Massachusetts

Massachusetts Central Rail Trail offers a track through time, place and nature

Published

2 years ago

February 23, 2024

Massachusetts Central Rail Trail offers a track through time, place and nature

Editor’s note: This is part of a series on winter walking places in and near Worcester. Let us know your favorite walking places at wmeditor@gatehousemedia.com.

When walking on the Holden and West Boylston stretch of the Massachusetts Central Rail Trail, it’s easy to imagine taking the same route as a train passenger a century earlier.

In 1924, someone would have had the same view from a train on the Central Massachusetts Railroad that hikers have from the trail today, gazing out the window at the sun sparkling off the Quinapoxet River and the snow on the ground.

The Massachusetts Central Rail Trail is an ongoing effort to turn 104 miles of abandoned railroad track into a green area for hikers and wildlife alike, stretching from Northampton to Boston, and Worcester County is home to some of its most scenic sections.

When Worcester Magazine visited, the trail was covered in a thin layer of snow from a recent storm and the river rushed alongside and underneath. Along the way, tiny streams of snowmelt water bubbled on either side, eventually flowing into the river next to a trail bridge.

Winter Walks: Nature returns to the Mass. Central Rail Trail in Holden

This week’s Winter Walk took us on a route in Holden that was once a busy railroad and is now home to hikers, runners, dogs, and thriving wildlife.

Making tracks

From the parking area on River Street in Holden, there are two paths to take. One of these paths begins directly at the uphill end of the parking lot and meanders northwest through the forest, and this path was never part of the railroad, but it is as well-maintained as the former tracks.

The other path is the rail trail itself, a three-mile segment of what was once the Central Massachusetts Railroad that follows the Quinapoxet River from Holden to the western corner of the Wachusett Reservoir in West Boylston.

The railroad, built during the late 1800s, experienced its heyday at the turn of the 20th century, doing booming business as a way to travel between Northampton and Boston and to any point along the way.

In 1902, construction began on a new route that would take trains around the soon-to-be-filled Wachusett Reservoir, and trains continued bringing passengers and freight between Massachusetts’ western and eastern ends.

As the decades wore on, cars became the dominant mode of transportation, and the Central Massachusetts Railroad felt the effects. Although the MBTA used the tracks as a commuter route for a period of time, a significant amount of the railroad was abandoned by the 1980s.

New vision, new life

In 1995, the nonprofit conservation organization Wachusett Greenways formed and began buying land that contained old sections of the railroad in Central Massachusetts, starting with the West Boylston section. Wachusett Greenways now maintains 17 miles of trails on and around the old railroad.

Statewide, the Massachusetts Central Rail Trail currently offers hikers more than 60 miles, although those miles are split up by closed sections and protected conservation land.

There is another open section of rail trail in Holden, starting on Quinapoxet Street, and Oakham, Rutland, and Clinton are all home to open sections as well.

The rail trail is wide and has no steep hills, its surface is made up of densely packed stone dust, so when we visited, there was no need for mud-friendly boots despite the melting snow. Its accessibility makes this Winter Walk more of a laid-back walk than a hike.

Parking for the Massachusetts Central Rail Trail is available on River Street in Holden and Thomas Street in West Boylston. To learn more, visit masscentralrailtrail.org.

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Massachusetts

Massachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks

Published

4 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Massachusetts man awaits word from family in Iran after attacks – CBS Boston

Watch CBS News

Poya Sohrabi hasn’t heard from his family since they took shelter from attacks in Tehran. WBZ-TV’s Mike Sullivan reports.

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Massachusetts

How will the Iran war impact gas prices in Massachusetts?

Published

16 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

How will the Iran war impact gas prices in Massachusetts?

With a widening conflict in the Middle East after the American and Israeli attack on Iran Saturday, global markets are bracing for a shakeup in the energy supply chain.

So, here at home, what can consumers expect at the gas pump?

An increase in oil prices is almost always followed by an increase in gas prices. And the oil market has already reacted to the war. NBC News reported on Sunday that U.S. crude oil initially spiked more than 10%, while Brent, the international oil benchmark, rose as much as 13%.

Early Monday morning, reports were coming in of black smoke rising from the U.S. embassy in Kuwait City.

While Iran’s oil reserves supply less than an estimated 5% of global production, the main concern is the Strait of Hormuz. This maritime passageway borders Iran at the bottleneck of the Persian Gulf, and more than 20% of the world’s oil passes through. If Iran closes or restricts Hormuz, the oil market could face severe disruptions.

Gas prices rise about 2.5 cents for every dollar increase in crude oil prices. As of Sunday, U.S. crude oil prices had already increased by nearly $5 a barrel.

“I fully expect that by Monday night, you could credibly say that gas prices are being impacted by oil prices having gone up,” GasBuddy analyst Patrick De Haan told NBC News.

GasBuddy characterizes their expectations for price increases as “incremental” rather than “explosive”. The group said to anticipate a potential 10-15 cent increase over the next couple of weeks.

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Massachusetts

Body camera video shows Massachusetts police officer save 78-year-old man from burning truck – East Idaho News

Published

1 day ago

March 2, 2026

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Body camera video shows Massachusetts police officer save 78-year-old man from burning truck – East Idaho News

EASTON, Mass. (WBZ) — Police body camera video shows an Easton, Massachusetts, officer rescuing a 78-year-old Raynham man from a burning car on Friday morning.

A Mack dump truck was experiencing problems on the side of Turnpike Street just after 2 a.m. when a Ford pickup truck struck the back of it, according to police.

The pickup truck then became stuck under the dump truck, trapping the driver, Francis Leverone, inside. A Toyota Camry then hit the back of the pickup truck and caught fire, police said.

Easton police officer Dean Soucie arrived at the crash and saw that the two vehicles were on fire. Video shows Soucie rushing over before breaking the driver’s side window and then, with the help of the two witnesses, freeing Leverone from the pickup truck. Soucie said he was confused but conscious.

“As I reached inside the vehicle, one of the passersby — he actually jumped into the cab of the truck, and he helped me free the individual,” Soucie said.

They then carried the driver to safety.

Leverone was taken to a nearby hospital before being transferred to a Boston hospital. He received serious but non-life-threatening injuries.

No one else was injured in the crash.

Dee Leverone told WBZ her husband is doing OK. “I’m just thankful for the people that got him out,” she said. “Very thankful.”

After watching the police body-cam video on the news she said, “I was shocked, I was like ‘Oh my God!’ I just couldn’t believe it. His truck is like melted.”

She says she realized that something was wrong last night when her husband never made it home from work.

“I kept trying to call him and call him, and I finally got a hold of him at like 4:30 a.m., and he was at (Good Samaritan Hospital) and he told me he’s gotten in an accident,” Dee said.

She says he’s recovering at the Boston Medical Center and being treated for a dislocated hip.

“He’s a trooper,” Dee said. “He’s a strong man — and you know he’s 78, but you know he’s a toughie. He definitely is a toughie.”

Soucie commended the help of the two witnesses and said that before he arrived at the crash, they had attempted to put out the flames with a fire extinguisher and removed a gasoline tank from the pickup truck before it could ignite.

“They jumped into action like it was nothing,” Soucie said. “Those two individuals were absolutely awesome.”

Easton Police Chief Keith Boone said that he is “extremely proud” of Soucie and the witnesses.

“He saved a life last night,” Chief Boone said. “He is an exemplary police officer and this is just one example. I think he’s a hero.”

Turnpike Street was closed for several hours following the crash. Easton Police are investigating.