blessing and a curse. It is a picturesque addition to the Emerald Necklace and is among the first things I think of when I think of Boston.

And for my review of the Charles River, I’d like to present a series of haiku:
miles of flat path
sunshine reflects off water
yes! the fountain’s on!
sailboats dot the view
city skyline in the back
the red line crosses
baseball and hatch shell
fireworks and hot dog stands
americana
gondolas and crew
summer movies and music
race events and more
dog walkers and kids
rollerblades and bicycles
make sunbathers look lazy
some say stay away
girls get mugged and followed home
well — don’t go at night!
Like my review if you tapped your fingers to count the verses — got ya!

There are many ways to enjoy the Charles River. It flows from Hopkinton to Boston from a narrow stream to a wide basin in the heart of Boston and Cambridge. Compared to many urban rivers, the Charles River is one of the cleanest around, but I wouldn’t start swimming in it … not just yet.
Ways to love the Charles:
+ Rent a bike or grab your own. Excellent bike riding happens on shut-​down Sunday/​Memorial Drive. extend your ride over on the Boston side (cross Eliot bridge), past the canoe/​kayak rental place, and ending just beyond the playground with water feature at Cristian A Herter Park location (also accessible by car). Frisbee space, picnic tables, benches in the shade, plenty of people watching.
+ Get a friend who has access to the sailboats at the Charles River Sailing Club in the basin (Boston).
+ Eat on the patio at ArtBar at lunch
+ Run, walk, rollerblade, cycle around from Science Park to Eliot Bridge (Boston & Cambridge sides)
+ Picnic at North Point Park (Cambridge)
+ Take free reign of Memorial Drive from Western Ave to Eliot Bridge (Cambridge side) every Sunday from Memorial Day through Columbus Day (check dates). It is shut down for peeps’ enjoyment. It is enjoyable.
+ Watch the Head of the Charles from the banks and bridges in October
+ Dragon boat racing in June (food + culture)
+ Fourth of July Fireworks from the basin
+ MIT Art+Technology Festival
+ Walk to work via the river
+ Enjoy sunset from the Longfellow (aka Salt & Pepper) or Harvard Bridge
+ Pick-​up Soccer at Magazine Beach (Cambridge)
+ Farmer’s Market at Morse School on Saturdays from Memorial Day through Columbus Day
+ Pick up a Lobster Sammich from Louie’s Lobster (Putnam Ave Cambridge) and enjoy on the river.
+ Rent a paddleboat, canoe or kayak from Charles River Canoe & Kayak from either their Kendall Square location or the Christian A Herter Park location (Eliot Bridge/​Allston/​Brighton).
+ Charles River Cruises embark from the Cambridgeside Galleria

The river. You people are reviewing bodies of water now? You know what, this is borderline acceptable because it IS a place we can all visit an enjoy.
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With that said, I don’t enjoy the Charles. It’s impossible to get to and parking anywhere near it is a nightmare. I LIKE it, sure, but to me, the Charles is that annoying bit of water off to the right of Storrow Drive. If that dumb river wasn’t there, we could have like a big 5-​lane street all the way through Boston! Imagine that! I’m not one for green spaces in cities. I think it should all be concrete and MORE PARKING.
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PS: The boathouse here gives boating lessons for like a buck as a way of promoting use of the river. It’s actually pretty cool and I recommend you check it out.

WARNING: None of my usual humor for this review since I address a serious issue.
The Charles is simply a magnificent place to run! It goes on for miles: Stretching from the esplanade, all the way thru collegiate Cambridge and leafy Watertown to a wonderful nature preserve in Waltham, making it ideal for long runs!
That being said: I can’t in good conscience recommend it to anybody, particularly women.
Why: Because it just isn’t safe.
«Wait up Claude!» You say. «I watch the news and follow the crime stories! It does not seem any more dangerous than any other place in America.» I wish that were true. But here are the facts:
I work in State Government and get the real inside dope from state police people «off the record». In any given 12 month period: HUNDREDS of women are Sexually assaulted, raped, robbed or followed home by the Hordes of Criminal Scum who stake out the Charles running paths knowing full well that most of it is a «no police zone.» Even worse: The criminal predators tend to target victims who are, or simply look, like they might be from another country because non-​English speakers are less likely to even report criminal acts or be able to describe their attackers to the police.
Why don’t you hear about this? Because the City Governments who (so called) «police» the Charles (Boston, Cambridge, Watertown and Waltham) Go to extraordinary lengths to hide this from the public and the news media in order to avoid any reduction in Boston’s Thriving Tourist industry with is tax revenue bonanza for them. The only time you read about these horrors is when a victim or a victim’s family refuses to be intimidated by City «leaders» blatant intimidation (their favorite line: «It would be better for your (daughter’s) safety to keep a low profile and let our police handle this») and go to the media directly.
It is truly tragic that city politicians have let a large part of our great state descend into the barbarism more fitting the slums of Egypt then the «Athens of America». Sadly If City Officials spent half as much time actually fighting crime as they do trying to cover it up and line their pockets, Boston would be the safest city in the world and all people: Men AND women would be treated with the dignity and respect that all people deserve at all times!
In the meantime: vote with your feet and dollars and go some where else to run and walk. And maybe if surrounding business start losing money and the Cities their tax revenue our politicians will wake up and realize that «freedom from crime» is the most basic human right of all and that the politicians better to start putting Criminal Scum in jail or we will put the politicians in jail for gross dereliction of duty.

The Charles River is the crown jewel of Boston’s Emerald Necklace and the best place in the city to spend an afternoon.
When I was training for the Boston Marathon many moons ago this was the place I did 75% of my running. Great views of the city, scores of other people running along to help keep you motivated and well groomed and paved trails (even in the winter) makes the river loop the #1 destination for anyone running in Boston.
I’ve also walked from the Mass Ave bridge down to the Museum of Science and back with my camera taking pictures all the way. There is a nice row of cherry blossom trees near the Hatch Shell that make for some great pictures when they bloom in late April and/​or early May too.
I’ve always wanted to learn how to row and how to sail… some day soon I’ll learn both and do it on the Charles River.