Hidden Gem: Wayland's Dudley Pond

While Lake Cochituate and the Wayland Town Beach may be obvious choices for fun in the sun, nearby Dudley Pond is a hidden gem, offering recreational activities in a natural and calm setting.

At 84 acres in size, Dudley Pond is more than 30 feet at its lowest depths, according to the Dudley Pond Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to pond preservation. Houses dot the shores of the pond, including on the peninsula accessed by Dudley Road.

While swimming is prohibited from town property, self-propelled boats and those with motors up to 10 horsepower are allowed on the pond. Canoers and kayakers, and even an occasional long-boarder, can be spotted on the waters.

Boats can be launched on the pond at Mansion Road at Lake Shore Drive. There is also a small put-in spot off Dudley Road. For the fisherman or –woman, the pond has sunfish, pickerel, largemouth bass and more. Fishing from shore is popular at the point off Cross Road, and there’s another spot near Robin Hood Road.

While out and about on the pond, keep your eyes open for the myriad of pond-dwelling animals and amphibians. A pair of swans and their five cygnets born in spring nest on the northwest side of the pond.

Several pairs of ducks and their ducklings can be also spotted on the pond, and in the evening a heron can sometimes be spotted wading through the shallows at the water’s edge. At dusk, bullfrogs can be heard croaking back and forth to one another.

If you get hungry while you’re out and about on the pond, the at 20 Crest Road, offers burgers, appetizers and a full bar. You can pull your boat out of the water at a few spots near “The Chat,” though there is no formal parking area for boats.