About Lynn Woods
The Lynn Woods Reservation, founded in 1881 and located in Lynn, Massachusetts, is the second largest municipal park in the United States. The Woods offers 2,200 acres of over 30 miles of scenic trails for hiking, running, horseback riding, mountain biking (not allowed during the winter), cross-country skiing, and nature walks. Three active reservoirs provide pretty pond-like scenery among natural forestland, as well as clean water for the City of Lynn. Dungeon Rock is a well-loved underground tunnel with a history of pirate lore and treasure seekers. The Rose Garden, Houghton Horticultural Garden, and Amphitheater areas provide more formal settings to explore.
The Buried Treasure of Dungeon Rock
According to legend, a pirate by the name of Thomas Veal traded silver for metal goods made from the Saugus Iron Works while hiding from the authorities in the Lynn Woods. Thomas reportedly buried a large treasure within a deep natural cave in the Lynn Woods. He was allegedly trapped by an earthquake in 1658, and news of the buried treasure continued to create interest in the site for years.
In 1851 Hiram Marble, a wealthy Massachusetts man, purchased the rock and a few acres of the surrounding land in search of the treasure. Consulting with psychic mediums to contact the pirate's spirit and guide his excavation, he spent large sums of money and used explosives to dig 175 feet into the rock. The treasure has not yet been found, but the public is welcome to venture deep into the cave and listen for the ghost of the pirate himself...
Open to the public May 1 - October 31
8:00am - 2:00pm, Sunday - Thursday
Subject to change. Contact the Ranger for weekly schedule at:
The Lynn Woods Rose Garden
During the 1920s, Lynn Woods Park Superintendent John P. Morrissey established the Lynn Woods Rose Garden while living in the park cottage on Penny Brook Road. Morrissey created an elaborate formal garden featuring a diverse collection of plants, along with rustic arbors, trellises and benches.
Nearly a century later, volunteers are bringing renewed life to this special place, drawing inspiration from its history while creating a beautiful, resilient and welcoming garden for the future.
The restoration is intentionally unfolding over time. Historical photographs and materials, observations from the garden itself, and each new growing season continue to inform the design. Rather than recreating a single moment in the garden's past, the goal is to honor its history while thoughtfully adapting the landscape to today's growing conditions, environmental considerations and community use.
Roses & So Much More
True to its name, roses are once again becoming a defining feature of the garden - but they are part of a much larger perennial landscape.
Throughout the garden, roses grow alongside a rich mixture of perennials, shrubs, native and near-native plants that provide color, texture, habitat and seasonal interest. Together, these plant communities create a garden for people to enjoy while supporting the broader ecosystem of Lynn Woods, including pollinators, birds and other resident and migrating wildlife.
The roses themselves represent an increasingly diverse collection. Old Garden Roses offer connections to rose history, while modern disease-resistant shrubs, landscape roses, climbers and other classes demonstrate just how varied and versatile roses can be in today's garden.
Part of the restoration is also about reacquainting people with the beloved rose and normalizing roses as garden plants - plants that can live among other perennials, contribute to a layered landscape, participate in a healthy garden ecosystem and be enjoyed without being intimidating to grow.
Through the garden, demonstrations and hands-on volunteer experiences, we hope to share practical rose-care techniques and help visitors discover the tremendous diversity of roses available today. From planting and pruning to deadheading, soil health and seasonal care, the garden offers opportunities to learn that successful rose growing doesn't have to be complicated.
The garden's protective fencing helps keep the local deer population from enjoying the plants a little too enthusiastically. Visitors can help by remembering to latch the gate behind them. The fence is also becoming part of the garden itself, providing valuable vertical support for climbing roses and other flowering plants and adding another layer of color, habitat and seasonal interest.
A Living Restoration
This is a living restoration, and the garden continues to teach us.
Soil conditions, sunlight, moisture, plant performance and the ways people and wildlife use the space all provide information. Existing plants are evaluated, divided, relocated or incorporated into the evolving design as appropriate, while new plantings are considered through the simple horticultural principle of Right Plant, Right Place.
Some ideas can be implemented quickly. Others will develop over several seasons as plants mature, growing conditions become better understood, historical research continues and new possibilities emerge.
The result isn't meant to be a garden frozen at one moment in time. It is a landscape rooted in history and designed to continue evolving.
Thoughtful, Sustainable Stewardship
The Lynn Woods Rose Garden is an organic garden, cared for with an emphasis on healthy soil, thoughtful plant selection, biodiversity and sustainable horticultural practices.
The roses are maintained using a 100% no-spray approach, emphasizing healthy soil, appropriate watering, pruning and air circulation, sanitation, observation and other cultural practices rather than routine pesticide or fungicide spraying.
This approach extends beyond the roses. The mixture of perennials, native and near-native plants helps create a diverse plant community that provides habitat and food sources while supporting the broader ecosystem of Lynn Woods.
The garden is also a place for learning. Hands-on demonstrations and shared gardening experiences provide opportunities to teach practical plant and rose care - from planting and pruning to deadheading, soil health, disease observation and seasonal maintenance. By demonstrating these practices in a public organic garden, the restoration can help make gardening more approachable and give visitors techniques and ideas they can bring into their own landscapes.
Organic gardening also means understanding and embracing the natural rhythms of a living landscape. Roses and perennials change throughout the growing season. A plant at peak bloom in June may look different after months of summer heat, humidity, rain, insects and natural disease pressure.
Some cosmetic imperfection is a normal part of a living garden and does not necessarily mean a plant is unhealthy.
The goal is not simply to grow perfect-looking plants. It is to cultivate a healthy, resilient and beautiful landscape that works in harmony with its surroundings.
Rooted in History, Inspired by the Future
Historical research continues to reveal more about the original garden.
Early photographs, plans, newspaper references and other archival materials are helping volunteers better understand how the space was once planted, structured and enjoyed. Historic elements - including planting patterns, gathering spaces, arbors, trellises and benches - can provide inspiration for thoughtful interpretation within today's landscape.
As new materials are uncovered and the plants themselves mature, the story of the garden will continue to grow alongside the restoration.
A Garden Grown by Community
The restoration is powered by volunteers with different interests, skills and levels of gardening experience.
Some arrive with knowledge of roses, native plants or perennial gardening. Others learn as they go. Volunteers weed, deadhead, plant, build, research, photograph, organize and lend another pair of hands when they can.
You don't need to be an experienced gardener to participate.
Garden workdays and demonstrations create opportunities to learn alongside others, practice new skills and build gardening confidence. Whether someone participates regularly, joins an occasional workday or contributes a particular skill, there are many ways to become part of the garden's next chapter. The restoration is as much about growing community as it is about growing plants.
Come Grow With Us
As the garden continues to develop, so will the opportunities to participate - from planting and seasonal garden care to historical research, special projects, community workdays and behind-the-scenes support.
Visitors are invited to enjoy the garden throughout its restoration, observe how it changes through the seasons, discover something new, and return often enough to watch it grow.
Historical Accounts of Lynn Woods
For more information, click below to view accounts of the Lynn Woods dating back to the 1630's.
"So Near the Metropolis"- Lynn Woods, a Sylvan Gem in an Urban Setting
Elizabeth Hope Cushing. 1988
Lynn Woods, with Pen and Camera
Nathan Mortimer Hawkes. 1893
Alonso Lewis. 1829
William Wood. 1634
Lynn Woods Attractions
Stone Tower
Breed's Pond
Stone Tower
Stone Tower was built for observation in 1936.
Open 8am - 2pm, Sunday-Thursday
Subject to change. Contact the Ranger for weekly schedule at mmarshall@lynnwatersewer.org
Walden Pond
Breed's Pond
Stone Tower
Lynn Wood's largest reservoir, offering serene water views and wildlife. No swimming, fishing or boating in our drinking water.
Breed's Pond
Breed's Pond
Breed's Pond
Formerly a mill pond in 1870, this was Lynn's first water storage purchase after a fire prompted supply concerns.
Steel Tower
Steel Tower
Breed's Pond
On a clearing atop Mount Gilead (272 feet, second highest point in Lynn Woods) includes the metal frame of an old tower.
Wolf Pits
Steel Tower
Wolf Pits
From the 1700's, wolves were a constant threat to livestock. Visit the pits theorized to be wolf traps.
Hiking
Steel Tower
Wolf Pits
Over 30 miles of trails to beautiful vistas and natural features, with varying trail difficulty.
Mountain Biking
Mountain Biking
Mountain Biking
Exiting and challenging opportunities for trail riding. Visit New England Mountain Biking Association for more info.
Rock Climbing
Mountain Biking
Mountain Biking
Excellent bouldering opportunities all over the woods with nearly 1000 routes on mountain project.
Park Hours
Open from sunrise to sunset every day of the week
For your safety and the protection of the woods, the Lynn Woods reservation is closed at night.