Saturday, December 29, 2018

Clinton's Abandoned Train Tunnel



Much like Pennsylvania's Abandoned Highway is a pilgrimage for cyclists to visit at least once in their lifetime, so is walking the abandoned train tunnel in Clinton Massachusetts for anyone with a taste for the creepy. This is such a popular spot to explore, you can even find it pinned as a destination on Google Maps with - as of the day I'm writing this - 72 user reviews and a 4.6 star rating.


To reach the tunnel, park at the Wachusett Dam on Boylston Street and walk north two-tenths of a mile, at which point the entrance will be across the road and a short ways into the woods. Make sure to spend a few minutes admiring the dam, though. It's quite impressive.


Between the graffiti and the darkness, those first few steps into the tunnel can be daunting. We had both flashlights and companions for our trip, and both are recommended. The little dude with the black hat is our son Logan, and the fact that he had joined us tells you this adventure took place in the days before Fortnite was created. We were also joined by our adventure friends from WeRmudfun, who you can see approximately one and a quarter of in this picture.


Inside the tunnel we stopped to take pictures of everything interesting, especially graffiti. Much of it was the kind that would make young boys snicker, but you don't usually find a canvas this big without a few well done pieces.


About halfway through, the tunnel's surface transitions from smooth cement to jagged rocks, almost as if mid-construction the budget was slashed but workers still had to finish. Someday I will get a camera with a flash so I can properly show you details such as this.


These rocky walls provided some challenging areas for the children, to see just how high up they could climb.


In total you'll walk underground somewhere near one thousand feet. Once out the far end things get pretty muddy, and if like me you're tempted to continue walking until you reach a small overpass along the trail, save your sneakers. The excitement is all in the tunnel.


If you're an explorer and you live in New England, you were already aware of the abandoned train tunnel in Clinton Massachusetts. But if you're an explorer and you live in New England, and you weren't aware of the Clinton tunnel, then you still have a little bit more exploring to do.

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