Recommended Places to Visit: Spencer

Recreation
Parks
O'Gara Park
95 Valley Street

Luther Hill Park/Lake Whittemore
End of Park Street

Beaches
Brooks Pond
Brooks Pond Road between Washburn Drive and Oakham Road

Hiking

Recommended:
Midstate Trail

15 Bond Street

Spencer State Forest
Howe Pond Road near Lyford Road

Sibley Farm
150 Greenville Street

Burncoat Pond Wildlife Sanctuary
Polar Springs Road

Spencer Depot Rail Trail

75 South Spencer Road

Water Bodies
Watson Millpond

74 GH Wilson Road

Cranberry Meadow Pond
Cranberry Meadow Road between Jolicoeur Avenue and Briarcliff Lane

Browning Pond
Browning Pond Road near Browning Pond Circle

Thompson Pond
Thompson Pond Road between Westland Drive and Oak Lane

Stiles Reservoir
Chickering Road between Styles Avenue and Wilson Avenue

Sugden Reservoir
~50 Lake View Drive

Muzzy Lake
Maple Street and Adams Street

Buck Hill Pond
McCormick Road, 42.289366, -71.988072

Moose Hill Reservoir

510 Moose Hill Road

Architecture

Monuments

Bemis Memorial Park
West Main Street near Podunk Pike

Soldier's Monument
~193 Main Street

Vietnam Memorial Park
80 South Spencer Road

American Legion Post 138
175 Main Street

Places of Worship

Mary Queen of the Rosary Parish
60 Maple Street

First Congregational Church
207 Main Street

St. Joseph's Abbey
167 North Spencer Road

Hillside Baptist Church
472 Main Street

First United Methodist Church
161 Main Street

Schools
Wire Village School
60 Paxton Road


Town Facilities

Town Hall
157 Main Street

Richard Sugden Library
8 Pleasant Street


Historical Buildings
Old Fire Station
~157 Main Street

Old Building
239 Main Street

Old Ragsdale Kia
324 Main Street

Restaurants

Highly Recommended:
Breakfast
Kosta's Cafe
31 Pleasant Street
Recommended Dishes:
Hash Crepe Supreme

Deli
Five Loaves Bakery
13 Mechanic Street
Recommended Dishes:
Grilled Ham and Cheese

Western
Black and White Grille
206 North Spencer Road
Recommended Dishes:
Ribeye Surf and Turf

Spencer Country Inn

500 Main Street

Recommended Dishes:

Steak Au Poivre

Chicken and Shrimp Cajun Alfredo

Chicken Noodle Soup

Mexican
Mexicali Grill (chain)
117 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Mexicali Chimichanga


Tried:
Japanese
Yamato Asian Bistro and Sushi (chain)
62 West Main Street
Recommended Dishes:

California Roll

Spring Roll

Shrimp Tempura

Bento Box

Chicken Teriyaki

Chicken Pad Thai

Vegetable Fried Rice

House Green Salad

Chinese
Chef Sau
148 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Sesame Beef

Hot and Sour Soup

Pork Fried Rice

Chicken Fingers

Breakfast
Charlie's Diner
5 Meadow Road
Recommended Dishes:
Eggs Blackstone

Dessert
Dippin Donuts (chain)
292 Main Street
Recommended Dishes:
Maple Glazed Donut

June 7th 2024: Water Bodies in Leicester and Spencer

 Today, I was in Spencer,

Watson Millpond, 74 GH Wilson Road

going on a hike at Spencer State Forest to find a water body I missed before. The path I took from 136 Charlton Road is shown below in pink.

Pretty nice view of the water body here, minus the bugs.

From here, it was on to Leicester,

Henshaw Pond, 155 Henshaw Street

Where I stopped by Tatnuck Farms Creamery

getting a Southern Peach Milkshake.

Pretty good end for a day of checking out water bodies in LEicester and Spencer.

November 29th 2022: Quick Hike at Midstate Trail, Spencer

 Today, I decided to go for a quick hike on the Midstate Trail in Spencer, starting northward from 15 Bond Street. There is no official parking here, so beware. The rough path I took here to get to the water body is shown below in pink.

I could not find the trail at first, and trudged through the woods on what I thought was the trail, until I stumbled onto the trail itself. From there, it wasn't too long before I reached my target water body. Not too bad for a short hike.

July 15th 2022: A Few Quick Hikes in Oxford, Charlton and Spencer

 Today, I decided to go on a few quick hikes on the MidState Trail, first starting out with the Sacrarrappa Pond region in Oxford at the end of Lovett Road, where the path I took here is shown below in pink. This area is on private property though, so beware.

The view of the pond itself was obscured by tree cover, 

although the wetland on the other side was a pretty sight.

My next destination on the trail was the Charlton Cow Tunnel area in Charlton, where the path I took on the trail from Boucher Drive and Old Worcester Road is shown below in pink.

The cow tunnel under Route 20 was interesting enough, 

although the map was inaccurate for the other side of the trail, not going near the water body on the map at all. 

Next, I headed into Spencer to check out Moose Hill Reservoir, which is on the trail at 504 Moose Hill Road opposite Sugden Reservoir.

Turns out I visited this place before a long time ago, mistaking it for Sugden Reservoir.

Instead of hiking there, I did one on the Spencer Depot Rail Trail, where the path I took from 75 South Spencer Road is shown below in pink.

The main water body was swampy, although with nice views of the hills in the distance, 

but the other water body was nothing to look at.

For dinner, we decided to check out Double T's Tavern, a bar restaurant in the town of Marlborough,

getting the Steak Tip Sandwich (steak tips served with melted cheese and horseradish sauce)

and the Double T's Coconut Chicken Tenders.

The steak tips were burnt and hard to eat in a sandwich, but the chicken were actually really good and crispy, especially with the sauce. Overall, just alright though. With that, an end to a day of hikes in Oxford, Charlton and Spencer.

May 1st 2021: Spencer Country Inn, Spencer

 Today, we decided to have lunch at Spencer Country Inn, a hotel in the town of Spencer which does weddings as well. 

Pretty nice, outside and inside.

For food, we got the Chicken Noodle Soup,

the Steak Au Poivre (8oz, served with rice pilaf and vegetable medley)

and the Chicken and Shrimp Cajun Alfredo.

The soup was creamy, tasting more like clam chowder than expected, while the steak was perfectly cooked, although the rice pilaf was a tad salty. The pasta was delicious as well, the chicken and shrimp fresh. Overall, a really good meal here, and not that expensive either. On the way back, we got some dessert from European Bakery and Pastry, which I visited once before at 29 Millbury Street in the past, this time getting a Raspberry and a Prune Donut,

and a Challah Bread.

Pretty good day out for food. Pity it was too windy to do any hiking.

 

September 1st 2019: Yamato Asian Bistro and Sushi, Spencer

Today for lunch, we decided to head to Spencer to check out Yamato Asian Bistro and Sushi. This place is apparently affiliated with the location in Taunton, which I visited a long time ago.

For food, we got the Shrimp Tempura Bento Box (served with salad, spring roll, california roll and white rice),

which came with a House Green Salad.

and the Chicken Pad Thai (Thai rice noodle, egg and lime, bean sprouts, ground peanuts) with Chicken Teriyaki and Vegetable Fried Rice.

Not bad food for cheap, but nothing special really.

January 24th 2019: Chinese Takeout from Chef Sau, Spencer

Today, I decided to get Chinese takeout from Chef Sau, a restaurant in Spencer, getting the Sesame Beef, which came with Pork Fried Rice, a Chicken Finger

and Hot and Sour Soup.

The soup and beef and not bad, but the rice was too little and had onions, while the chicken was just plain soggy. Definitely not the best of meals.

December 8th 2017: Going West

I headed west today, starting with a hike at the Patch Conservation Area in Worcester. The path I took here is shown below in pink.

The views of the reservoir were pretty good,

but the waterfall at the dam was the best thing about this place.

Patch Pond itself was nothing to look at though.

Next, I visited the beautiful Buck Hill Pond on McCormick Road in Spencer

before heading for my next hike at the Wendemuth Meadow Preserve in North Brookfield, where the path I took here to explore the fields here is shown below in pink.

Great views of the fields here.

Next, West Brookfield,

Copper Lantern Motor Lodge

for a hike at the Pynchon's Grist Mill Preserve. The path I took here is shown below in pink.

The road was under construction, but thankfully the trailhead was still accessible. A decent hike to get to the pond here,

and with Lake Wickaboag nearby,

perhaps not worth the trip.

Because of the road construction, I had to go the long way around to get to my next destination, the Frohloff Farm in Ware. The path I took here is shown below in pink.

The views of the surroundings were just alright,

with decent views of the water body here,

but the way to the supposed overlook was pretty hard to traverse, and there was nothing much to see at the supposed location itself.

Next, I headed into Belchertown,

Swift River Wildlife Management Area, East Street

Recreation Department

American Legion Post 239, 66 State Street

going for a short walk at Lake Wallace, which was really more of a swamp.

At this point, I was feeling hungry, and decided to check out Almeida's Country Cafe, a diner nearby,

getting the Clam Chowder and Battered Cod Fish Melt Sandwich (battered cod fish and American Cheese grilled on white bread with tartar sauce).

Pretty good meal for a hungry guy, and cheap too.

After a good lunch, I decided to call it a day for hiking, choosing to visit several museums instead, firstly the Nash Dinosaur Tracks Shop in Granby, which was more of a shop than a museum.

The Hampshire College Art Gallery in Amherst was more for showcasing students' artwork as well.

Finally, the University Museum of Contemporary Art at UMass Amherst was pretty small too.

Not a good day for museums.

For dinner, we ventured into the town of Hudson to check out the Horseshoe Pub, a bar restaurant which I have apparently been to a long time ago in the past.

This time, we got the Pub Chicken Wings (roasted, then crispy fried chicken wings tossed in teriyaki sauce)

and The Gardner (grilled marinated portabella mushroom, roasted red peppers, baby spinach, roasted Tuscan Tomatoes, fresh basil and fresh mozzarella cheese piled on a grilled herb and olive focaccia, drizzled with sundried tomato vinaigrette).

The wings were just alright, although being pretty crispy, although the veggie burger was pretty tasty because of the vinaigrette. Overall, still alright by me I guess.

Wanting to try something new in town, we went to the New City Microcreamery, an ice cream place nearby, where they apparently make ice cream using liquid nitrogen.

We got the Vegan Chocolate Avocado flavored ice cream, which apparently is made with coconut milk instead of cow's milk, and hence I wasn't really a fan of it. Overall though, looks like a pretty popular place, even in the winter.