Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Observation Area

There are many places that I take pleasure in visiting. There is only one place that I know I can go when something is bothering me that will help me loosen up and forget about frustrating conditions. Blue Hills Reservation located in Caton, MA stretches over 7000 acres providing a green oasis in an urban environment. This area is remarkable for hiking, observing or just relaxing. It's a large region that you have the choice to socialize with other individuals or to just be on your own. It's a great place to interact with others because everybody is friendly and they're mainly down there for the same purpose as you are.
At this mountain the body of land is not a big issue. It's meant for all types of people and caters to all sorts of demographics. There are some problems that I have witnessed that can be recognized as related issues. Blue Hills has several trails categorized from easy to hard. The hard ones are much more intense because they consist of a lot of rocks and different height levels. These are known as the hiking trails. The issue with these is some children and elderly folks cannot commit to those trails. They may not have enough body strength or energy to complete the whole walk. Another incident that I have not witnessed but is sad for me to think of is people with a disability. Depending on your disability you may be able to go but if you are in a wheel chair its certain you cannot. It's hard for me to think of that because those are the individuals who are most likely wanting to get into outdoors but are unable generally. While there are actual paved walkways up to the top of some hills, it would be almost impossible for someone with a disability to get to the top.
At the top of the mountain, there is a tower used for an attraction. This tower was built many years ago specifically as an observatory but isnt the only purpose it is used for now. Today people are able to visit for the reason of the view at the top or even to have a picnic. So the transition of this site from just an observatory to being a "tourist" attraction has possibly even changed the number of visitors or the type of people that visit. Meaning it was probably used for only science before and now it has visitors for entertainment purpose too.
The Blue Hills Reservation is an area where I am able to get away, but also to observe the terrain and other people. In this, I'm able to analyze these factors and forget about my own thoughts. There is so much activity in this green oasis which has so many possibilities for use of the set space.

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