Between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, there is a dirt stretch of the “Bike to the Sea” Northern Strand Community Trail that cuts through marshes along the Saugus River as the waterway wiggles toward the ocean. It’s my favorite part of the bike path that travels 9 miles from Route 16 in Everett toward the Lynn waterfront.

If you’re heading toward the sea, you might begin at the southern end where there’s a community garden at Wellington Avenue/West Street near Main Street and Route 16 in Everett. As the paved path runs through Everett and Malden, it passes behind industrial sites and houses and a couple cemeteries and, in Malden, another community garden.

Northern Strand Bike Trail runs along Rumney Marsh in Revere, Massachusetts. See Route 1 at top right. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail runs along Rumney Marsh in Revere, Massachusetts. See Route 1 at top right. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)

But the bike trail gets really interesting as it becomes dirt and gravel and heads east under Route 1 and along Rumney Marsh in Revere. The path continues north then bends east across Saugus and Lynn, where it passes a garden of plastic flowers just north of Laurel Street (behind 47 Mt. Vernon St., Saugus, I think) then picks up the Saugus River.

These marshy areas are great spots to see birds. During a ride last week, I spotted blue jays, a cormorant, and a group of turkeys. The day before, I saw a hawk (I think) perched atop a tall utility poles. I’ve also seen a flock of gold finches popping out of the bushes under the power lines near the Revere-Saugus border.

Cormorant taking off next to the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Cormorant taking off next to the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Turkeys along the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, just west of Lincoln Ave. in Lynn, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Turkeys along the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, just west of Lincoln Ave. in Lynn, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)

Somewhere between Summer Street and Western Avenue in Lynn the trail, well, trails off. There are hopes to extend the trail all the way to the ocean, but for now you have to follow city streets the rest of the way to the sea.

But let’s get back to that stretch between Lincoln Avenue (at Marsh View Park) and Summer Street in Lynn. Here the path is just dirt cutting through tall grass on a causeway running straight through the winding Saugus River and its marshes. Old railroad tracks remain along the path here, overgrown with grasses and shrubs. There are a couple makeshift bridges over the water.

The Saugus River Yacht Club is at the east end of this stretch and the chimneys of industry can be seen in the distance. But there’s something magical about being in the middle of the river, riding where the railroad has gone to seed, and the path runs untamed.


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A map of the Northern Strand Bike Trail shows how it runs along marshes and rivers as it goes through Saugus and Lynn, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
A map of the Northern Strand Bike Trail shows how it runs along marshes and rivers as it goes through Saugus and Lynn, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Power lines cross the Northern Strand Bike Trail near the boarder of Revere and Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Power lines cross the Northern Strand Bike Trail near the boarder of Revere and Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Garden of plastic flowers along the Northern Strand Bike Trail, just north of Laurel Street in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Garden of plastic flowers along the Northern Strand Bike Trail, just north of Laurel Street in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
A fallen tree over a path just off the main part of the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
A fallen tree over a path just off the main part of the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Birch tree along the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Birch tree along the Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail in Saugus, Massachusetts. Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)
Northern Strand Bike Trail between Lincoln Avenue and Summer Street in Lynn, Massachusetts, Oct. 10, 2018. (Greg Cook)

Help Wonderland keep producing our great coverage of local arts, cultures and activisms (and our great festivals) by contributing to Wonderland on Patreon. And sign up for our free, weekly newsletter so that you don’t miss any of our reporting.


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