Recommended Places to Visit: Barre

Recreation

Biking
Mass Central Rail Trail
1069 Worcester Road

Ware River Rail Trail
1168 Worcester Road


Parks

Barre Falls Dam
Coldbrook Road after Old Boston Turnpike

Water Bodies

Ware River
Worcester Road

Powder Mill Pond
Worcester Road near New Braintree Road

Gaston Pond
207 Mill Road

Hemingway Pond
600 Old Petersham Road

Arts Performances
Barre Players Theater
64 Common Street


Skiing
Pine Ridge Snow Park
377 Stetson Road


Farms
Carter and Stevens Farm
500 West Street

Hiking
Recommended:
Cook's Canyon Wildlife Sanctuary
South Street near Kendall Street

Old Reservoir
611 Williamsville Road

Barre Town Reservoir
End of Sanderson Road

Architecture

Monuments
Town Common
South Street and Common Street

God's Wisdom (Giant Words)
33 Harty Road

Places of Worship

Barre Congregational Church
30 Park Street

Barre Center for Buddhist Studies
149 Lockwood Road

St. Joseph's Church
29 South Street

Christ Episcopal Church
499 Vernon Avenue

Saint Thomas-a-Becket Church
398 Vernon Avenue

New Life Assembly of God
60 Main Street


Schools
Stetson School
455 South Street

Town Facilities
Town Hall
40 West Street

Woods Memorial Library
19 Pleasant Street


Historical Buildings
Old Barre Town Hall
Exchange Street and Mechanic Street

Barre Savings Bank
56 Common Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:
Western

Barre Mill Restaurant

90 Main Street

Recommended Dishes:

Lobster Stuffed Mushroom Caps

Lobster Casserole

Seafood Chowder

Chocolate Mousse

Picasso Restaurant and Bar

2 Common Street

Recommended Dishes:

Potato and Leek Soup
Grilled Steak Tips with Onion Jam
Chocolate Pots de Creme

Tried:
Breakfast
J and J Family Restaurant
815 Worcester Road
Recommended Dishes:
Egg Cheese and Bacon Sandwich


Chinese
Yummy Garden
57 Main Street

Recommended Dishes:

Ma La Scallops and Beef

May 29th 2018: Looking for Ponds in Hubbardston and Barre

I headed to Hubbardston this morning, passing through Holden

Residences at Holden Hills,
1818 Main Street

to go for a hike to find Marcan Pond, where the path I took from between 2 houses at 37 Brigham Street is shown below in pink.

The path itself was somewhat overgrown, and the bugs did not make it any better. I found the pond somehow, which was pretty alright I guess.

My next hike was to go find Old Reservoir in Barre, where the path I took is shown below in pink.

Much nicer hike than in Hubbardston, with nice views of the reservoir as well, even though it was a little foggy.

Nearby was the Barre Town Reservoir, which was a shorter hike.

Pretty open, but smaller than Old Reservoir.

With that, I called it a day, going to get some breakfast from J and J Family Restaurant, a decent small town place in town.

Being in a little bit of a hurry, I decided to just get the Egg and Cheese and Bacon Sandwich,

which was pretty good, but nothing special.

October 8th 2016: Partaking in the Fall Foliage

We started out this morning with breakfast at Birchtree Bread Company in Worcester, getting a Pumpkin Spice Latte, an Almond Croissant

and the Justino's Quiche (roasted sweet potato with spinach and ricotta, served with side salad).

The croissant was pretty buttery and tasty, although there wasn't much almond filling. I think my wife's one is still better. The quiche was pretty good as well.

From here, it was on to my next meal at Sunburst Restaurant, a small town diner at 484 Main Street in Sturbridge for older folks with a somewhat cosy feeling, though in an archaic way.

I got the only interesting thing on the menu, the Sunburst Quiche with Fruit,

which I did not take to because of the peppers in it, and because I already had a much better one this morning.

Next, it was on to the town of Union CT,

Goodhall Pond, 11 Mashapaug Road

going on a short hike at Bigelow Hollow State Park. The path I took here is shown below in brown.

I drove around to get pictures of Bigelow Pond

And Mashapaug Pond,

Then parked and hiked to Breakneck Pond.

Nice walk in the woods, to say the least.

Next, it was on to the town of Woodstock,

Keach Pond, 270 Old Turnpike Road

Where I went to grab lunch at Sherwood's Restaurant and Bar, a sports bar in town,

Where I got the Chicken Pesto Penne (Sauteed sliced chicken Breast and grape tomatoes in creamy Pesto sauce tossed with penne pasta),

Which came with a side salad as well.

Pretty creamy and tasty, actually,  not bad for a sports bar.

On that back, I passed through the towns of Dudley

First Congregational Church of Dudley

Nichols College

And Oxford.

28 Charlton Street

Next, we decided to go for a short hike at the Moore State Park in Paxton.

Unfortunately, due to the drought,  none of the waterfalls were flowing today.

Next, we visited the Rutland State Park in Rutland for a bit,

Then on to Barre, where we chanced upon the Harvest Festival going on at the Carter and Stevens Farm.

We got to see pumpkins being launched into the air to try to hit a car below,

And also got a Harvest Festival Grass Fed Beef Hot Dog with Carrot and Ginger Slaw and Cornbread,

which did not really taste any good, especially at the price we paid for it.

After leaving the farm, we drove around the entire Quabbin Reservoir, and decided to stop for dinner at the Salem Cross Inn in West Brookfield, which apparently is one of the best restaurants outside of suburban Boston and Worcester.

We got the Harvest Sangria (Pinot grigio, ginger brandy, fresh local cider, apples. pears),

 

that was just alright I guess. I really liked the platter of bread they provided for starters though.

For food, we got the Baked Oysters Casino (red bell pepper compound butter, bacon swiss cheese, dill crumbs)

and the Rosemary Duck (seared duck breast served medium rare with duck leg confit and rosemary maple demi-glaze, accompanied by arugula, strawberry salad with toasted pine nuts and chopped shallots).

The oysters were a little on the salty side, and the duck leg was a little dry, although the flavors were very good. Not sure why this place is one of the top restaurants in the area.