Walden Pond

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Walden Pond is a 102-foot deep pond, 61 acres in area and 1.7 miles around, located in Concord, Massachusetts. A famous example of a kettlehole, it was formed by retreating glaciers 10,000 - 12,000 years ago.

The writer, naturalist, and philosopher Henry David Thoreau lived on the shores of the pond for two years starting in the summer of 1845. His account of the experience was recorded in Walden, or, Life in the Woods, and made the spot famous.

Remarkably enough, Frederic Tudor, Boston's "Ice King", harvested ice yearly on Walden Pond for export to the Caribbean, Europe, and India. In his journal, Thoreau philosophizes upon the wintry sight of Tudor's ice harvesters: "The sweltering inhabitants of Charleston and New Orleans, of Madras and Bombay and Calcutta, drink at my well. . . . The pure Walden water is mingled with the sacred water of the Ganges."

Managed now by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Walden Pond State Reservation is a popular swimming destination in the summer. In the spring and fall, many people hike the trails that ring the pond and visit the site of Thoreau's one-room cabin.