This page was updated April 2026.
The Wellesley vernal pool boardwalk is a 400-foot boardwalk completed in 2019 and accessible from Turner Rd. (located off Weston Rd). A stonedust path from Turner Rd. leads to the accessible boardwalk that takes visitors to a lookout spot at the vernal pool and to the North 40. The project was funded via Community Preservation Act monies from the Wellesley Community Preservation Committee, was overseen by the Wellesley Natural Resources Commission (NRC), and was built by volunteers including from Wellesley Conservation Council.
According to the State of Massachusetts, “Vernal pools typically fill with water in the autumn or winter due to rainfall and rising groundwater and remain ponded through the spring and into summer. Vernal pools dry completely by the middle or end of summer each year, or at least every few years. Occasional drying prevents fish from establishing permanent populations, which is critical to the reproductive success of many amphibian and invertebrate species that rely on breeding habitats free of fish predators.”
