Walk in Boston # 5, the historic Charlestown, is a 2.5 to 3.5 miles self-guided tour to visit the oldest neighborhood of Boston and two Historical National Parks. You’ll pass through locks, climb to the top of an obelisk, and visit two old warships, among other things.

This walk is now only available on Payhip in pdf format with a clickable map and updated descriptions.

In this pdf you will also find:

• the list of Highlights.
• the Metro stops to get there and back and infos for Cars.
• tips about restrooms, places to sit and eat.
• details about a particular place you will find on your route.

You can download it (or just the map of the walk) to your phone to help you in your discoveries.

This will allow you to live a unique experience of the city far from what you might find elsewhere.

If you purchased the Boston NYC book, this download will be free for you, just send me a note for an access code for this walk if you don’t have it already.

The description below, incomplete and with cropped photos, gives you an idea of this walk before you decide to buy it.

A: Your walk starts at …; this time, however, go on the left once out of …. If you took the T., go out on …, take it toward… and cross it.

You’ll reach … and from above, you’ll see the traffic emerging from, or entering, the …. For once, you are not in it, so enjoy the view!

After the park, turn left on … on your right. … is in front of you; on your right, the headquarters of a famous and local brand of sneakers. Go and have a look at its entrance interestingly decorated.

B: You cannot access the stair to the… due to construction work, so keep left and walk along …. You’ll reach a pedestrian walkway going…. They are the ones allowing …to the harbor; they also prevent seawater to go from the harbor to the river. After them, you’ll see a musical sculpture ..

NB: When the …is again open from the wharf, you’ll have the option to take it on its left and see the locks from above. Then you’ll have to take a stairway to your left at the end of the bridge. It will connect you to point C.

In both cases, you’ll have a close view of …, one of the new landmarks of Boston..

C: Next, turn right to go under the …

If this walkway is also closed due to construction, go a bit further, then turn right twice to meet the … Or go directly to point D.

Tudor was the “Ice King” of Boston at the beginning of the 19th century. He was harvesting ice in New England ponds and shipping it all over the world. It is said that no dinner in London was proper without pure clear ice from Wenham lake; Frederic Tudor was the one providing it, and finally making a fortune. That’s what a panel there tells you.

There are also many yachts and sailboats anchored at this point, many used as floating houses. In winter, they are covered with plastic to keep the heat inside.

To have good views of Boston skyscrapers, especially at night, follow the …. Then retrace your steps once you’ve had enough with the view. Find a stair allowing you to go under the arch of a building facing ….

D: From there, cros…and go and see the weather vane on … then some remnants of Native Americans dwellings preciously preserved in the grass.

Next, take the stair in front of you and climb in a small park. At its end, on top, turn right and go down.

E: You’ll soon see … in front of you, at the corner …. It’s the oldest tavern in Massachusetts, yet a lively one.

Built in 1780, it hosted Paul Revere and George Washington. If you want to eat before climbing …

You are now in the heart of old Charlestown, with gaslight and tree lined narrow streets. You’ll surely find that …. is well-named with its rows of colorful houses.

F: Once you reach…, you’ll see a …; it commemorates the 1st major battle between British and Patriot forces during the American Revolution war. It’s not on…, where most of the battle took place!

If you plan to go on top of it, and it looks like there are already many tourists around, turn right on …; there, get a free ticket for the climb; it will tell you when you can present yourself at the gate.

You’ll have to decide if you really want to do the ascension, though: there are…; halfway through them, your muscles calves will tell you that these steps have an unusual high; it will only get worse as you keep climbing; there’s even a good chance it will still hurt the next day. Besides, you won’t be able to see much at the top: the inside platform is very crammed (hence the necessity to control the flow of people in the tower), with only four small windows. Yet you’ll see far in the distance, and you came a long way to reach …; will you renounce so close to the goal?

You’ll have to answer the same question once you reach the …

Before going there, rest on the benches or lawns of the park, surrounded by red bricks colonial houses and a lot of history. There are many panels explaining what happened on this hill.

G: Once rested, go back to… You’ll pass … on your way, a pretty little square in the middle of quiet and residential streets; it could remind you of Beacon Hill if you’ve already been there.

Once at …t., cross it to access another site of… It’s home to the …n, a wooden hull, three masts frigate built at the end of the 18th century; it’s the oldest floating naval vessel in the world. You’ll also see the …, a destroyer from the WW2 era.

Both are free to visit, but the lines can be long; you’ll also be surrounded by scores of tourists once you set foot on deck, so make up your mind.

If you decide to skip the visit, go and have a look at the free museum; you’ll learn everything about the construction of the frigate, its different travels, its nickname (“Old Ironside”), and life on board.

H: You now have two solutions. Follow the …; or go a little further north to take a ferry (it’s what the map tells you to do).

In that case, you’ll again have two solutions: take directly …; or keep walking along the … to add a 1 mile loop to your trek. You’ll follow the wharfs; have nice views toward Boston; reach…and its wonderful playground in front of the sea; then you’ll come back in between …s. They are now apartments, offices and hotels but they kept their original character.

Then you’ll be able to take … It will cost you a few dollars for a ..

Once at the …, if you want to walk more, you will be able to branch out to the Walk in Boston # 14, touristic Waterfront, point D.

Otherwise, if you came back through t…, you’ll find the Walk in Boston # 1, the forgotten West End once at ..; Walk in Boston # 2, the other North End, will also be there if you are ready to follow it in reverse.

Convinced that this walk will be exceptional? Find it on Payhip.