This is Ethan again. Michelle won’t be back for another day or two, so here’s another substitute entry to keep you occupied till she returns.
After dropping off a certain someone at the airport early last Saturday morning, I decided to stop by Farm Pond on my way home and enjoy some Framingham brand nature. The day was, as I confirmed for one friendly passerby, beautiful and walking around the pond in the morning sunshine was invigorating. Some leaves had turned color, the air was fresh and the water mirror-like. My usually taciturn spirit very seriously considered doing some soaring, but the sight of the CSX trains and hospital powerplant smokestack across the water dutifully kept me grounded. Still, the trainyard is somewhat picturesque and the smokestack vapor looks kind of pretty in the morning light…
Anyway, in general Framingham has a pretty good share of ponds and they’re great to have around for their scenic beauty (and for swimming, boating and fishing if you’re into those things). Farm Pond in particular gets a few extra marks in the scenic column because of its swans. It was like watching Wild Kingdom seeing them fly and glide around on the water, cleaning themselves and dunking their heads under every now and then. For no apparent reason, one swan was really putting on a show by charging at two others who had been minding their own business. This jerk swan’s wings were tilted up menacingly and you could tell he was trying to intimidate the others who meekly swam in the opposite direction. What made it remarkable was that even though he was obviously threatening them with violence, all three continued floating smoothly and serenely the entire time.
But the action wasn’t all in the water. In the trees were a large variety of “regular” birds in mixed flocks chirping, cackling and crowing up a storm. Seems like the patch of woods near the smaller gatehouse at Farm Pond is THE place for Framingham birds to be in the early morning hours. If you had told me that every bird in town was there in those trees, I might have believed you. ????????? ??? ????
On the downside, there was a moderate amount of litter. It wasn’t enough to really disgust me, but it was definitely more than one person with a can-do attitude could have fixed in one or two trips to a nearby trashcan. Speaking of, I also witnessed a professional trashpicker on his rounds in the parking lot which was a little offputting. 777 ?????? And lastly, both gatehouses on the water (Farm Pond is part of the historical Sudbury Aqueduct) are covered with graffiti and look like they’ve seen much better days. They’re attractive from afar and definitely add character to the area, but up close they look more than a little shabby.
In spite of those drawbacks though Farm Pond is a pretty decent place to spend some time outdoors. If you’re not already familiar with it, check it out some time.
Farm Pond is in the downtown area roughly bounded by Dudley Road, Mt Wayte Avenue and the CSX and MBTA train tracks. There’s parking available off Dudley Road and at the boat launch at the end of Lakeview Ave (off Mt Wayte Ave, across from the recycling center).
The only sad part to this story is that the building isn’t being used right now. Evidently an Indian restaurant called Udupi Bhavan was the last to call it home, but they’ve moved on to another location. I’m not sure if there are plans to use the old station for something new yet, but I really do hope so. It would be sad to see an H.H. Richardson building left vacant and useless. 
 
